From the begining of the wheat growing season, the temperatures are above normal climatic data in Eure et loir (Paris Basin), wheat crop did not achieved its cold acclimation when very low temperatures occured last week.
Old farmers remember of the 1956 winter causing frost damages on wheat after a very brutal temperature drop in the end of january.
On the graph above, minimum temperature (blue) and maximum daily temperature (red) for the 1955-1956 season, show a brutal drop from 12°C to -13°C. Wheat crops did not resist.
Above, a comparison with 2017-2018 season in Chateaudun, the configuration is not so far from 1956, data beyond 2018/02/10 are calculated through a weather data generator with a behavior like normal climatic data for the Beauce Region.
The very importance difference was the snow cover in 2018 which was important last week (around 20 cm) and protected the wheat and other crops from frost injuries.
Snow smelt very quickly this week-end, and farmers hope that wheat will get a good col hardening in the next days with temperatures neat to areo degrees.