Chilling hour accumulations
The dormant buds of many plants require a period of cold weather to grow,
flower, and develop properly, but requirements vary widely by species. For
dormant buds of fruit trees, this is commonly referred to as the chilling
requirement.
Chilling hours are calculated as a tool for fruit producers to
gauge whether their crop has been exposed to cold temperatures for a long
enough time period.
This table shows chilling hours as recorded at the
Overton Center and should provide you with an estimate of chilling hours if
you live in northeast Texas. Temperatures can fluctuate from one location
to another, however, so the number of chilling hours at your peach orchard
may be different than what we have recorded here.
For chilling hour data
from past years, see the table below, or look at data by month. Several
methods exist for calculating chilling hours; two are presented here.
http://etweather.tamu.edu/chill.htm
