Late season cold snap concerns Valley farmers

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Cloudy skies and rain from this week's storm are a welcome sight for most growers in the Central Valley. But a late February cold snap put a chill on certain crops.

The deputy ag commissioner in Fresno County says his office relies on growers to contact them to report damage. After that, they look at the percentage of loss and use the last year's crop report to determine the value.

The Fresno County Farm Bureau expects the losses to be in the tens of millions of dollars.

"There's a long window when those bloom but it was those that were either open then or set a crop. Especially the early varieties are going to be hardest hit," Ryan Jacobsen of the Fresno County Farm Bureau said.

In additions to almonds blossom trees also produce stone fruits like peaches, plums, and nectarines. Now, oranges and lemons are the concern from this week's rain.The heavy rain and deep snowpack from this storm will help growers through the middle of the year.

"We were at 20 percent of average before the storm coming in. We're hoping this will boost that total quit substantially and gets us a little bit closer to that 50 or 60 percent mark, which will help carry us through those summer months," Jacobsen said.

The deputy ag commissioner expects to the have the final report for 2017 by this summer and will present it to the board of supervisors.