{"id":1730,"date":"2026-09-22T09:26:23","date_gmt":"2026-09-22T07:26:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.agroborges.com\/en\/?p=1730"},"modified":"2026-09-22T09:29:08","modified_gmt":"2026-09-22T07:29:08","slug":"the-warmest-summer-how-it-affects-fruit-trees-in-lleida-and-tools-to-minimize-sunburn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.agroborges.com\/en\/the-warmest-summer-how-it-affects-fruit-trees-in-lleida-and-tools-to-minimize-sunburn\/","title":{"rendered":"The warmest summer: how it affects fruit trees in Lleida and tools to minimize sunburn"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
The summer of 2026<\/strong> has gone down in history as the warmest ever recorded in Catalonia<\/strong>. This is confirmed by the Servei Meteorol\u00f2gic de Catalunya<\/strong><\/a><\/span>, with a temperature anomaly equal to or greater than +3 \u00b0C<\/strong> compared to the 1991\u20132020<\/strong> period across nearly 85%<\/strong> of the territory. For those working the land in the Lleida plain, this figure is no simple statistic. It has translated into harvests advanced by three weeks, pear sizes reduced by up to 40%<\/strong>, and almonds harvested ten days earlier than usual.<\/div>
\u00a0<\/div><\/div>
The trend, in fact, recurs at every scale. AEMET<\/a><\/strong><\/span> ranks this summer as the warmest recorded in Spain<\/strong> since records began in 1961<\/strong>, and the World Meteorological Organization<\/strong><\/a><\/span> has confirmed that July 2026<\/strong> was tied with July 2024<\/strong> as the warmest July ever recorded on the planet since 1850<\/strong>. Catalonia is not, therefore, experiencing an isolated episode.<\/div>
\u00a0<\/div><\/div>
The heatwaves<\/strong> of June, July, and August<\/strong> have tested every crop<\/strong> in the region (stone fruit, pome fruit, nuts, vineyards, and olive groves), and each has responded differently depending on the irrigation system, variety, and prior condition of the farm. Below, we review what official data indicates, how it has been felt in the field, and which measures have proven to work best against the campaign’s most widespread damage: sunburn.<\/div>
\u00a0<\/div><\/div><\/div>

An unprecedented summer<\/strong><\/h2>
The climate progress bulletin from the Meteorological Service of Catalonia<\/a><\/strong><\/span> confirms that the summer of 2026<\/strong> has clearly exceeded previous records from the summers of 2022 and 2003<\/strong>. 95%<\/strong> of the XEMA<\/a><\/strong><\/span> (Automated Meteorological Station Network) stations with over 20 years of data recorded this summer as the warmest in their series. Furthermore, across all historical series of 75 years or more<\/strong>\u2014including the Fabra Observatory in Barcelona<\/a><\/strong><\/span> (113 years of data) and the Ebro Observatory<\/a><\/strong><\/span> (122 years)\u20142026 ranks first.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\u00a0<\/div>
In the Lleida plain<\/strong>, the combination has been particularly harsh, as extreme heat and severe drought coincided. According to meteo.cat<\/strong>, the season has been very dry across extensive areas of Ponent<\/strong>, with accumulated precipitation<\/strong> below 15%<\/strong> of the reference climate value in some zones. Mollerussa<\/strong> ended the summer with only 1.4 mm<\/strong> accumulated and a dry spell already exceeding 111<\/strong> consecutive days without significant rain. Camarles<\/strong>, in Baix Ebre, did not even reach 2 mm<\/strong> throughout the entire season.<\/div><\/div><\/div>
\u00a0<\/div>
All three months contributed equally. June<\/strong> was very warm, with the first heatwave<\/strong> occurring between June 21 and 24<\/strong>. July<\/strong> set a new absolute maximum temperature record at the Fabra Observatory<\/strong>, reaching 40.9 \u00b0C<\/strong> on the 8th. And August<\/strong> turned out to be the warmest ever measured in Catalonia, with a persistent heat event between the 9th<\/strong> and the 19th.<\/strong><\/div>
\u00a0<\/div><\/div>

Why Has This Summer Hit Crops So Hard?<\/strong><\/h3>
The determining factor has not been daytime maximum temperatures alone, but rather the persistence of the heat and the lack of nighttime relief<\/strong>. The Can Bruixa<\/strong> monitoring station in Barcelona recorded 59 torrid nights<\/strong>\u2014with temperatures remaining at or above 25 \u00b0C<\/strong>\u2014surpassing the previous record of 51<\/strong> set in 2003<\/strong>. This phenomenon has also been felt across the Lleida plain<\/strong>, where crops were deprived of a sufficient nighttime thermal buffer to recover from the stress accumulated throughout the day.<\/div>
\u00a0<\/div><\/div>
At an agronomic level, this combination triggers two main effects. The first is the closure of leaf stomata<\/strong> as a defense mechanism against dehydration, which reduces photosynthesis and halts fruit development right at critical sizing stages. The second is the accentuation of transpiration and water loss from the fruit<\/strong> itself, resulting in smaller fruit sizes, sunburn, and, in extreme cases, the desiccation of entire leaves.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
\u00a0<\/div>
Added to this, XEMA<\/strong> recorded 20 days<\/strong> with temperatures equal to or above 40 \u00b0C<\/strong> at some point in Catalonia<\/strong>, mostly concentrated in Segri\u00e0<\/strong> and Ribera d’Ebre<\/strong>. You would have to go back to 2014<\/strong> to find a year without a single recording of this threshold. The prior accumulated drought in some farms, especially rainfed ones, further restricted the trees’ capacity to cope with stress.<\/div><\/div><\/div>
\u00a0<\/div>
\"Average
Average temperature (summer 2026) \u2013 Servei Meteorol\u00f2gic de Catalunya<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>

How It Has Affected Each Crop in the Lleida Plain<\/strong><\/p>