The dog days weather and the lack of rainfall will cut down this year harvest of bread grains by 25-30%, says Valeriu Bulgari, head of the Republican Union of the Agricultural Producer Association “UniAgroProtect”. Bulgari has stated to Info-Prim Neo that the drought has mostly affected the spring crop, especially in the Northern, North-Eastern and Central areas of the country, where it has been raining less than in the rest of the territory. According to the quoted source, some plants have reached the critical state, including the maize, spring barley, peas, in other words, all the crop with a 25-30 cm superficial root. The same problem is also encountered by the multiannual plantations, orchards younger than 5 years. According to Bulgari, sunflower, maize, multiannual crop can still be saved if it would be raining within the next week. But, as the weather forecast shows, the next days will stay dry and the temperature will reach 26-33 degrees Celsius. The state of the crop which has surpassed the stage when it could have been saved is worse, the expert says. In this respect, to decrease the drought’s negative consequences and to save, at least, some harvest, the specialists recommend to abate the plant number per hectare, to re-sow the spring crop, to perform bladed nourishment of the autumn bread grains, to intensely irrigate. [A chance for fruit trees and vine] According to Ilie Donica, scientific manager of the Institute of Fruit Culture, the fruit harvest isn’t yet discredited. “The apricot tree, cherry tree, sweet cherry tree is resistant to high temperatures. It’s more difficult for the peach tree, plum tree, apple tree, pear tree, quince tree, as they require a bigger quantity of water. In order to improve the situation in the fruit sector, the Department of Agricultural Sciences within the Academy of Sciences recommends all the fruit growers to weed fruits out, to operate by cutting in verdure, to water the orchards with complex mineral fertilizers, to implement plant protection against pests and illnesses, to irrigate, etc. The drought hasn’t got a huge impact on the wine growing crop either, says Tudor Cazacu, deputy manager of the National Institute of Viticulture and Vindication. According to him, at this stage, only the plants which are overloaded with fruits, or which are old enough, could suffer, as well as the plantations which lack the proper works. And, in this case, scientists recommend removing the extra copse, the leaves from the lower side of the vine, of the week inflorescence and the extra ones, etc. [As a result of the drought, only prices to significantly increase] The drought’s first consequences have become felt, as expected, on the market, where the prices of some fruits and vegetables have increased, even when the entire production is to be sold in Moldova, due to the lack of opportunities of agricultural products export. Thus, the local tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet cherries and cherries are priced between 10-13 lei, which is the same as for the imported products. If compared to the same period of the last year, the prices for the cherries, strawberries, apples, cabbage, etc., have increased. More economic agents, as well as ordinary merchants, for all that, state that the real price boom is to happen. “As a result of the drought, our work has doubled and, even more, the irrigation is very expensive. As for vegetables, even if we water them, they are burnt by the sun and heated soil, that’s why this year harvest is much less”, one of the merchants, Vasile Sterbet, says. [Maybe, if rain would fall....] So, the lack of rain is becoming a national issue. Experts say, for all that, not nature is to blame, but the agricultural sector’s deficient administration by the government, which is yearly unprepared for long rains or drought. “This crisis situation can’t be solved out in one day, Valeriu Bulgari says. To recover the situation, more than rain is needed, and namely, a strategical policy that will insist on the irrigation development. You can’t do anything within a week; you need a good few years. And the only thing the farmers can do at this stage, is to make use of all the possible water resources and to pray to God for rain”, Valeriu Bulgari says.