Greece | Mangoes, avocados and lychees in the orchards, fruits of climate change

(Kyparissia) Panos Adamopoulos, a farmer in southwestern Greece, stirs the leaves of a shrub. “Right here!” he says, pointing to small, soon-to-be-ripe mangoes, exotic fruits that are incongruous in this land covered with olive trees.

These sweets, originally from Asia, are the first results of a scientific experiment carried out in the Peloponnese peninsula, arid in some parts.

Avocados, lychees, cherimoyas and macadamia nuts have also been planted, with the aim of developing crops that are more resistant to climate change, which is particularly affecting Greece and the Mediterranean region.

The temperatures are sweltering in the summer and rather mild the rest of the year. “There is no more winter,” sums up Panos Adamopoulos, 38, who lives in Kyparissia.

His property, where the trees seem to flow into the Ionian Sea, has not received a drop of rain since March.

But, “without water, there are no crops,” recalls the producer with the salt and pepper beard. The majority of his income comes from iceberg lettuce, which is particularly greedy in this area.

He thinks he will soon have to give up certain crops, such as his precious watermelons, whose juicy flesh requires intense watering.

Hence his interest in exotic fruits, which are “more resistant” to these weather conditions, he emphasizes to AFP.

Its few dozen mango and avocado trees, still discreet compared to the 80 hectares of the estate, are doing well.

Panos Adamopoulos plans to plant 300 more and boasts that he has already received orders for his first harvests, expected this month.

“Saving” agriculture

Teresa Tzatzani, a researcher at the Hellenic Agricultural Organisation DEMETER who is leading the study, explains that it is about “finding ways to deal with climate change and use it to our advantage”.

“The whole year is warmer now, which is good for these plants,” the expert notes.

Mango trees, in particular, need little rainfall, but the last two winters have been unusually dry, according to Teresa Tzatzani.

Although the avocado tree already grew on Crete, a large island further south, scientists were not sure whether it would adapt to conditions on mainland Greece.

Some producers were able to grow them in small quantities in the Peloponnese, but the programme must determine whether these crops are now viable on a large scale, says Antonis Paraskevopoulos, director of agricultural economics for the Trifylia region.

This type of innovation is essential to “save” the sector from future climate “disasters”, he worries, calling for European investments.

” Complement ”

Tropical fruits are not a miracle solution, however.

The program currently only has around ten farmers and around 10 hectares cultivated.

It does not aim to replace flagship productions, such as olives or oranges, but can constitute a “complement”, warns Teresa Tzatzani, who plans to extend the experience to new Greek regions.

Neighbouring countries are experiencing the same problem. In Italy, for example, Sicilian farmers have started producing mangoes, bananas and papayas.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimates that the Mediterranean basin, one of the “hot spots” of climate change, will experience more frequent heat waves and droughts.

Greece has experienced its hottest July on record, according to preliminary weather data from the National Observatory, after a record high in June.

Profitability

Theodoros Dimitrakakis, another Greek farmer taking part in the experiment, said it would take “years” for tropical fruit production to become profitable.

The 44-year-old farmer, although enthusiastic about the experience, says he does not have the means to devote himself to it fully because his livelihood, the olive tree, requires all his attention.

Because of drought and early heat, his production was down 60 percent last year from average, he said.

His village, like many in Greece, is also very often without water for several hours a day, due to shortages.

Theodoros Dimitrakakis, an environmental activist during his university years, admits that he only recently understood that global warming would affect him “right now”.

He hopes to convince other local farmers, some of whom prefer to think that it was just a “bad year”.