So, it’s a busy few weeks.
From November 26 till Christmas Day, when it poured, we had 230mm of rain at a time of year when we might expect hardly any rain but, instead, hot dry northwesters.
Instead, we had thunderstorms every second day.
So, it was a tricky and trying time although a novelty.
As it happened, it turned out to be very useful rain.
Other regions didn’t get this run of wet weather so didn’t go into the New Year soaking wet, as we did.
They have struggled ever since.
After Christmas Day the tap turned off and it’s been slim pickings since with just 210mm for this calendar year until Wednesday. We would usually get twice that. After five months we’ve had less rain than those few weeks in December.
We know autumn droughts well though it’s been a few years since we’ve had one. This has been an extended one and is just finished now, which I’ll come to shortly.
But those of us on heavy soils had the benefit of wet soils from those deluges all the way into February and the small falls since just kept things ticking along.
In recent weeks I’ve described it as a green autumn drought but, unusually, with grass. But not everyone has had the grass, depending on fertiliser history, stocking rates, soil type, management and, of course, luck in getting those thunderstorms.
My farm grew an enormous amount of feed through December and January – something like 60kg DM/ha/day when it might usually be 15. That was happening as I destocked and reduced demand.
Consequently, I quickly lost feed quality but have had a buffer of rough feed ever since.
Initially the 15-month bulls did well at a time when they might usually be seeking shade and ruminating while considering whether to wander over to the trough or have another kip. I realised I’d be able to keep growing them to decent weights into the early part of winter before killing them.
But over the last couple of months the growth rate has slowed as they’ve been asked to help other classes of stock clean up a bit of the rough stuff.
Despite that I’ve been going through the mobs and weighing and sorting them up.
A truckload has been going to the works each week and killing out well.
This is being written on Thursday June 13 and overnight we had our heaviest rainfall for six months – 60mm here and it is still dribbling away. Other parts of Hawke’s Bay have had just 20mm and others up to 100mm.
Yesterday I thought I might sneak a bit of fertiliser on with a truck given how dry it was on my heavy soils even though it is the middle of June.
I ordered the fertiliser and arranged the truck, doubting the bit of forecast rain would come to much.
This morning the truck was due and I had to cancel it and told the dispatcher it is now unlikely any truck will be going around my farm this winter.
Imagine trying to run a business with people like me as clients?
I’m surprised how wet the ground is considering this rainfall has been steady. I imagine the subsoil is still so hard and dry the water is sitting in and running across the topsoil.
This rain came from the northeast, which is unusual for this time of the year and it is very mild so will grow some grass.
Hopefully other regions have also benefited.
