Deputy Head ofthe Department of Cultivation under the Ministry of Agriculture andRural Development Tran Xuan Dinh said dry weather in the 2014-2015spring-winter crops has caused several rice seeds to open early, riskingcold weather exposure at the end of the season.
Diseases are also likely to develop due to unseasonably high temperatures, he added.
Average temperatures for the 2014-2015 crops are also 0.5-1.5 degreesCelsius higher than those of previous crops and are likely to continuerising.
Deputy Head of the ministry’s Department ofPlant Protection said localities should actively expect and makepreparations for any disease outbreaks.
He notedthat the total area for cultivation in the northern region is 1.14million hectares, down 22,000 hectares from the 2013-2014 spring-wintercrop.
Northern and central northern regions arelikely to face droughts and water shortages in the coming time,according to the National Hydrometeorology Forecasting Centre.-VNA