The USDA has found that orange production dropped by 30% between hurricanes Ian and Nicole. Citrus farmers in Central Florida are figuring out how much damage might have been done by the recent cold weather.
Lake County and the whole state of Florida are known for their orange groves. Mary Graham has lived on her farm for many years, but her husband’s family has owned it for over a hundred years. What used to be a farm for making money is now a place where people go to pick their fruits and vegetables.
Graham said, “The u-pick citrus trees have been trendy.”
But it was cold this past weekend. Citrus trees don’t do well in temperatures below freezing. The Graham family is used to cold weather, so they were able to protect the crop.
“We did fine. Even though it was cold, we didn’t worry about it here in the orange groves. “Most of our oranges have already been picked,” Graham said.
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The Graham family grows both citrus fruits and peaches. But things have been different this year. Graham said, “This peach tree bloomed a long time before it should have.”
Mary told Spectrum News that peaches bloom in Florida between January and February. But because the months before had been warmer, her trees bloomed earlier.
Some peaches didn’t make it through the cold, but others were just the right size to hold enough water and keep blooming. But winter isn’t over yet. What people can pick during the next harvest season will depend on the weather.
Mary Graham said that many types of peach trees don’t do well in our area because of the weather. She said that a peach tree should look like it is dead.
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