And this is supposed to be spring? Cold, rain and sometimes even snow and frost have been causing uncomfortable weather and icy accidents in Bavaria for days. Fruit growers fear frost damage to the flowers of their trees and plants, and winegrowers in Franconia are also worried. Pollinators such as bees and bumblebees also do not fly when it is too cold and wet. But there is hope: a look at the temperature curve from the German Weather Service showed on Tuesday that it should get significantly warmer towards the weekend. If the forecasts come true, the thermometer could rise to up to 23 degrees towards the weekend.
The reason for the current weather misery is a low over northern Italy. This is pushing moist air into Bavaria, said Guido Wolz from the German Weather Service (DWD) in Munich. The outlook is correspondingly gloomy: rain or even snow, moderate to fresh westerly wind as well as freezing wet conditions and night frost down to minus 4 degrees.
Wolz promises a turnaround for Friday: “It means that the temperatures will rise significantly.” Meteorologists are expecting temperatures between a mild 17 and 23 degrees, especially next weekend. It is still uncertain whether the wonderful spring weather will last until May 1st. It could be spring-like, Wolz ventures a cautious forecast for the holiday, when maypoles are put up in many places.
But we still have to be careful, as the DWD makes clear with weather warnings, including those for Wednesday night. Last night it was largely quiet on the roads, unlike at the weekend when there were many accidents due to the onset of winter.
On Tuesday morning, police headquarters reported hardly any accidents when asked. However, on the snow-covered Autobahn 7 near Seeg (Ostallgäu district), a driver lost control of his vehicle late on Monday evening and overturned. The police said he was driving with summer tires. The 26-year-old was uninjured and the A7 towards Nesselwang was closed for a short time.
“The fruits change color and then fall off.”
However, the situation is critical for fruit and vegetable farmers. After midsummer days at the beginning of April, cherry and apple trees bloomed earlier than usual, and now there is a risk of frost damage. The colder it is and the longer the cold lasts, the more difficult it becomes, said Thomas Riehl from the Franconian Fruit Growers Association in Kitzingen. Two or three hours of more or less night frost made a difference. Strawberries are currently in full bloom in many fields, says Riehl. If flowers turn dark, they are damaged. Some of the cherries and plums had already bloomed two weeks ago. Their fruits are only a few millimeters in size and are ultimately even more sensitive than the flowers. “The fruits change color and then fall off.”
The association cannot estimate how the cold snap will affect the yield and quality of fruit and vegetables. It was warm until October, so the blooms were very strong this spring. In this way, any losses could perhaps be mitigated. Patrick Scharl from the Bavarian Commercial Fruit Growing Association is also concerned because pollinators such as bees and bumblebees do not fly in this weather.
Extreme cold could also be dangerous for delicate asparagus. After the frosty night on Monday, Scharl reported that he heard from asparagus farmers that the tips of their green asparagus had frozen.
In Franconia’s vineyards, two nights below zero degrees have already had a significant impact. “We have severe frost damage. 50 percent of the areas are affected, although to varying degrees,” said the managing director of the Franconian Winegrowers Association, Hermann Schmitt. The first shoots with the so-called main eyes, which are particularly productive, were frozen. Now the winemakers were hoping for the second growth. Wine grows on around 6,300 hectares in Franconia. The frost hit the winegrowers particularly hard in 2011, 2017 and 2020. This year the vines sprouted three to four weeks earlier than usual.