Growers' profit fear as heat spurs New Year buds to bloom
ONLY one in 10 peach blossoms will still be in flower when the Year of the Rabbit arrives, and tangerines are threatening to drop off their stems in the unseasonal heat.
The fruit will be ripe and chrysanthemum plants and peach trees in bloom at least 10 days before the New Year, predicts Lee Chi-yuen, manager of Sai Kung's Kalok Horticulture.
The Year of the Rabbit begins on February 16.
'All the plants have grown faster than usual because of the warm weather,' Mr Lee said. 'Only 10 to 20 per cent of the crop will open on time.
'The weather has completely reversed. You can still wear short sleeves in February.
'Tangerines will have dropped off the stems if warm weather persists.' The early bloomers were popular with restaurant owners, who preferred plants in full blossom than those in bud, he said.
'But most corporate buyers want the peach blossoms in good shape before and after the New Year public holidays so their employees can see them, and only those that sprout at exactly the right time will do,' he added.
Alex Wong, of Greenhouse in Sai Kung, said horticulturists were resorting to tricks to delay flowering.
'The nurseries use soaked cotton balls to calm the peach blossoms down - to [lower] the temperature,' he said.
Chinese daffodils were water-based and their growth was more easily controlled.
'Business has already been dismal because of the bad economy, and now we have the weather,' said Mr Lee, who estimates sales will be down by 40 per cent despite a 15 per cent drop in prices.
'Lucky plants are not that lucky after all,' he said.
Lunar New Year flower markets will be held at Victoria Park and other sites from February 10 to 16.
