Most parts of the Central Europe to Western Russia MPZ presentfavorable conditions of winter and summer crop (average VCIx=0.87) over themonitoring period. On average, drier than usual weather has been experiencedfor the whole MPZ, with decreased rainfall (RAIN, -9%) and increasedtemperature (TEMP, +0.2°C). Radiation (RADPAR) increased 3% over the recent thirteen-yearaverage.

The potential biomass is slightly lower than the five-yearaverage (-2%). Due to the wet condition in April and May in most parts ofUkraine, Poland, and Russia’s southwest, the accumulated potential biomass(BIOMSS) is above the five-year average (>20%).

Rainfall and temperature profiles show correlated variationsin Romania, Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, and western Russia. During thismonitoring period, for most parts of the MPZ, temperature was much higher thanusual in May and lower in June. In July, temperature returned to average,except for cold weather in the northeast of the MPZ. In most of the parts of Russiathat are included in this MPZ (except Volgograd, Krasnodar, and Rostov-on-Don),rainfall was close to average if the whole reporting period is considered. Rainfallwas higher than the last thirteen-year average from April to early June in mostareas (+10%), and significantly so (+50%) in the Chechen and Dagestan Republics.

Most arable land was actually cropped during this period (96.5%).Otherwise, as the VHI minimum shows, in most parts of Russia the cold and dryweather (VHI below 35) led to a significant drop in BIOMSS.

Figure 2.6. Central Europe-WesternRussia MPZ: Agroclimatic and agronomic indicators, April-July 2014