Associated Press
04-13-07
Fruit growers in Iowa hang on to hope
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
CEDAR RAPIDS - Fruit growers in eastern Iowa are hoping that recent freezing
weather won't hurt their crops.
Even if up to 80 percent of some fruit tree blooms died, there could still be a fairly
normal crop, said Patrick O'Malley, a commercial horticulturist for Iowa State
University Extension.
"We usually have a profusion of blooms, but we only need a few of those
blooms," he said.
Temperatures in eastern Iowa fell to as low as 14 degrees in Cedar Rapids last
weekend.
While apricot trees probably won't recover from the freezing weather, apple and
pear trees have both early- and late-blooming varieties, so some have a good
chance.
O'Malley said Iowa's developing wine industry won't likely suffer much from
freezing temps. And, as long as there's mulch around strawberries, O'Malley said
they should survive as well.