Warm weather wreaks havoc on strawberries

Flavour and production of local produce take a hit after hot summer

TOO HOT: Farmers say strawberries go into survival mode when conditions are too warm. Picture: wherelifeishidden

ENDURING the hottest temperatures on record during summer has taken a toll on Southern Downs farmers.

Quicker ripening of fruit has meant flavour has taken a hit and production rates declined.

Eastern Colour director Nathan Baronio said the temperature in January and February was the hottest he'd experienced, with maximum temperatures reading five degrees hotter than average.

"Strawberries and heat are not good friends, our production to took a big hit,” the Applethorpe grower said.

"The plant did not produce the big numbers we've seen it produce in the last two years.”

Mr Baronio said strawberry plants went into survival mode and turned vegetative when conditions were too hot.

"Rather than producing fruit, it produces leaves and runners,” he said.

"In order to control that, we need to send workers in at a higher rate than we've done before to keep the plant compact and tidy.

"If you don't maintain the plant, you'll have a lot of pest and mould issues.”

The flavour of the fruit is also affected, as Mr Baronio said heat hindered the ability of strawberries to grow to size specifications.

"The fruit isn't very sweet,” he said.

"The process is happening so quickly the starch isn't converted to sugar, when you get those tasteless watery strawberries it's usually associated with heat.”

Last week Environment Minister Steven Miles launched a plan to tackle climate change in farming, entitled the Agriculture Sector Adoption Plan.

The plan was developed through a partnership between the Queensland Farmers Federation, AgForce and Growcom.

Increased temperatures is one of the risks identified in the plan, along with changes in rainfall, changes to natural ecosystems, extreme weather events and drought.

Dr Miles said farmers stood to be the hardest hit by a changing climate.

"This plan helps farmers make these changes now to stop them getting caught out later,” he said.

"This could mean infrastructure changes such as building shelter for animals to escape the heat or altering planting times for crops to avoid the hottest parts of the year.”

For Mr Baronio, rising temperatures isn't the only thing that concerns him about climate change.

"What we're seeing and whether this is natural or not, the extremes are getting more extreme,” he said.

"When it's getting colder we're getting minus-six (degrees), we're getting more violent storms and heat.”

Strawberries at Eastern Colour grow under polycarbonate tunnels to protect the fruit from wind, hail and rain.

"If we have really violent storms they can get knocked over,” Mr Baronio said.

"If the plastic breaks or bends, then you've got to replace it.”

Mr Baronio said acting locally was an important part of tackling a changing climate.

"There's no way you're going to stop some of the bigger polluters in the world and what they're doing,” he said.

Mr Baronio believes any push to make operations more efficient would be positive, as long as farmers are kept well informed about the opportunities the plan may create.

"It would be good to see a bit of a drive from the government to do these sorts of things to give them the information, the infrastructure and finances,” he said.

"You can have the best plan but if they don't get it out to the people who will use it it won't be as effective.”