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… Read more Audio

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… Read more Audio

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… Read more Audio

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… Read more Audio

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. Read more Audio

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… Read more Audio

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… Read more Audio

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… Read more Audio

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… Read more Audio

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… Read more Audio

Weather has been kind in Bay of Plenty with enough sunny days to finally finish docking and creative juices have been let loose on the humble gumboot on the West Coast. Read more Audio

Bay of Plenty kiwifruit growers are counting their losses this week after a frost last Friday caused irreparable damage. Central Otago sheep farmers are nearing the end of shearing and lambing is in… Read more Audio

Cold and extremely wet is how most are feeling in Waikato. About 110 millimetres of rain has fallen this week. Snow fell across Canterbury this week to sea level. Grass growth remains very slow with… Read more Audio

In the Bay of Plenty gold kiwifruit are in their full bud stage and the new red kiwifruit vines are starting to flower. In Otago one farmer says it' been one of the best lambing seasons in his 50… Read more Audio

In the Bay of Plenty it's still wet and boggy around kiwifruit vines. Bud burst is a bit slower than usual which is a relief for orchardists still trying to finish pruning. Ewe scanning percentages… Read more Audio

It's been one of the wettest springs for a while in Hawke's Bay which makes it physically hard on farm as everything is sodden. In South Otago the weather has been perfect for those in the thick of… Read more Audio

A southerly cruised through the Bay of Plenty making it miserably cold for staff continuing to prune kiwifruit. Bud burst has started in Marlborough vineyards. Some growers have been fighting frosts… Read more Audio

Early fruit trees are blossoming, asparagus heads are peeping out and lambing is in full swing as spring touched down this week after a miserable winter. Read more Audio

Lambing percentages are looking positive In King Country with plenty of twins frolicking around the paddocks. In Marlborough some vineyards are still tying and pruning their vines behind schedule due… Read more Audio

Northland, Tasman/Nelson, Marlborough and West Coast farmers are once again dealing with flooded paddocks, slips, access roads blocked and significant damage following huge volumes of rain falling… Read more Audio

Farmers In Waikato say they don't want any more rain for some time as July had double the usual amount. Calving is well underway In Southland and cows are munching their way through beet and swede… Read more Audio

Dairy farmers near Tauranga say their paddocks are drying off nicely during drier weather this week and in Southland ewes are being moved onto crops before lambing next month. Read more Audio

Around Taumaranui it's been time to get firewood stacked in the shed between showers. Scanning's done and lambing starts about mid August so the ewes are being moved to their set paddocks. Calving is… Read more Audio

Wet rules around the country, with good dumpings of snow on higher altitude South Island properties. Read more Audio

Sheep and beef farmers In Northland are dealing with sodden ground and surface water up to seven centimetres high. Southland farmers say they missed the worst of this week's bad weather and some early… Read more Audio

Farmers in Wairarapa have been crutching and watching ewes. Conditions underfoot have dried out in Canterbury so stock are utilising fodder crops well. Read more Audio

Northland soils are extremely wet so dairy farmers are continuing to stand cows off pastures where possible. Central Otago farmers are shifting breaks and feeding out stock and shearing is underway on… Read more Audio

A farmer on the East Coast has just finished pregnancy scanning ewes, while some of the very early flocks are starting to lamb. Cows in Southland have settled on winter crops and sheep are break… Read more Audio

Many farms in the North Island are drenched after all the rain and heavy money's being paid at Canterbury bull sales. Read more Audio

Ewe pregnancy scanning results are down in King Country but well up in Wairarapa and some farmers have stopped looking at the rain gauge in the Nelson region, it's been so wet. Read more Audio