Blossom showers
Also called: Cherry blossom showers, Coffee showers · Topic: Climate of India and the Monsoon · NCERT: Class 11, Ch 4 "Climate"
Meaning
Blossom showers are short pre-monsoon showers in Kerala and nearby areas of Karnataka. They fall during the hot weather season, before the main monsoon arrives. They form where moist sea winds meet the heated land and rise into thunderclouds.
These showers make coffee plants burst into white flowers. That is why they are also called cherry blossom showers or coffee showers. They matter because a good, timely shower decides how well the coffee plants flower, and so how big the crop will be.
Example
In the coffee estates of Kodagu (Coorg) in Karnataka and the nearby hills of Kerala, the first blossom shower turns the coffee bushes white with flowers within days.
Don't confuse with
- Mango showers: these are end-of-summer showers in Kerala and coastal Karnataka that help mangoes ripen early. Blossom showers make coffee flower.