Dürre in Brandenburg: Farmers fear a loss of up to 80%!

Dürre in Brandenburg: Farmers fear a loss of up to 80%!

Groß Machnow, Deutschland - The persistent drought in Südbrandenburg is creating farmers like Lilian Guzmán Pfeiffer. The chairwoman of the Groß Machnow agricultural cooperative observed with concern how their corn and sunflower fields dry up. Since the end of February, the region has been suffering from a drastic lack of water that means that only about half of the usual precipitation has fallen. According to estimates by the farmers' association Südbrandenburg, crop failures of up to 80 percent are possible, which is seriously threatened for farmers.

In the previous year, massive 200 hectares of grain were destroyed by hail before harvesting. The sandy floors are particularly affected, which dry out even faster due to heat and wind. "Nothing is growing without water," says Thomas Goebel, the chairman of the farmers' association. This challenge is also serious for dairy farmers, since the drought massively affects the feeder harvest.

alternative cultivation methods and irrigation

Guzmán Pfeiffer holds around 100 suckler cows, which usually graze in the pasture all year round. In the winter months, she feeds hay that she harvested herself. She is currently also testing the strip-style process to mitigate the negative effects of dryness. With this method, the soil is less disturbed, which reduces evaporation. In addition, to improve the water supply, she grown the mixed silphie, a plant that is able to get water from deeper layers of the soil. In order to secure the harvest, it has formed reserves from the previous year if the harvest is bad this year.

Throughout Germany, irrigation is an issue that has been gaining in importance for years. In 2022, over 554,000 hectares of arable land were irrigated - an increase of almost 50 percent compared to 2012. However, only 3.3 percent of the arable land in Germany is irrigated, while on average it is 70 percent. The common mobile drum irrigation has its advantages, but also has high water losses of up to 40 percent due to evaporation. On the other hand, more efficient methods such as the drip irrigation require complex installation and regular maintenance.

The future in the sign of climate change

Katrin Drastig from the Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Technology and Bioeconomy sees great potential for improvement in water use in agriculture. Water saving is emphasized as a central challenge, since more agricultural products have to be generated with every liter of water. It is also forecast that the rainfall will be less stable in the future and that they will be increasingly moving in autumn and winter months. Experts therefore recommend growing crops that are better adapted to a warmer climate, such as millet or quinoa. Agroforsten where trees are planted in and on the edge of fields could also be a solution, even if there are concerns that this could make the use of agricultural machines more difficult.

While farmers in the region suffer from these extreme weather influences, Guzmán Pfeiffer remains optimistic. By diversifying her production and the use of alternative cultivation methods, she tries to counteract water stress. As she emphasizes: "There is something and I won't give up." It is a generation task to prepare agriculture for the new climatic challenges and at the same time to secure domestic products.

Overall, agriculture in Germany remains with significant challenges when it comes to efficient use of water resources and at the same time maximizing the yields. The ongoing climate change demands a rethink in agricultural economy.

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