Nelson is a picture, positive mindsets are coming back in Hawkes Bay and there's a feeling that a genuine spring is around the corner.
Farmers in Northland are used to warm winters but this year they are saying when it was not cold it was wet, and when it was not wet it was cold. Very little grass growth is the result of endless rain since last winter. It has made farming pretty horrible because it is hard to minimise damage to the paddocks. People who got nitrogen on early in the month are reaping the benefits. Lambing is coming to an end in the region and our contact reports losing only 1 percent of his ewes, which he says is not bad, considering.
After nearly eight months of rain in Pukekohe, the last week of August concluded with fine, calm and cold days. The surface of the ground had dried but underneath it is still sticky and wet due to the high water table and lack of drying wind. Vegetable growers are busy digging potatoes and planting crops, but little can be done with disease in lettuce crops. Budburst is evident on the red kiwifruit variety and some vineyards are also witnessing the same effect. People there think a genuine spring is not too far away.
Photo: Sally Round
Calving is done and dusted in Waikato with few hiccups. Rain was a constant through the beginning of August and the ground water is still very high. One farmer with two concrete feed pads says they have been the saving grace. The sun has begun to shine and grass is growing, albeit slowly. And ... as hard as it is to believe with the wet they have been through ... drought could be on the horizon.
It has been great weather for calving in Bay of Plenty. It is almost over now which is a relief for those who have had their head down and bum up for the past few months. Many farmers have not had a day off or even been off farm so are looking forward to some respite moving into September. There was reasonable grass growth through August with a little bit of rain to keep the ground fresh. Our contact says the longest she has gone without rain recently was between Christmas and New Year.
It is better than it has been in Te Tai Rāwhiti, the East Coast. There has been normal rain through August and farmers are praising the weather over the past week - the first long sunny spell in a long time. It is only just drying out enough for farmers to get tractors on farm. Lambing is almost finished aside from those in the high country who are just getting started. Lamb survival has been good for the month, although there has not been much grass growth.
Maree pours milk into the calfeteria for the month old calves Photo: RNZ/Sally Round
August has been fantastic in Hawke's Bay. Fine days and crisp nights have given everyone a chance to really catch up on things that need repairing. The grass is growing, lambs are on the ground and calving is almost done. Plus more and more silt and damage is being cleared each day. Positivity is starting to return for those who have done it so tough all year.
Taranaki was pretty mild and dry through August - a bit different from the rest of the North Island. The first frost last week was a bit of a surprise. It has been a dream run with rain at the right time resulting in pretty steady grass growth ... a relief, as around 20 August, feed can become tight. Our contact says working hard at mating time has dealt dividends with 80 percent of his calves born by the four-week mark. Now the challenge is feeding them.
Photo: Paul Casey
Manawatū is in the middle of a much-needed sweet spot of sunny weather. It has been a godsend because it has been as wet as farmers have ever seen and it was getting pretty monotonous. Lambs are loving the sunshine and paddocks have got a nicer colour all of a sudden. Those who lambed early are getting into docking now and those that started this week feel like they have had a stroke of luck with the sunshine. Grass has not grown for two months thanks to the rain, so this week farmers have been busy putting fertiliser on.
It is fair to say it has been wet and cold in Wairarapa, with a number of frosts keeping ground temperature low. It is pretty miserable for livestock and farmers in the midst of calving and lambing. But grass growth has been reasonable and on the eve of Spring good drying conditions have helped. Arable farmers are hoping to put their crops in the ground soon.
Nelson/Whakatū has been a picture in August. Beautiful sunny days, crisp clear mornings and frost keeping the bugs at bay have all been everything winegrowers could ask for. Pruning has kept most busy this month and it is now pretty much wrapped up across the district. Maintenance and mulching is the only thing left on the to-do list as the wait for grapes to grow begins.
Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
It is starting to dry out in Marlborough and some rain would even be welcome. There is no rain forecast and soil moisture probes are as low as they could be. Pruning has almost finished in the vineyards. Our contact is putting plans in place for the expected dry summer, including offloading his lambs this week to avoid the bottleneck of those trying to do so late in September when feed really runs low.
The West Coast has been incredibly dry for this time of year. August started off wet but there has not been rain for 10 days now. Some quite hard frosts have slowed the grass growth down but good utilisation has saved the day. Dairy farmers are about 60 percent of the way through calving.
Conditions have dried out in Canterbury, allowing tractors to get onto paddocks and get spring crops in the ground. Winter lambs are being sold and, despite having the best-finished lambs ever, returns are $100 per head down on the previous two years. Overall, things are looking pretty gloomy for at least the next 12 months.
Photo: Michael Godfrey
Calving is going full steam ahead in Otago and apart from a few metabolic issues, our contact near Balclutha says his cows are milking well. Grass growth is speeding up but paddocks are still a bit dough-ey, so people are holding back on doing much cultivation. Outside the farmgate, stress levels are running high as farmers grapple with new or updated laws and regulations that seek to reduce the environmental impact of farming. The drop in the predicted farm milk gate price is not helping either.
After a very wet winter in Southland, conditions have finally turned a corner. The sun has been shining, the ground is firming up and pastures are changing to a more vibrant green. This week, helicopters have been busy putting fertiliser on crops and in drier areas, tractors are ripping up winter crop paddocks and some ploughing is underway too. The weather has been wonderful for early lambing, ditto for calving - which is about halfway through on most dairy farms. Our contact says the Tough Times workshops, that Federated Farmers have been running across the province, have been very well attended by farmers.
