For many German farmers, the late June heatwave could not have come at a worse time. Barley was already ready for harvest in most of Germany, but drought hit other crops, especially at a vulnerable stage of development.
“This is another difficult year for farms,” Horst Gorman of Germany’s North Rhine-Westphalia Chamber of Agriculture told DW.
Corn has been particularly hard hit because the heatwave coincided with the flowering season, he said. “We’re already seeing some corn plants fail to form on the cob, which of course essentially amounts to a complete crop failure,” Gorman said.
In corn, energy is concentrated in the cob. Without them, yields drop dramatically.
June’s heat wave, with highs of over 40 degrees Celsius, hit other growing regions of Europe even harder. This reduced the value of Europe’s grain harvest by more than 2 billion euros ($2.3 billion), with France and Hungary suffering the biggest losses, according to a recent analysis by Koceral, the European grain trade association.
Due to the heat wave, Koceral has lowered its grain production forecasts for the European Union and the UK by just under 9 million tonnes (down 3%). The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit (ECIU), a London-based research institute, also predicts a 5% decline. Corn accounted for the largest share of the downward revisions to European grain forecasts, accounting for about half of the adjustments.
A heatwave in late June negatively affected this year’s harvest in Germany Image: Boris Roessler/dpa/picture Alliance
German farmers need to diversify
The weather also took a toll on wheat and barley. In some cases, barley was harvested several weeks earlier than usual.
Gorman said this year’s barley harvest is expected to be slightly below average. Wheat is expected to suffer a loss of approximately 10%.
Risk diversification is therefore an important adaptation strategy. Rather than growing just one type of grain, many farms rely on different types of grain at different stages of maturity.
“We don’t know when we’re going to have heat waves like this,” Gorman said. He explained that farmers who grow multiple varieties spread their risk across different stages of development.
In this respect, barley has a natural advantage. It matures earlier than wheat, and grain formation is often completed before the onset of major droughts in early summer.
Experts say irrigation is only valuable for crops, not all fruit Image: Julian Stratenschulte/dpa/picture Alliance
Fruit tree cultivation struggles with late frost and sunburn
Drought threatens crops in the field, but late frost is a major concern in fruit growing. Due to climate change and milder winter temperatures, flower buds, which eventually develop into fruit, form faster. However, cold nights can still occur in the spring.
Therefore, many fruit growers protect their flowers with frost sprinklers. Spraying water over the flowers will form a layer of ice. “This traps enough heat inside so temperatures don’t drop as much as they would without frost sprinklers,” Gorman explains. These systems can also be used for irrigation during the long dry periods of summer.
There are also technological solutions to combat heat. Nowadays, the sunshade net not only protects people from bad weather, but also plays the role of shading fruits and preventing sunburn.
Additionally, experiments are already underway to grow fruit and wine using translucent photovoltaic films. They generate electricity and protect plants from excess sunlight while allowing enough light to pass through.
However, Gorman believes that while irrigation is an important tool, it is not always economically viable. He said vegetables, potatoes and fruits yield high returns and justify the investment. He added that for grain and corn, irrigation is not worth it. “It’s simply too expensive,” he says.
Water is mainly supplied from groundwater. Despite frequent droughts, Germany is not a water-starved country. “Basically, Germany still has plenty of water,” Gorman stressed. Rather, he says, the problem is unequal distribution. There is heavy rain in the winter, but there are many sunny days in the summer.
Scientists are experimenting with crop varieties that are resistant to heat and drought Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F. Lumpenhorst
New varieties suitable for warm climates
Plant breeding plays a central role. Varieties with genetic origins in warmer regions of Europe are already cultivated in North Rhine-Westphalia.
“For wheat, for example, we already use genetics from France extensively,” Gorman says. Local climatic conditions have already shifted to Germany in some respects.
Short-stemmed grains known as semi-dwarfs have been around for many years. Short stems produce fairly heavy ears that are less likely to break in heavy rain, hail, or wind, and require less water.
Research is also underway into wheat varieties with deeper roots. Current research at Germany’s Julius Kuhn Institute, the Federal Research Center for Cultivated Plants, aims to develop a wheat that dynamically responds to drought, with roots growing deeper only when topsoil water is lacking.
A farmer protects peach buds with a thin layer of ice from the frigid temperatures of a spring night Image: Sebastian Willnow/dpa/picture Alliance
Soybeans and cereals are just niche products
The agricultural sector is also experimenting with new crops. Soybeans are currently grown in some parts of Germany, albeit on a very small scale. Experiments with millet, a crop known from arid regions around the world, have also been carried out, but again on a much smaller scale. Even wine cultivation is gradually expanding northward, and this is a visible sign of a change in the vegetation zones.
For Gorman, soil conditions are at least as important as new crop varieties. He said it was important to avoid soil compaction so the roots could penetrate deeper into the ground.
Farmers adapt modern agriculture to climate change
Gorman said farmers need to adapt to constantly changing conditions. What’s new, however, is the pace. Climate change used to occur over many generations, but now it becomes noticeable within just a few decades.
“Everything is happening so fast right now,” he said.
At the same time, modern agriculture has much better options than previous generations. New varieties are developed within a few years, and international breeding companies are continually working to develop plants that are more tolerant of drought and heat.
For agricultural experts, one thing is certain: the increase in extreme weather events over the past few years is no coincidence. He sees the severe drought of 2018 and 2019 and the recent heatwave as part of a trend.
“This could certainly be due to new climate changes,” Gorman told DW.
Agriculture must therefore continue to adapt, as it has adapted for centuries, he noted, adding that it must adapt much more quickly than before.
German municipalities impose water restrictions
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This article was originally published in German.
