Ontario farmers embrace extreme heat after weeks of storms, hail damage crops

Some southwestern Ontario farmers are celebrating as intense heat blankets the region, calling it a welcome change after an unpredictable start to the growing season.

Last Thursday, a severe thunderstorm ripped through the area, bringing torrential downpours, strong winds and hail.

A tornado near Glencoe, Ont., also marked the fourth confirmed tornado in the region since early May, following others near Lucan, through south London and near Melbourne.

Several farmers told CBC News that the extreme weather events have made growing and maintaining crops a challenge.

“It was our first time having hail. It was very different and it caused damage on our bushes and our fruits,” said Hope Parks of Parks Blueberries in Bothwell, Ont.

Parks said the farm had already been struggling to grow blueberries after a particularly long and cold winter, and that heavy pieces of hail wrecked berries that had successfully ripened.

“We estimated on the bushes, we might have lost between a pound to three pounds,” she said, adding that she expects Parks Blueberries will be down about 40 per cent of its blueberries compared to previous years.

In Thamesville, Ont., Adrian Jacques of Sunshine Farms said the latest storm also passed over his cucumber and asparagus crops.

“It came in very quickly and pretty ferociously. We got a little bit of hail, which damaged our cucumber crop a little bit, but I think we’ll be able to come out of it,” Jacques said.

Neither farmer said they expected this many storms when they were first planning their growing season.

“It’s very difficult to foresee conditions for a season,” Jacques said. “Every time you plan on weather conditions being one way, it always shows up differently. If we had a nice little crystal ball, that would be great.”

On Monday, Environment Canada issued an orange-level heat warning for most of southwestern Ontario, stating that maximum temperatures could reach 37 C into the weekend. Humidex values are expected to remain between 33 and 44 C.

Some farmers, such as Roy Phillips from Phillips’ Family Farm, are welcoming the higher temperatures.

“I think most farmers will tell you that in the agricultural crops, a dry year is better,” said Phillips, who grows sweet corn and pumpkins in London, Ont. “The saying goes, ‘a dry year is scary, but a wet year will starve you.’”

When Phillips first planted corn crops in early May, he said the weather was cold, resulting in the plants coming up late and yellow-toned. It wasn’t until a brief period of hot weather in June that they started to green.

“We planted some pumpkins right then, and those pumpkins have come along quite nicely. A week later, we planted some more on different land, but it cooled down a bit and really slowed the germination down. Those pumpkins are struggling right now,” he said.

“The heat we’re getting right now should help them.”

Meanwhile, Parks said that in order for her blueberries to thrive, there needs to be a healthy mix of wet and dry conditions.

“Heat is good for blueberries as long as you have rain,” she said.

That sentiment is shared by farmer Matt Roberts from Adelaide Farms in Arva, Ont.

“We’re farmers. We always complain about the weather because we can’t control it,” he said. “We’re never happy. We’re never complacent with what we get.”

Roberts said the extreme weather conditions have impacted the size of some of his vegetables, such as peppers and potatoes.

“When the plants just aren’t big enough to support the pepper that’s growing, they won’t produce as much of it or might not produce them as big,” he said.

“We’re going to be pulling peppers off early when they’re smaller and basically not at their full maturity yet, which will be OK. We’re able to sell them at the store here, but they’re not exactly the product we’re looking for.”

Other farmers told CBC News that shoppers may notice certain produce is available later than usual, or for a shorter time period overall.