Warmer weather raises concerns for Michigan’s fruit growers

Fruit experts in Michigan say they’re concerned about the state’s fruit trees and bushes getting their buds out too early due to the unusually warm weather.

Michigan State University Extension Service fruit educator Mark Longstroth tells MLive the warm temperatures will be “a little worrisome,” if they continue and the buds start waking up in the region’s peach trees and apricot orchards.

Longstroth says that if the buds start swelling now, they could be vulnerable to cold temperatures later this spring.

Steve Tennes, owner of Country Mill Orchard in Charlotte, tells WLNS-TV that an early spring could be devastating. He says he tries to prevent the trees from budding and lessen the risk of a total loss by using frost fans and experimenting with misting.  (AP)