Hong Kong farmers face dismal harvest following harsh winter and frost threat
Vegetables are withering in the cold, says one farmer, while another’s electricity bill skyrockets so he can keep greenhouses heated
Farmers are expecting a dismal harvest as they face a harsh winter, with temperatures plummeting close to zero degrees Celsius.
“Some of the plants have already withered from the cold,” said 78-year-old “Grandma Cheung”, who runs an organic vegetable farm in Yuen Long in the New Territories.
“There’s nothing I can do about it, it’s so cold the plants just don’t know how to grow.”
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Average temperatures have dropped to 3 degrees, with the Hong Kong Observatory issuing a frost warning for the third day in a row, alerting farmers that ground frost is likely to occur in the New Territories.
Cheung, who owns a 5,000 square foot farm growing various vegetables such as romaine lettuce, carrots and celery, does not expect any harvest this month.
She added that it has been one of the colder winters for harvest in the 30 years she’s been in the business.
