SLO County Rep Says Local Crops Survived Extreme Heat Temperatures in Early July

By Cole Pressler

After extreme heat temperatures recently hit the Central Coast, San Luis Obispo County farmers are saying they were able to protect their crops.

Temperatures reached the triple digits in parts of the Central Coast in early July, according to the National Weather Service. But, early weather forecasts helped farmers and vineyards prepare by pre-watering their crops.

Mark Lea is SLO County’s assistant agricultural commissioner. He said it’s the sunlight, not the heat, that damages crops, and that recent extreme weather has actually helped local products like wine grapes.

“The rains that we’ve had for the last couple years have made the plants really healthy and vibrant, so the canopies on the grape plants themselves are really good for the most part, so that’s going to help alleviate that problem,” Lea said.

While there may have been small-scale issues across the county, Lea said crops avoided widespread damage from the heatwaves.