On the Farm - a wrap of farming conditions around NZ

Find out what's happening on farms and orchards around the country. Hawkes Bay had a 29 degree day this week and a bit of rain. That makes it a risky time for fire-blight in apples. Spring sowing of next year's winter feed paddocks is in full swing in Canterbury.

Farmers in the Bay of Islands in Northland were told they needed 1000 millimetres of rain from June 1 to November 1 to replenish ground water supplies which seemed nigh on impossible but they've smashed it! 1200 millimetres has fallen so far.  Grass is growing like crazy but utilisation isn't great - grass is being trampled and it's difficult to get around paddocks on a two wheeler - and that's even on freer draining volcanic soils.  The farmer we called is thrilled with his Wiltshire hoggets - 53 were mated and 52 lambs were born. They don't need shearing, docking or crutching or even drenching. He says they're incredible mums and the lambs get to killable weights very quickly.

Around Pukekohe 30 millimetres of rain has fallen this week. Most days have been calm and dull and those conditions made foliage of crops look luxuriant and soft. More sunlight would be welcome and would help with disease control.

In Waikato you can hear the grass growing. There's been some lovely rain this week. Milk production on some farms has come off a little earlier than farmers would have thought - that's being put down to a lack of sunshine in October.  It's a busy, busy time on farm; maize crops are still going in and silage is being made. Farmers have been really buoyed by news of an $8.40 payout. An ag consultant says it'll be channeled into debt repayment, maintenance and development - there's not much chance to fritter it away on overseas travel!  He says even though the payout's lifted so have costs. Palm kernel has become more expensive and the price of urea has almost doubled in the past two years. He says farmers will have to calibrate their use of those inputs.

Grass Growth

It absolutely poured near Te Puke on Thursday evening and farmers want the sun to come out. It has been warm though so they have plenty of grass.  Cows are milking ok. Our  contact is delighted with the milk price but is a little cautious - he says last time it went as high it crashed the following year.  On his kiwifruit orchard the rain's come at an inconvenient time - in the middle of flower thinning so work has been stop-start. It's been difficult to find the people to do the job anyway so, for some, it may not happen at all and that will mean a lot more fruit thinning later in the season.  The bees are out in some gold orchards - they don't like to fly in the wet so it doesn't bode well for pollination. Fortunately the bulk of the gold crop is just on the verge of flowering, so it could come right if the sun shines.

Taranaki has had beautiful weather; the grass is growing like mad and farmers are busy trying to get maize and turnip crops in the ground. Dairy cow mating seems to be going well. The only hiccup is no-one has made the amount of silage they normally would.

Gisborne has had a warm week with a couple of 25 degree days. Friday brought a nice soaking rain which will have pleased pastoral farmers. Grape growers are glad the soils have had a chance to warm up. They're looking towards flowering in a couple of weeks' time.

Blight

Hawkes Bay had a 29 degree day this week and a bit of rain. That makes it a risky time for fire-blight in apples so growers are putting on protective sprays. Most varieties have passed full blossom but there are late flowers around and that's where the disease will get in. It can be particularly bad in Pink Lady and other varieties that grow vigorously.   

Rangitikei farmers have been working between showers. The farmer we spoke to had been out for a pizza and a beer with other farmers this week and says everyone is happier now temperatures have lifted.  Grass is really bolting. There's been pressure on feed until now - not just because it's been cold and grey but because lamb survival has been so good there have been a lot of of mouths to feed.  He says some farmers are a bit frustrated they haven't' been able to put summer crops in because the soil's too wet.

Greytown in Wairarapa had  seven millimeters of rain on Thursday and everything is green and growing. Crops are either in the ground or are about to be and docking is pretty much complete apart from hogget lambs. There are some lighter ewes that haven't milked as well as they should have.  A farmer tells us a number of farmers will be peeved by the water reforms. He knows of one who supplies four other houses from springs on his farm. Under the new regulations he will need to be registered as a water deliverer and test the water monthly at $120 a pop.

Te Wai Pounamu

The Tasman region's had a showery old time but it's also been warm and humid so grass is growing well. Orchardists on the other hand are having their challenges...fungal diseases love the conditions and getting protectant or eradication sprays on while dodging the showers is difficult. Ground conditions are very wet . Tractors and sprayers are making very big tram tracks between rows. Some machinery's getting bogged so there will be a bit of repair work once it's drier.  It's rained a lot during flowering which has meant bees haven't been able to do their normal job. Peonies are getting botrytis in the wet too. Our contact's crop is lower this year because it was dry last year after harvest and the plants didn't build up their usual reserves, and then there wasn't enough winter chilling.

In Marlborough it feels like it's turning from spring to summer. There's been a drop off in soil moisture which is sitting at 50 percent of field capacity.  Soil temperatures are around 13 degrees at 10 centimetres - good for clover and grass growth.  Lambing percentages across Marlborough are back 10 to 15 percent and it's hard to pinpoint why. In vineyards growers are trying to keep on top of powdery mildew. Flowering's a couple of weeks away.

A good week of weather in Canterbury has seen the grass take off which is great. Spring sowing of next year's winter feed paddocks is in full swing with the last of the fodder beet going in and sowing of kale beginning. Bulls are out with heifers, and AI is on-going on dairy farms.  

The West Coast has had a little rain, but it's been drier this week so that's made farmers happy. Grass is starting to motor along however it will be some time before farms recover from damage caused by a very wet spring. Mating is starting on dairy farms...cycling is variable, some are going mad, others are slow. More pop-up vaccination centres are now appearing in West Coast towns...there's a really big push on. Organisers want the DHB to give them vaccination numbers so they can target areas where numbers are low. Our contact says they'll organise a coffee cart, get a time sorted and go and get people done.

Central Otago has had a benign start to the season. It has been quite wet so soil moisture's great, growth is amazing and pastoral farmers are rubbing their hands in glee. With few frosts and warm temperatures, grape vines are growing well. Bud burst has been very even and consistent   

It's been a relatively warm muggy week in Southland with some nice sunny spells and then a thunder storm has bounced through.  Pasture growth is good and there's lots of  cultivation happening on farms . Dairy cows are well into mating.