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Piracicaba, 14th - Watermelon producers from São Paulo are close to start the 2021/22 season. Planting started in July, after difficulties in finding land - competition with grains, peanuts, eucalyptus and sugarcane.
In the first fortnight of September, planting ended in Marília/Oscar Bressane, where the harvest will begin in the first days of October. In Presidente Prudente, most areas are already planted, while in Itápolis, activities are still occurring.
For this season, an increase in production costs is predicted, mainly with lease and agricultural inputs. Furthermore, growers are prone to reduce planted area, both for competition with other agricultural products and climate difficulties - mainly drought - from 2020/21 main season and 2021 mid-season. It is important to highlight that in this main season 2021/22, lack of water is still concerning, since it may reduce yield and quality of watermelon, even with bigger investments in irrigation.
Source: hfbrasil.org.br
