Rain brings joy to region’s farmers

Farmers will be grinning as they pull on extra raincoats this week as warm rain and showers move in across the region.

Following a healthy dumping of rain yesterday, MetService has predicted afternoon showers today and Wednesday, followed by scattered rain and easterlies through to Friday across most of the region.

After a dry August, the moisture will bring welcome relief for dairy and beef farmers, said Chris Lewis, Federated Farmers Waikato president.

Most farmers would be about 80 per cent through calving and lambing season. ‘‘If any bad weather does come it’s not going to be devastating.’’

The changeable weather was just part and parcel of farming. ‘‘We’ll just need our extra long raincoats and jackets, and it might add an extra half hour to your day.’’

Spring weather is notoriously ‘‘fickle’’, said Waikato Federated Farmers meat and fibre chairman Chris Irons. ‘‘Most farmers will be quite pleased as long as it’s not a heavy deluge. People have started to get quite worried about how dry the ground conditions were.

Irons, who lives south of Kawhia harbour, was chuffed the heavens opened on his farm at 4am yesterday. ‘‘As long as we don’t get big cold period of rain, ewes and lambs will survive.’’

Meanwhile, heavy rain that has hammered the far north moved east yesterday. A severe weather warning was in place for the Coromandel Peninsula yesterday, with periods of heavy rain predicted.

Waitomo will be one of the few places with lasting sun today, with a high of 18 degrees Celsius, though occasional rain will creep from tomorrow. Hamilton residents will enjoy mostly fine spells with occasional showers till Thursday and occasional rain on Friday.