Avocados may be in short supply soon thanks to a California heat wave that has wreaked havoc on the crop. Those wonderful progenitors of guacamole and holders of baked eggs were hit with a double whammy of intense heat and high winds, with many avocado trees being damaged by temperatures that reached as high as 117 degrees. While the blast of heat shouldn’t be much of a problem for avocados this year (unless you shop locally in California or are Tom Selleck), the heat wave may have a long-lasting effect on U.S. avocados.
“After the heat, it takes a while for the effects to manifest themselves, so at this point, we’re uncertain if there is a loss or not to next year’s crop,” California Avocado Commission President Tom Bellamore told the Los Angeles Times. However, he did add that he was seeing a lot of dropped fruit and sunburned leaves at the groves he visited.
For farmers in California, all they can do is wait and see whether the weather will hurt their trees. The effects of the heat right and the end of the season for Hass avocados means that it will be another year before they can asses the true damage.
“We’ve been here for 25 years, and this has never happened before,” Jeanne Davis of Coyote Growers said in an interview with the Times. “There will probably be a minimal amount of avocados for next year because we think that some of the flowers didn’t make it.”
Maybe we should consider it a corrective, since avocados have no right to exist anyway. Or, you know, really go crazy with the guac this year. Just in case.
