Assessment of Growing Thermal Conditions of Main Fruit Species in Portugal Based on Hourly Records from a Weather Station Network

Abstract

Thermal conditions in mainland Portugal were evaluated using a new hourly database over the recent period of 2000–2018 (19 years). The number of hours within each different temperature interval was calculated from the long-term means of the hourly temperatures of a network of 63 meteorological stations. A geostatistical approach, using elevation, distance to coastline and latitude, was subsequently applied to provide gridded patterns at a high spatial resolution (1 km grid spacing). Eight fruit species (almond tree, carob tree, chestnut tree, citrus fruits, cork oaks, holm oaks, olive trees, and grapevines) were selected to assess their hourly thermal growing conditions. The results highlight the strong spatial variability of temperature levels in mainland Portugal, providing new insights into their spatial distribution. The number of hours in the year with cool conditions (4–12 °C) is higher in the northern-central regions, mainly in mountainous areas. Additionally, the number of hours in the year with temperate conditions (12–20 °C) emphasizes the importance of the distance to the coastline (maritime influence). The warm conditions (20–28 °C) are most prevalent in the south of the country and in the Douro valley, whereas the very warm conditions (number of hours with temperature between 28–36 °C) are essentially restricted to inner-southern Portugal and to the upper Douro valley. This study also reveals, with high accuracy, the thermal growing conditions of main fruit species in mainland Portugal, giving particular emphasis to olive trees and grapevines. These findings may help decision support systems providing more reliable and accurate guidelines to stakeholders, decision-makers, and farmers. The main maps are available in a widely used file format (shapefile), thus allowing their application to a wide range of other areas of interest.

Influence of Climate Change on Chestnut Trees: A Review

“…The chestnut species has a good capacity for dynamic colonization, associated with large adaptability, resulting from their genetic and physiological characteristics [ 26 , 27 ]. Geographical parameters, such as latitude and elevation play an important role in chestnut tree cultivation.…”

Assessment of Climate Change Impacts on Chilling and Forcing for the Main Fresh Fruit Regions in Portugal

“…In particular, for apple (Severino et al, 2011;Cardoso et al, 2015), pear (Kretzschmar et al, 2011;Hussain et al, 2015), plum (de Carvalho et al, 2010;Ruiz et al, 2018), a period of relatively low temperatures is needed for regular budding (chill accumulation). For the case of citrus, such as oranges, these plants are usually grown in warmer climates, and exposure to cold temperatures (<5 • C) may result in chilling injuries (Yuen et al, 1995;Santos et al, 2019). When spring arrives, forcing becomes a much stronger driver of tree phenology than chilling (Luedeling et al, 2013), and a period of warm temperatures (heat accumulation) is needed for adequate blooming and fruit ripening (Arroyo et al, 2013;Drepper et al, 2020;Rodriguez et al, 2020;Cho et al, 2021).…”

Carob: A Sustainable Opportunity for Metabolic Health

“…Carob shows resistance against droughts (xerophytic), and it has the ability to prevent erosion, soil degradation, and desertification [ 15 ]. According to Santos and co-workers (2019), regions with warm temperatures (16 to 36 °C) for more than half of the hours per year are favorable for the growth of carob trees [ 70 ]. Consequently, carob could play a significant role in the fire protection of agro-forest ecosystems in the Mediterranean countries [ 70 ].…”

“…According to Santos and co-workers (2019), regions with warm temperatures (16 to 36 °C) for more than half of the hours per year are favorable for the growth of carob trees [ 70 ]. Consequently, carob could play a significant role in the fire protection of agro-forest ecosystems in the Mediterranean countries [ 70 ]. Carob can be further used in reforestation actions to revalorize marginal lands, as CO 2 sinks to mitigate global warming effects.…”