The orange trees that grow at the edge of the dusty path are thirsty. Their leaves are withered and their fruit is tiny. Alessandro Scire, who grows citruses in the Plain of Catania just as his father and grandfather did before him, takes out his Swiss Army knife and cuts open a small, mandarin-sized orange bursting with sugar. It may be delicious, but it's unsellable. The severe lack of water at the end of this Sicilian winter has made the fruits miniature, too small for the market standard and consumer habits, which puts the entire citrus sector in jeopardy.

The roots of Sicily's orange, lemon and mandarin trees go deep into the area's history. Legacies of the island's Islamic period between the 9^th and 11^th centuries, these fruits were first grown on a massive scale during the 19^th century for sailors who wanted to ward off scurvy. Soon, they were exported around the world, making the fortunes of the first mafiosi. Now, the vegetation's future is under threat, as the region faces its worst winter drought since the beginning of meteorological records in 1921.

"We're angry and emotionally tested, but there's nothing to be done against the forces of nature," lamented Scire. The 42-year-old is the owner of 80 hectares of orange trees, which is about 40,000 trees. "It's a disaster that grows and grows and grows." The oranges will probably be left on their trees. Too small for the market, they might yet be of interest to the processing industries, but according to Scire, they would have to be sold for less than their production cost. Thus, the fruits will continue to weigh down the branches, weakening their trees. In fact, the question is no longer how to limit the damage to this year's harvest, but how the trees will survive the summer.

For growers with sufficient means, importing Israeli precision irrigation technology will save the day. Others have no choice but to let some of their trees die, said Scire. "It's not that they don't want to farm," he said. "They just don't have the economic strength to continue. The abandonment of cultivation has already begun and will continue." Citrus is not the only crop threatened by the island's historic drought. Durum wheat, which has not grown to its normal height for the season, as well as all vegetable, vineyard and olive crops, have also been affected. Livestock farmers are running out of hay.

"The situation is heading for catastrophe," warned Dario Cartabellotta, the general director of the Sicilian Agriculture Department, who has been appointed as commissioner for the drought emergency. "We are in serious trouble. The only thing we can hope for is very heavy rainfall in the spring. It's not ideal, but it's better than nothing." Cyclone Helios in February 2023 and violent rains in May – manifestations of increasingly frequent extreme climate events – did more harm than good, since the soil had been waterproofed by the lack of water. After a historically dry and hot second half of 2023, January was Sicily's fifth straight month of water deficit, with insufficient snowfall on the Apennines, which normally act as the island's water tower during the hottest months.

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