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Cropping farmers have had to put up with an unusually wet start to summer.
Richard Porter, who farms 500ha at St Andrews, south of Timaru, told Rural News his wheat was “looking fantastic” a month ago, but he is now struggling with fusarium brought on by the wet.
Peas on heavy land are also having problems with wet feet, he said, quipping that he is now “reasonably pessimistic”.
“They won’t be harvested for another month yet, but just looking at them I can tell already that some aren’t looking very good.”
Porter’s neighbour, Miles Anderson, said the wet November and December resulted in such boggy paddocks that he had to use a neighbour’s tracked header to get a winter barley crop in.
“Otherwise I’d be waiting for weeks. I know a lot of people on the heavier country are having trouble harvesting their barley because of the ground conditions.”
With adverse weather set to rain down on the Top of the South, the Bay of Plenty and parts of Northland, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says farmers, foresters, and growers need to prepare for possible challenges.
Rural Communities Minister Mark Patterson says the present weather conditions remain challenging for farmers.
While it has been a great spring and summer for farmers, soil moisture levels in the Waikato are now plummeting as the dry February starts to bite.
A review into the Wairoa flooding event on 26 June 2024 has found the flood was caused by a combination of factors leading to the river backing up and overflowing.
There’s more state support available for North Canterbury farmers impacted by the ongoing drought.
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