Several Bulawayo growers have lost their horticulture crops and citrus produce worth thousands of dollars to frost, after a cold-spell came down in the region this weekend. Farmers claim their crops had been destroyed by severe frost which hit most parts of Matabeleland region destroying crops such as tomatoes, flowers and peas.
One grower told newzimbabwe.com: “I lost my entire one hectare of tomato crop to the frost. All along I have been irrigating my crop every day to prevent the frost, but it was all in vain. This is a big loss considering that the tomatoes were near ripping stage.” He added that since he started farming in 2012, he had not experienced such a severe frost, which damaged his entire crop Saturday night.
Early frost can be detrimental to crops especially if the development has been delayed. Over the weekend, temperatures in Bulawayo to as low as minus 14oCelsius. There are already fears that Bulawayo and surrounding areas might face serious shortages of horticulture produce as a result of the frosty damage experience at the weekend.
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