LA TRINIDAD, Benguet -- The cold weather is not all that good with highland towns suffering from frost damage.
Kibungan and Atok, Buguias and Mankayan towns experienced temperatures dropping to a low of nine degrees affecting crops here.
But farmer reports from the areas revealed despite the onset of frost over the crops there was minimal damage.
In Cada, Mankayan, onset of frost was monitored only on the night of December 30, also noting minimal damage.
In Atok town, sitios Lower and Upper Englandan as well as Paoay were affected while in Kibungan, Nilicob, Proper Madaymen, Taliboy-oc, Cagam-is and Masala reported being affected by the extreme cold.
Frost damage is feared in the vegetable industry towns along the stretch going to Sagada in the Mountain Province. The icy phenomenon is known to plunge mercury to as low as 4 degrees Celsius in the highlands.
Incidence of frost happens in areas which do not have windbreakers to combat the cold during these months. Highland farmers have learned how deal with the frost phenomenon with early morning showering for crops or through wind.
Augusta Balanoy of farmersdotnet said there is a minimal 5 percent of crops in the areas which were affected.
Balanoy said only newly planted potatoes will have to be replanted as the cold has totally destroyed the newly planted crops.
Crops like cabbage have only gone down a class with 1st class crops sliding to 2nd class due to the frost damage.
Balanoy said the areas affected were small sitios producing vegetables.