Has climate change had any impact on the crop growing season in Georgia?

Rising temperatures and other symptoms associated with climate change are the cause of a longer growing season for crops in Georgia, say experts. While a longer season can mean increased yields for farmers, it can also allow less time for plants to go dormant and rejuvenate.

“Temperatures have been rising over time in Georgia, since about 1965,” said Pam Knox, agricultural climatologist and director of the University of Georgia Weather Network. “The growing season is defined by 32 (degrees Fahrenheit) for most crops.

"The earlier start to the growing season means that farmers can start planting earlier. This also means they can plant varieties that grow longer, which usually increases their yields.”

Climate change and double cropping

Knox said with a longer growing season there are some advantages for farmers and producers.

“There’s an increased opportunity to double-crop, which means planting one crop, harvesting it and then planting a second crop that grows in the second half of the growing season,” she said.

Many farmers already do this with crops like corn followed by cotton once the corn is harvested, she said.

“The advantage to double-cropping is that they have increased their resilience because now they have two income streams from the two crops instead of relying on just one crop," said Knox.

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Cold snaps becoming more difficult to predict

But while climate change has created an opportunity to grow more crops, Knox said it also created uncertainty when calculating when the last frost will occur.

“We're not likely to see frost in June or July, except up in the really isolated areas of the mountains in the northeast (part of the state), but there are other outliers," she said. "We have had frost well into April before. Doesn't happen all that often, but it does happen occasionally.”

Popular fruit crops grown in Georgia like blueberries and peaches can come to ruin due to warmer winters.

"Most fruit crops in Georgia depend on having cold weather in the winter. If they don’t have that cold weather they don’t bloom very well. If they don't bloom very well, they don't get a good set of blossoms. If they don't get a good set of blossoms, they don't get good fruits, so the yield goes down.”

Knox recalls what can happen if winter isn't cold enough.

“When we have warmer winters, like we did last year, the plants bloom early because they're ready to go, and then we got hit with frost in March. ... It caused tremendous problems with the peach crop in Georgia. We lost over 90% of our commercial peach crop last year."

Soil temperatures on the rise

Knox said if the growing season is increasing, that means soil temperatures are also increasing.

Campbell Vaughn, agriculture and natural resources agent for University of Georgia Richmond County Extension Office, said earlier springs are impacting plants.

“Growing leaves too early can cause the plant to grow faster in the spring,” said Vaughn. “Then by the time the fall rolls around, they've had enough and are ready to shed their leaves and ready to go dormant.

"If you want to shift this into a climate change trend, I believe we’re seeing some plants spending more time than they used to in a warm soil period longer than they have in the past – giving less time into dormancy. This prevents a much needed time for plants to rejuvenate.”

This reporting content is supported by a partnership with several funders and Journalism Funding Funding Partners.

Erica Van Buren is the climate change reporter for The Augusta Chronicle, part of the USA TODAY Network. Connect with her at [email protected] or on X: @EricaVanBuren32.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Climate change plays a role in growing season impacting agriculture