August 8, 2012

The yield outlook of summer crops in Hungary diminished due to dry and extremely hot weather.

The ripening of winter cereals was unfavourably accelerated and harvest started 10 days earlier than usual. The weather did not hamper the harvesting. Winter wheat yield forecast is moderate.

The temperature was higher than average with the only exception of 3-4 milder days between mid-June & mid-July. Two heat waves penalised the crop production between June 16-22 and June 29-July 11. During these hot spells the daily maximum temperatures exceeded 30°C, but in the first 10 days of July frequently heightened to +34°C - +39°C setting new records. The development of summer crops accelerated further and now indicates 1-2 weeks advance.

After favourable rains in May, the precipitation tendency decreased from mid-June. Scarce and insufficient rainfall was reported from the southern and eastern regions. In these areas the precipitation deficiency reached 50-100% causing serious water shortage.

The northern and western half of Hungary received 40-70 millimetres precipitation during the last 30 days, but this water income still was not sufficient to fulfil the increased water demand. The dry weather facilitated a fast harvest of cereals until now. The grain quality of wheat is very good due to dry weather conditions, partly compensating for the lower production.

The sudden high temperatures of the first hot spell might have penalised mainly the cereals in the last part of grain filling. During the second hot wave the extreme temperatures and low soil moisture contents caused heat and water stress for sunflower and corn in the most sensitive flowering phase, when good water supply is crucial for the yield formation.

There are arising concerns about the future water availability of spring crops. The biomass accumulation of all summer crops decreased considerably and consequently the yield forecast was revised down sharply.