Latest News

– Rain: Excellent weather conditions prevailed during Week 37! Solar radiation was normal through mid-week, before turning intense towards the weekend. There were low-intensity rains concentrated during the middle of the week with a cumulative total of 14.8 mm (half inch) of precipitation.

– Temperature: Temperature conditions remained very similar to those of the previous week with an increase in the average daytime air and soil. Minimum temperature reached 23.6°C (74.4°F) and the average increased to 28°C (82.5°F). Soil temperature was measured a bit higher, reaching 27.2°C (81°F). Relative humidity decreased to 82.6% – rather low for our tropical weather!

– Observations: Historically, the month of September  comes with abundant sunshine and  little rainfall, making it a very favorable period  for the production of high quality pineapples and very convenient to accelerate  the soil preparation practices. We expect that good weather will continue for the remainder of September and at least through mid-October!

– Rain: We flipped back to a very dry week – cumulative rainfall was almost nothing at 0.2 mm (one tenth of an inch). It turned out to be a very warm week with extremely sunny days.

– Temperature: Air temperature had a significant increase during the week. Minimum temperature reached only 23.8°C (74.8°F) and the average soared to 27.7°C (81.8°F) – almost one degree Celsius higher than last week. Soil temperature remained stable at 26.8°C (80.2°F). Relative humidity decreased to 83.7%, while solar radiation was very high at the beginning and middle of the week but declined towards the end of the week.

– Observations: While the favorable climate continues to provide the conditions for quality pineapple production, we need to put special attention to the timely protection of those fruits that are next to be harvested to avoid sun burn and the recently-budded flowers to prevent the potential risk of fruit deformation (“corky fruit “)   caused by the excessive day temperatures and solar intensity. The farms are spraying “Surround” to the flowers and fruit – the agronomic equivalent to sunscreen (a white natural kaolinite clay protectant).

– Rain: Cumulative rainfall for the week was similar to the prior one – 66.4 mm (two and a half inches) but unlike last week, this was well distributed throughout the week. We had rain every other day!

– Temperature: Air and soil temperatures remained similar to the previous week. Minimum temperature reached 23.2°C (73.8°F) with an average of 26.8°C (80.2°F), while soil temperature remained at 26.6°C (79.9°F). Relative humidity increased slightly to 87.2 %, and solar radiation varied from high to low as the rainy days came and went.

– Observations: Climate during the week was very favorable and very consistent with this time of year – the transition period from rainy to less rain. There is nothing negative to report in relation to the quality of our fruit! We are beginning to see the usual long crowns on the fruit throughout the entire industry in Costa Rica, although we expect our shipments to have less of this defect as we have been “gouging” plants in the field for several weeks now.

– Rain: The cumulative rainfall for the week was high in comparison to prior weeks – 72.6 mm (2.9 inches) – but almost all of it was concentrated on the first day of the week, when we received more than 2 inches! The rest of the week was relatively dry and we had only a few light showers in the evening.

– Temperature: Air temperature remained the same. Minimum temperature reached 23.1°C (73.7°F) while the average was at 27.5°C (81.4°F). Soil temperature did decrease to 26.7°C (80.1°F) – half a degree lower than last week due the higher rainfall. Relative humidity remained identical to last week at 85.1% but solar radiation was high.

– Observations: According to our historical data on precipitation, this August could end up as “normal” in terms of accumulated precipitation. However, because it came in concentrated and defined periods, we have had many dry days that have permitted the farms to advance in land preparation and other cultural practices that normally fall behind during the rainy period. This should help us continue to maintain the consistent volumes and excellent quality of our fruit from here until the end of the year.

– Rain: Dry weather continued during week 33 with only 7.4 mm (1/3 of an inch) of precipitation – concentrated during the weekend.

– Temperature: Air temperature showed minimal variation in relation to the prior week. Minimum temperature reached 23°C (73.5°F) while the average was at 27.5°C (81.6°F). On the other hand, soil temperature did increase to 27.2°C (80.9°F) probably due to the lower rainfall. Relative humidity remained identical to last week at 85%, but solar radiation did decrease due to moderate sunlight.

– Observations: The transition from our rainy to dry period continues, although some would say that it is happening slightly earlier than normal. We are definitely not complaining! These excellent-for-growing climatic conditions will only help us to continue to improve on our fruit quality, as well as enable us to get ahead in the preparation of fields to be planted when the rains commence late in the year.

– Rain: Only 22.9 mm (less than an inch) of precipitation was accumulated during week 32 at the source. Quite a dramatic change from the previous four weeks!

– Temperature: Minimum temperature remained stable at 23.1°C (73.6°F), but the average for the week increased to 27.1°C (80.1°F) – 0.7°C higher than last week.  Soil temperatures also increased to 26.4°C (79.5°F). In contrast to the four preceding weeks, this one we had clear blue skies! The solar radiation was intense most of the week, while relative humidity decreased to 85 %.

– Observations: After four continuous weeks of heavy precipitation, our climate made a change for the better and turned relatively dry. The month of August is usually a transition month between one of our rainy periods and the short dry period between September and October. During this break in the weather, our farms intensify fieldwork and get ready for the rainiest and coolest time of the year that usually begins in November and extends through January. All of our NDF harvest is now complete and we expect volumes to stabilize until we peak prior to the year-end Holidays. We encourage all to promote during the next two months as quality will be optimal and volumes stable!