These varieties are the most affected, in some places the fruit is destroyed

Over the weekend, frost caused damage to orchards in the vicinity of Kraljevo and Čačak. Early flowering was interrupted by temperatures that dropped below zero. Cherries, plums, and vines suffered the most.

The African heat wave did not bode well for fruit growers. Because he made the fruit bloom three weeks earlier. And that’s why there was a fear of a sudden drop in temperature. And the worst thing is that it has come true. Frost appeared.

– Let’s say, what I’m holding in my hand is Čačanska rodna. I estimate that the damage will be 90 to 100 percent. On Sterlej, I estimate the damage to be around 80 percent – says Milan Šćepović, a fruit grower from Tavnik near Kraljevo.

Opened flowers and newly planted fruits die already at temperatures of -2 degrees. And as this fruit grower, who has 1,500 plum trees told us, the temperature dropped to -5 degrees Celsius in the early morning two days ago.

– No forecast showed that the temperature will go below -1 degree. We have never had frost damage in this orchard. Until now. So it slipped up a bit, so we didn’t make any preparations in terms of protection – said this fruit grower.

Frost damage depends on the stage the fruit is in. In the orchards between Kraljevo and Čačak, the plum fruit was already formed. But after one frost, most orchards look like this.

Damage ranges from 30 to 100 percent recorded in most of Western Serbia, but also in some parts of Central Serbia. In addition to plums, cherries, apples, pears, raspberries, and vines suffered.

– The frost was extremely intense and lasted for a very long time. There was a frost of combined origin. The Weather Service is definitely on schedule. Because producers would be prepared to protect the trees – says Aleksandar Leposavić from the Institute of Fruit Growing in Čačak.

The greatest fear of fruit growers is not frost, but uncertainty. Climate change is causing more and more unstable weather conditions, and experts warn that large temperature fluctuations will become more frequent in the future.