8


Late winter has some Okanagan


growers on edge Near-normal snowpack reduces threat of spring flooding – so far


by TOM WALKER & PETER MITHAM


KELOWNA – While wineries in the Okanagan cheered a February cold snap that let them finally harvest grapes for ice wine, some stone fruit growers were casting worried eyes at the thermometer. The coldest temperature


recorded by Environment and Climate Change Canada in the region early last month was -20° Celsius at Kelowna International Airport on February 9. The deepest cold in the south Okanagan came February 7 with a temperature of -13.7° Celsius. Bud samples tested at Summerland Research and Development Centre


indicated no chance of damage to grape vines, but BC Tree Fruits field services staff Charlotte Leaming was less confident about cherries and other soft fruit. “I’m a bit concerned about stone fruits,” says Leaming. “We recorded -21 at Ellison and that may be enough to cause bud damage.”


Ellison sits on the flats east


of Kelowna airport, which is subject to strong winds. “Wind can suck the


protective moisture out of the buds, so when it is cold, and dry, and windy, there is more risk,” she explains. Damage is almost


impossible to identify during the winter, however, and even then, not all plants will exhibit


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Pruning of grape vines in the Okanagan is proceeding in spite of unseasonable cold. TOM WALKER PHOTO


the same degree of damage. “We won’t see bud damage until it starts to warm up,” she says, adding the risk appears small. “We might see some bud damage in some blocks but at this point, I think it will be minimal.” She says growers should monitor their trees but doesn’t think there’s any immediate need to adjust pruning or other management practices. The cold weather hasn’t


always been accompanied by snow.


While southwestern BC


suffered through three days of snowfall warnings, which some dubbed “snowmageddon,” the BC River Forecast Centre indicates that snowpacks in most areas of the province remain at or below normal. “Generally, the province has near normal snowpack for February 1, with the average of all snow measurements across the province at 97%,” the centre reported. “Currently, there are no regions of the province with exceptionally high snowpacks.”


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The greatest accumulation has been in Upper Fraser West, a region hit hard by drought and wildfire in the past two years. The province continues to deem it dry, at a Level 2 drought rating. Snow levels there are 114% of normal. The province says


snowpacks are below normal in four regions, led by the Stikine at 63% (also at Level 2 drought), followed by the Skagit, Similkameen and Liard. Conditions have declined


from a month earlier, thanks to cold, arid conditions. The previous snowpack report on January 1 estimated the province’s snowpack at 103% of normal, while snowpack in the Stikine region was at 72%. Provincial forecasters indicated conditions were unlikely to improve in the first half of February. The influx of Arctic air brought “extremely cold temperatures and limited snow accumulation.” “This pattern is expected to continue at least into the middle of February,” say provincial forecasters. BC typically receives two-


thirds of its annual snowpack by early February. With at least two months of possible snow accumulation to go, the final volume is subject to change.


On the plus side, the


freshet promises a reprieve from the past two years. “There is no significant elevated flood risk present in the current snowpack regionally across the province,” say provincial forecasters, while noting that much will depend on spring weather conditions. “Weather during the


freshet season also plays a key role, and flooding is possible in years with normal snowpack.”


COUNTRY LIFE IN BC • MARCH 2019


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