The night of Friday will decide whether the Upper Austrian winegrowers’ harvest will be poor this year or not: It will be really cold once more, but the vines have already sprouted due to the warm weather at the beginning of April.
The cold snap takes a toll on the sensitive shoots. “We know from previous years that this can lead to severe yield losses or even the total failure of entire vintages,” says State Agricultural Councilor Michaela Langer-Weninger.
Temperatures can drop as low as -6 degrees
Compared to “heaps of snow and frost” in Carinthia and Styria, it has been relatively mild in Upper Austria so far, says meteorologist Alexander Ohms from Geosphere Austria. After the slightly sub-zero temperatures from Wednesday to Thursday, temperatures at higher altitudes – for example in the Mühlviertel – might fall to minus six degrees next night. Minus one degree is also expected in the lowlands. “This is only a light frost, but it can still be a problem for the newly sprouted vines,” says Ohms.
According to Upper Austria’s winegrowing president Leo Gmeiner, the first frost damage has already occurred in the Perg district and in Haselgraben. “For one company, we are expecting a crop loss of more than 50 percent following the frost morning last Monday.” But you still have to wait for the next few days, as young shoots can recover once more.
The reason for the temperatures below freezing is the combination of three factors: the cold air, the decreasing wind and a clear sky. Above all, the lack of cloud cover promotes ground frost.
“Shoots can withstand down to -2 degrees”
The hope for winegrowers now remains that the temperatures in the growing areas will not fall too far. “The shoots can withstand temperatures down to minus two degrees for a short time. We get away with a black eye,” says Gmeiner.
According to the wine grower, fog on frosty mornings might help: “The plumes protect the frozen shoots from direct sunlight. Otherwise, this can destroy the cells like a beam through a magnifying glass.”
According to Geosphere Austria’s forecasts, if the vines survive the night from Thursday to Friday, the danger will be averted.
Author
Lena Gattringer
Editor Life
Lena Gattringer
