The exit of winter crops from dormancy is one of the factors that may lead to adjustments in Ukraine’s crop structure, ProAgro Group reports.

According to Ukrainian Agrarian Confederation CEO Pavlo Koval, no drastic changes in planted areas are expected, although certain corrections remain possible. Their scale will primarily depend on the condition of winter crops after overwintering.

“If part of winter rapeseed dies — and there are already reports from some farms in the southern regions that even the central shoot of the plant has frozen, not just the side leaves — this likely means that part of the crop will be lost in those enterprises,” Koval said.

According to him, up to one-third of winter rapeseed acreage is currently considered at risk, especially in areas with insufficient snow cover. In total, winter rapeseed is planted on approximately 1.1 million hectares in Ukraine.

“If rapeseed does not completely die out in a particular field but becomes thinner, farmers may still keep the crop, apply additional fertilization and then assess further action depending on weather conditions, as reseeding would be more expensive,” Koval added.

Winter wheat is also facing certain risks at this stage. In southern regions and the southern parts of central Ukraine, compressed ice crusts have already formed, restricting air access to plants and potentially causing damage. Alternating thaws and nighttime frosts further aggravate the situation.

As reported earlier, despite extreme frosts this winter, no mass damage to winter crops has been recorded so far. However, the further development of crops will largely depend on weather conditions at the end of winter and in early spring.

Source: Delo.ua