In most parts of Europe, winter cereals have enjoyed the relatively warm autumn weather. In some regions, this temperature extended the dry summer. This had a limited impact on the emergence of winter cereals.
So far, autumn has been particularly warm in many parts of Europe. It was even the warmest autumn since 1991, the European Commission's scientific office (JRC) reports in the November edition of the JRC MARS Bulletin. This favorable circumstance, combined with sufficient rainfall, ensured smooth sowing and emergence of winter grains in many countries. Seeds sown later were also able to catch up in terms of growth due to the temperature. This may have a negative effect on the frost tolerance of the young crop. The mercury is now dropping more towards normal around this time of year, but the temperature remains above average in European terms.
Drought in Southern Europe
The heat and drought hit the southern European countries hardest last summer, and this is again the case in some regions. Higher temperatures and persistent rainfall shortages are causing delayed sowing and difficult emergence in parts of Italy and Spain. This also applies to the other side of the Mediterranean. Just like last year, precipitation shortages are extreme in the North African countries. There are also concerns about the drought in the coming growing season.
There is still a precipitation deficit in Central and Eastern Europe. Sowing went well, but due to the lack of precipitation, the crop did not emerge well and remained underdeveloped in parts of Poland, Bulgaria and Romania. In some regions this will probably even lead to over-sowing in the spring.
According to the European Commission, there is still uncertainty about the area of winter grains for next season because not everything has been sown yet. The expectation is that at European level the difference is small compared to last year. There may be fluctuations in the area of winter grain per country.