Drought and high temperatures have already led to substantial crop losses in the Banat region. While recent rainfall has provided some relief, the amount of precipitation is insufficient to restore yields or save crops severely damaged by the ongoing dry spell.
Branko Bunić from Hetin has experienced the effects of climate change twice this year. An April frost destroyed his poppy seeds, and the corn he planted afterward suffered from the June heat. “It can’t even grow as green mass or anything. What can I do? Nothing. The main problem is the lack of rain. There’s no irrigation canal nearby, so neither I nor my neighbors can water the fields,” Bunić explains.
Damage to corn crops is widespread across Banat, with very few areas receiving even 30 liters of rainfall per square meter—an amount too small to revive the plants. “Much of the corn and sunflower crops have burned and dried out. This precipitation won’t be enough to compensate, especially since these crops are in their fertilization stage, which requires high water consumption,” says Zorica Rajačić from the Zrenjanin Agricultural Extension Service.
Sugar beet crops face new challenges as the recent moisture has encouraged infections, raising the risk of cercospora disease. Meanwhile, alfalfa sown this fall at the Hetin Agricultural Cooperative has not benefited from the rain, lagging behind in growth and failing to produce seeds.
“The soil is softer now, but the alfalfa looks unhealthy and is lacking nutrients. We’ve had about 15 liters of rain over four days, which is almost nothing. There’s no dew either,” says Ana Maria from Hetin. She hopes for more rain despite upcoming high temperatures.
The severity of the water shortage is also visible at Stari Begej, near the Romanian border, where the water level is 114 centimeters below normal, with the riverbed at biological minimum levels.
