TEMPORAL DYNAMICS OF THE VEGETATION PERIOD IN THE MYZEQE PLAIN (ALBANIA) BASED ON TEMPERATURE THRESHOLDS (1961–2020)
Authors: Gazmir Çela, Sonila Papathimiu and Sabri Laçi
Gazmir Çela: Department of Meteorology, Institute of Geosciences, Polytechnic University of Tirana, Albania.
Sonila Papathimiu: Department of Geography, Faculty of History and Philology, Uiversity of Tirana, Albania.
Sabri Laçi: Department of Geography, Faculty of History and Philology, Uiversity of Tirana, Albania.
ABSTRACT
This agrometeorological field study analyses the growing season as a key indicator for assessing the impact of climate change on agricultural ecosystems. The objective is to determine the start, end and duration of the growing season in the Myzeqe field during the period 1961-2020, corresponding to two climate norms. The analysis is based on daily mean temperature data from six meteorological stations covering the entire study area. The temperature data combine observed meteorological data with ERA5 reanalysis data, which were aligned with the observed series to fill in time gaps. The start of the growing season was defined as the first day in a sequence of six consecutive days with mean daily temperatures above +10.0°C. The end was defined as the day before the first sequence of six days with temperatures below +10.0°C occurring after 1 July. The results show an average extension of the vegetation period by over 4 days, as a long-term climate trend and compared to the reference period 1961-1990. These changes imply, on the one hand, a greater potential for plant production, and on the other hand, increased sensitivity to heat stress during the summer months.
Keywords: Vegetation period, Minimum temperature, Agroclimatic conditions, Growing season