Confronted with unprecedented for decades drought lies the north Europewhich if it continues will significantly affect the crops.
In northern France, Belgium and Britain and other European countries hit by drought, in the spring there were much less rainfall than normal, resulting in some areas completely dry. In the fields there are no crops and Sowing Spring has not yet sprouted due to severe drought.
Luke Ablit, farmer in eastern England, ‘Praying for rain’ as Britain has been facing the dryest spring for one and a half century.
“We go from one end to the other: it was very wet in winter and less in spring and summer,” he explains, who is now thinking of adjusting his methods or “consider other more durable varieties ».
In northern England, water reserves are “particularly, that is, excellent, low”, according to the Environmental Service.
Some farmers already have begin to water earlier than normal, As the NFU Agricultural Association pointed out, which is calling for investments for the installation of water storage tanks in the fields.
In the Netherlands, the most serious drought has been observed since 1906, when records began to be preserved.
In Denmark the meteorological service warned in early May that the previous three months were extremely dry, with less than 63mm of rain.
“Since 1874, only 7 times less rain has been recorded in the February-April period,” he said.
To this are added the increased temperatures above the usual levels. Since May 15, the drought index in Denmark is equal to or greater than 9 – on the scale ranging from 1 to 10 -, which has never happened so early since 2005 when the index was created.
In Sweden it is still “too early to say what the impact on agriculture will be this summer,” the Federation of farmers estimated. She herself recommended to its members to review their design in terms of water.
In France, groundwater reserves are full, but plants need water on the surface of the earth and consequently rain.
Northern France has been declared a vigilant state of drought since Monday: from February to early May, a amount of rain usually drops in a single month.
After all Temperatures are higher than normalmainly in the O-de-de-Frans.
But this intense drought in northern Europe contradicts the south conditions, mainly in Spain and Portugal, where double rainfall was recorded by normal for the season.