A frost event in Hungary on May 1 will lead to severe losses in the grape harvest in the Great Plain. The wine-growing regions of Hajós-Baja are particularly affected, where 1,500 of the 1,800 hectares were damaged, and Kunság, where no grapes are expected to grow on three-quarters of the 20,000 hectares of vineyard area. This is reported by the Hungarian agricultural news website Agrárágazat. In some places, new record lows were measured on this date with temperatures below minus 5 degrees Celsius.
The sprouted vines were already weakened by the drought in April and thus more sensitive to sub-zero temperatures. According to Agrárágazat, the financial losses amount to 30 billion forints (around 84 million euros). The costs for further care of the vineyards, which will yield no harvest this year and smaller yields in the following years, are estimated at around 2,000 euros per hectare.
Hungary’s viticulture is also suffering greatly from the vine disease Flavescence dorée (golden yellowing), as wein.plus reported in the autumn.
(al; Image: Wikimedia Commons Karl Bauer)
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Champagne fears a third of harvest loss due to frostGolden yellowing is taking on massive proportions in HungaryGolden yellowing affects Tokaj vineyards