A severe heatwave has hit the Jordan Valley's banana plantations. Despite the prevention measures adopted by growers, large portions of banana plantations are affected by wilt, causing significant financial losses.They stressed that the lack of water in the area, especially in summer, has exacerbated the problem due to the lack of rain in the Kingdom; only a few can rely on artesian wells.Banana grower Ayman Mohammed said that banana trees need large amounts of water, pointing out that the cultivation of bananas in the Kingdom is limited to areas of the Jordan Valley where the climate is suitable for their growth.He added that the country's banana plantations have suffered multiple natural disasters in recent years, including frost and winds, which led to financial losses and inability to repay their lendings.He explained that the measures taken by the government in the event of any natural disaster are useless, as they are limited to compensations that do not cover the production costs from the process of buying seedlings, electricity and water, as well as freight.Banana growers in the Jordan Valley have been asked to continue taking appropriate actions to protect their plantations of damages caused by high temperatures, such as irrigation and shading from direct sunlight.The Director of Agriculture in the Jordan Valley, Abdulkarim Al Shehab, explained that "bananas and vegetables that have not yet matured are the most likely to be negatively affected by the heatwave, stressing that the growing season in the region is on the verge of completion and there are no longer any large areas of crops that could potentially be harmed."

Source - http://www.freshplaza.com/