On the Farm

Assessment of damage is underway in Pukekohe after a deluge of rain saw onions floating down the street and farms turned into lakes. Kiwifruit vines and structures have also been wiped out - while parts of the South Island start preparing for a drought.

Cows are laying in grass in Waikato, while pasture growth has dropped dramatically in Southland. Clinical signs of facial eczema are starting to show around the country and a tropical insect which could be hugely detrimental has been found on the West Coast.

Heavy rain in Pukekohe mid-week made the ground too wet to dig potatoes or lift onions. Cherry picking is underway in Otago. The last two weeks have seen warm days and cool nights which has been good for ripening and flavour.

Rain has come back to Northland in the past few days. It's a blessing to see conditions like these in the summer months as soil moisture levels won't be improving from now. Silage making is in full swing in Canterbury and vineyards are at the tail end of shoot thinning in Central Otago.

Hawke's Bay has had good weather for flowering vineyards. A dairy farmer in Southland says grass is shooting out of the ground after a good dose of rain.

There's an explosion of grass in Waikato this week after countless days of rain and warmish weather, calves are being weaned and drenched on the West Coast and winter crops are in the ground in South Otago.

In Manawatu it's gone from being too wet to drive tractors on paddocks to hanging out for rain. While on the West Coast of the South Island, farmers are shutting up paddocks for silage, and some are past their peak milk production.

In Taranaki the temperature gauge is rising and pasture growth is finally looking good. In Southland, they're flat out tailing and some farmers are pleasantly surprised that their lambing tally is higher than scanning predicted.

Warm rain and a mix of sunshine has kicked grass out of the ground across the country. It's a relief for many across the North Island trying to get silage together. Farmers are treading water in Wairarapa and join those in Nelson wanting a bit more rain now the ground is drying up. And the last of tailing completed this week marks the end of the lambing season in Southland.

Most farms are pretty short of grass in Northland and supplementary feed suppliers say there has been a big uptake. Strong wind has stopped spraying in its tracks for an olive grower in Wairarapa, while in Central Otago a frost at the beginning of the week was an early wake up call for cherry growers.