Photo: RNZ/Carol Stiles
Thunderstorms delivered some welcome rain to parts of Northland, helping to wake up the kikuyu grass from its hibernation. It hasn't bounced back quite as expected though and the feed situation on some farms could be a little bit tight. Turnip crops are just germinating at the moment, a bit later than normal. Farmers are hoping for more rain.
Around Pukekohe, temperatures have been cooler than last week and there's been enough rain to postpone irrigation. A brief but squally thunderstorm passed over the district on Tuesday morning, laced with hail which caused damage to kiwifruit foliage and sensitive outdoor crops. Early sown onion varieties are now ready for harvesting, so you'll see them soon in the grocery aisle.
In Waikato it's been a mix of warm, sunny days tempered with some bursts of rain and the odd cold spell. Pasture is growing really well and cows are in good condition. The maize crops have got off to a very good start. Silage is being made and supplies in hand are as good as they've ever been. On the financial front, Fonterra's recent fixed price of $7.38 has signalled a good season ahead - that's given farmers a reason to smile after feeling battered around the ears on other fronts.
It's been a cooler, wetter week in Bay of Plenty too after a beer and barbecue spell last week. A couple of farms decided to cancel their Open Gate day because of the pouring rain. The farmer we speak to says mating has gone well with 95 percent submission rates and the milk price is well ahead of last year. In the orchard, gold kiwifruit pollination has just finished and the Hayward variety is about a week off.
There's a lull in the busy farm calendar in King Country, with docking done, weaning about to start and farmers gearing up for ram purchasing. After a dryish period recently there's been welcome moisture to keep growth rates up, despite slightly cooler temperatures. Feed crops are going in and stock are doing nicely.
And welcome rain too in Taranaki of about 25 to 30 millimetres. The grass is almost in surplus after a cool October. Milk production is ahead of last year and mating is going well. A consultant says with the milk payout also looking good, farmers should be on top of the world but they're not. Everyone agrees water quality is important but he says the majority of Taranaki rivers meet standards and farmers feel like they've been kicked in the guts after all the effort locally on environmental improvements - they've spent millions of dollars on them.
Photo: RNZ/Sally Round
On Tuesday and Wednesday Gisborne received a good dollop of rain after a dry three weeks. There's plenty of tucker around and a real buzz about sheepmeat and cattle prices. One farmer was even expecting $120 for his lighter lambs, up from last year's $80 to $90. That comes on top of a lambing rate 5 to 8 percent up on last year. The wharf is busy - logs are stockpiled and the boats can't come in and out quickly enough.
A hailstorm on Tuesday afternoon has done some mischief in Hawke's Bay. A consultant says it mostly affected apples but there's a fair chance crops can be salvaged. An earlier hail storm and heavy rain has meant a variable fruit set. Growers think they're light but the consultant bets there'll be some panic thinning in December because there's been good growth and fruit size is ahead of past years.
In Rangitikei, the soil's wet, grass cover is good and the region's well set up for the summer. Off the farm, a farmer described his colleagues being livid about politicians' reaction to their protest in Wellington on Thursday.
Wairarapa has also been excited about the rain after the heat and wind of the past couple of weeks. One farmer's working out his options for weaning, hoping clover will take off so the lambs can absolutely motor. He knows many Wairarapa farming folk who attended the protest at Parliament in Wellington despite being busy on the farm.
Nelson had been getting very dry but the whole district had a top up of between 30 and 100mm of rain over the weekend. It came at the perfect time. There were some heavy falls in the ranges and roads had to be shut. No-one's wanting to cut silage in the wet. Apple growers are flat out applying protective and thinning sprays when the weather allows and hop growers have been training the plants up wires. Grass is growing fantastically well so dairy farmers are having a good run. Some of the district's road-side stalls look a picture with buckets of peonies for sale.
Photo: RNZ / Cosmo Kentish-Barnes
Marlborough had some heavy rain on Thursday night - and the high country farmer we rang says 88mm have fallen this week. He says you never complain about rain in Marlborough. Paddocks have turned green. It's been really dry and cold so there's been little growth on his farm - which is 500 metres above sea level. Woolies have come out of drawers and fires been stoked again to keep warm. Friday was turning out to be a lovely sunny day after what was very close to a frosty start. Calving and lambing are still underway - cows are a bit stretched after what feels like a very long winter - but there are plenty of calves around and it looks as though lambing's going well too. Marlborough's grape vines are in leaf.
A fantastic 30mm of rain fell across Canterbury at the start of the week. Combined with mild temperatures pasture has really taken off. The challenge now is to try and keep control of pasture quality. Baleage and silage contractors are flat out.
A dairy farmer who lives near Westport says they've been looking for a break in the wet weather - and it hasn't come. It has warmed up though and the grass is growing. On his farm they're in the middle of mating and so far it looks as though it's going well. With all the rain it's difficult to get onto some paddocks and many that are due to be sown with grass having been in a winter crop, haven't been. You have to pick your days if you want to get fertiliser on. He says the transition to supplying Westland Dairies' new owners has been smooth. Despite no longer owning the co-op farmers are enjoying having more cash in their bank accounts. They're getting higher advance payments than they're used to.
Photo: RNZ/Carol Stiles
Central Otago's having a wet start to the season but things are looking good. People are into making hay and baleage and silage. Fruit growers have had a rough run with frosts. Fine wool prices were up 8 to10 percent this week on last week. Crossbred is still in the doldrums.
Southland's had an indifferent spring. Everyone was pretty happy with grass coming out of winter but it hasn't really warmed up. It's been cool and rain has been plentiful so the grass has all been eaten and has been slow to re-grow. A lot more palm kernel, barley and silage has been fed in the past two months than usual. Farmers are two weeks behind with silage-making and they're struggling to get fodder beet sown. Cows are only milking ok. There's not much enthusiasm for farm sales, banks are being more cautious with lending and fewer people seem keen to take on dairy farming.
