Photo: RNZ/Cosmo Kentish-Barnes
Rain in Waikato has been just what the doctor ordered. Pasture is growing but moisture is really needed to wet up the subsoil. It has been another stunning week in Canterbury with warm and mostly dry conditions. Farmers have been able to plant catch crops after early grazed fodder beet which is much earlier than normal.
In Northland rain was building when we rang - it's been unusually dry but rain will help lift the market for stock because there's now a possibility of grass growth. Lots of cattle have been flowing onto the market - too many for the demand and prices have been trending down. Northland looks green but there's a shortage of water - some springs are dry and old timers are saying there are places where they've never seen that happen before.
In South Auckland light rain at the start of the week was followed by heavy rain from Friday morning.The heaviest in months. With hail forecast too, winter has finally arrived. It's been so mild most vegetables are still in heavy supply. Broccoli is probably the cheapest vegetable at the moment and a retail price of $1.00 per head means it is almost free! If that's not enough for the poor growers pukekos, rabbits and hares are having a field day destroying crops.
Rain in Waikato has been just what the doctor ordered. Pasture is growing but moisture's really needed to wet up the subsoil. some farms will be changing hands this weekend and sharemilkers or contractor milkers moving onto new properties. The trend towards farm owners employing contract milkers or lower order sharemilkers, rather than 50 50 sharemilkers is continuing. Owners have been feeling that they're not financially that well off with the traditional agreements. Returns on capital invested historically favoured the sharemilker so now owners are wanting to keep a bit more for themselves. Sheep and beef schedules are still good. Beef is right up there because of swine flu in China .. that country's slaughtered tens of millions of pigs, so customers are hunting for alternative sources of protein. Maybe we'd better be ordering our Christmas ham now ...
When we rang Bay of Plenty the orchardist we speak to was sheltering from the rain. He had two hours of picking to go before all his green kiwifruit was off the vines. He estimates the region's green crop will all be in bins in the next ten days. The weather's been great for the harvest and that has given workers a much better run - last season it was terribly stop start He says the initiative this year to attract workers .. which has been to pay them a bit more and guarantee minimum hours, seem to have paid off.
As for dairy farming in the Bay - we're told while the payout for next year seems encouraging now banks are trying to claw back some of the money farmers owe them so things will still be tight cash-wise. Quite a few farmers moved to interest only loans over the past few years and now banks are expecting some principal to be paid back. Other farmers wanting to do capital work on their farms are being told debt needs to be reduced first.
King Country's been holding its bull sales and there have been some very pleasing results - at some sales 95 to 100 percent of bulls have sold. Prices are up 5 to 10 percent on last year - and last year wasn't too bad, One Angus farmer sold 80 out of 84 bulls for an average 9 thousand 300 dollars - and on another stud the average bull perice was 7,600
In Taranaki just a handful of herds are still milking trying to catch a bit of extra money for the season. Milk production for the season across the province is up 8 to 9 percent on last year - but last year was very dry. There are good pasture covers going into winter .
Across to Gisborne and we're told 85 percent of farmers are in a really good place> Feed-wise winter hasn't started and the consultant we speak to says "they're in the box seat' He says the only negative is there's been a slide in prices for store cattle because of a lack of feed around the rest of the country. He was waiting to hear the result of a farm being sold on Friday and says foresters are starting to up their game because in recent times they've been beaten at farm auctions by farmers. He knows of one farmer who turned down a lot of money from a forestry company to ensure the land stayed in sheep and beef. He's against the blanket planting of farms but says it's a good idea to put a portion of poorer land into trees. He says that helps with farm succession - the trees are kept for all the non farming beneficiaries and the child that wants to go farming doesn't have to pay for the land in trees - which make the farm more affordable.
Photo: RNZ/Carol Stiles
The brakes have been put on Gisborne's mandarin harvest - everything's been parked up to get the crop that's already off the trees, sold. There' an oversupply because the fruit was ready much earlier than expected.
Hawkes Bay farmers are relieved to have had rain - May has been incredibly dry - and even dusty. Nor west hill are turning brown but slopes way from the sun and wind have been growing reasonably well. Lamb prices are still strong and catlle are good buying. Our consultant contact here too says farmers are talking about trees he believe small scale planting will add value but blanket forestry over good land is a poor long term decision.
Wairarapa is looking for rain - it's forecast for the weekend and next week. It's been very very warm and people have been enjoying the opportunity to get on with fencing in decent weather. Sheep farmers have been trying to get shearing completed before temperatures take a dive this weekend.
Manawatu has had some steady rain and the farmer we spoke to said he wouldn't be surprised if his people were outside dancing naked in it..celebrating. farms need rain before it gets too cold for the grass to grow.
There have been high winds in Horowhenua and trees some trees have come down, Vegetables are almost growing too well. Growers almost need some rubbish weather to push prices up.
Photo: RNZ/Carol Stiles
Temperatures in the Nelson/Motueka region reached 18 degrees this week. There have been some heavy showers over the last few days too. Orchards are being cleaned up, pruning's underway, trees are being pulled out and the ground is being made ready for planting. A steady flow of packed fruit's coming out of cool stores for local and export markets. 60 tonnes of feijoas were grown by the region's16 growers this year; it's a big drop on last year when about 100 tonnes were harvested. Fruit size is bigger this year though and that's what the market wants. New varieties are growing fruit weighing 65 gms compared to the usual 45 gram fruit coming off older trees.
Farmers in Eastern Marlborough were happy to get the rain this week as it's restored soil moisture levels going into winter. Farmers in the Rye Valley and Picton recorded good amounts too. Vineyards have been changing hands and on farms, ewe scanning's underway on lower hill properties and good results are expected after such a great season.
A farmer up the Grey Valley on the West Coast says it's been wet. Over the past 4 days he's recorded150 millimetres in the gauge, but he reckons that's a lot less than what's fallen in South Westland. His dairy shed's still working but the cows will be dried off once they've eaten the last of milking grass. They're also getting a top up of silage. Most of his "surplus to requirement" or empty cows have gone to the works.
It's been another stunning week in Canterbury with warm and mostly dry conditions. We are all expecting this to change this weekend with the first real sign of winter on its way. The conditions have been so good some farmers have been able to plant catch crops after early grazed fodder beet this week which is much earlier than normal.
It's the brass monkey rally in Central Otago this weekend. This is New Zealand's best known Motorcycle Rally where up to 2000 motorcyclists gather at Oturehua to look at each other's bikes, party and celebrate motorcycling. Event organiser and local farmer, Ken Gillespie, has got the huge fire ready and as usual the bikers are expected to freeze their ... you know what's off.... while camping at one of New Zealand's coldest places. Ken says there's a fresh skiff of snow on the Hawkdun Range. On farms everyone's in winter mode; sheep and cattle are on balage and silage and dairy cows are going onto wintering blocks.
It's muddy underfoot in Western Southland after a good dose of rain this week. Most stock are now behind breaks on crops.
Tupping's finished, this is when a ram copulates with a ewe, but rams are still out with hoggets. Ewe Scanning starts in mid-July. Dairy-wise everyone's shut down. Dried off cows are going onto winter grazing and culls have gone to the freezing works. There are killing delays at the works due to the sudden influx of animals. Our contact says there's less cow movement in the region than in the past as farmers are trying to keep their herds closer to home.
Photo: Sophie Barnes
