Freakishly Wet Summer Flattens UK Agriculture - Wheat Harvest Halved

[hatrack]

EDIT

"But, like their colleagues across Britain, they are facing a multiple-whammy this harvest time. The Meteorological Office has forecast that this August will be the wettest on record. So far there has been more than 140 per cent of the average rainfall for the month - about 170mm. While landslides in Scotland and Cornwall made the news, worst hit has been the north of England, where nearly double the seasonal average has fallen. September is predicted to be even more unsettled.

According to the National Farmers' Union (NFU) as much as half of Britain's wheat remains uncut. A similar fate has befallen other crops. Thousands of acres of oilseed rape has been ploughed back into the ground and thousands of tons more was lost when it failed to germinate during the dry autumn last year.

Peas, another vital cash crop to the British farmer, have been lost by the hundreds of acres as the ground became too waterlogged for the huge mechanised vining crews to reach them. Prime crops have been left to dry, and with luck, may be rescued and ground down to be used as animal feed.

To make matters worse, prices for agricultural commodities remain at historic lows after countries such as France, Spain and Italy - which saw their fields wither in last summer's continental heatwave - have reported bumper yields."

EDIT

http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/environment/story.jsp?story=554806

[kestrel91316]

1. Sounds almost as bad as my garden.........................

here in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles I used to be able to grow almost all my own vegetables. Not any more. The climate has become so screwball/unpredictable/FUBAR (take your pick) that this summer was a virtual wipeout, even the tomatoes. All I have to show in 7 large raised beds is 7 Small Sugar Pumpkins and 4 zucchini, plus less than a pound of tomatoes (50-60 lb is typical). Hate to say this, but famine awaits us if this continues. On the up side, it will rather neatly take care of our nation's obesity epidemic.

[amandabeech]

2. What was the limiting factor? Lack of water? n/t