Winter
chilling is critical for most temperate fruits and perennial plants during the
winter season. Most fruit and nut trees require a prolonged period of chilling
to break their dormant stage and bloom when spring arrives. This research’s
primary objective was to calculate the chill hour’s accumulation in each county
in South Carolina based on the historical hourly air temperature data for the
last ten years (2010-2020). The chilling hours model used to calculate the
daily chill hours was based on the number of hours when the air temperature was
between 32°F to 45°F (0 to 7.2°C). The total chill hours for each county were
then determined by accumulating the daily chill hours fromOctober to June. Our results showed that among the
different counties in South Carolina, on average Laurens County had the most
prolonged chill hours (1419 hrs). The chill hours were higher between November
to March, and counties near the coastal regions had fewer chill hours than the
counties in the inland areas. For example, Beaufort, Charleston, Berkeley,
Horry, and Dorchester counties that are located near the coastal region had
fewer chill hours. In contrast, counties located in the inland areas like
Laurens, Chester, Lancaster, and York recorded the most prolonged chill hours.
Our results suggest that selecting high chilling requirement crops for the
inland areas and low chilling requirement crops for coastal areas would be
appropriate. Farmers in South Carolina can use this information to plan their
crop selection and management.
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