Weather

The first signs of the weather system are apparent in the dry conditions taking hold in eastern regions.

Phil Duncan takes NZ’s temperature as spring arrives in NZ.

Somewhere beyond the cloud cover, the days are getting longer.

It may not feel like it, but the solar winter is over and there’s more daylight around.

NZ is actually in quite a positive phase of weather from a farming and growing point of view, says weatherman Phil Duncan.

Call for controlled burns to minimise fuel load as El Niño looms.

Because of the chaotic weather pattern this year, basically every part of the country has had soaking rains and warmer than average temperatures.

Report compares how pasture, indigenous planting and pine plantations stood up to Cyclone Gabrielle.

The never-ending rain is floating heavy stock off the farms and into the saleyards, where returns are softer but still respectable.

According to NIWA, this has been the wettest first half of the year on record for several areas in the northern and eastern North Island.

Strong westerlies and patches of sunshine in early July have helped dry out some places, but further rain forecast for next week will see the recovery go backwards.

Some locations have had over a year’s worth of rain at the halfway mark.

With most of the country in the grip of wet conditions, the team at WeatherWatch look ahead to see what farmers can expect over the cold winter months.

Heavy snowfall takes out dairy farm shed and interrupts power supplies in the South.

Geomorphologist takes a closer look to analyse unusually large and dramatic slip.

Government to underwrite cheaper loans with banks and provide $240m pool for equity finance.

With soils saturated after 18 months of above-average rainfall, the latest rain caused surface flooding, land slips and closed roads at the weekend.

Huge crevasse appears in land saturated after months of rain.

Long-awaited report overtaken by rural NZ’s recent weather-related and farming challenges.

As well as bringing sodden soils and damaged farm and public infrastructure, the weather is testing people.

Forecasters know precisely what is happening and why people are going to start complaining, but the local forecast you look at may not give any hints, explains WeatherWatch.

Feds leaders flag dipping morale as eastern areas expect even more deluges.

Soils are so waterlogged, new falls simply run off.

BLNZ convenes gathering to lay out long- and short-term strategies

Rural areas showing the way in dealing with disasters, expert notes.

But with an El Niño likely forming this winter, it’s moderation we need.

Harvesting on dusty, silted land ages new harvesters a decade in a day.

Farms part of cyclone buyout plans, Feds predicts.

The government is aware that Gabrielle package will set precedent for future climate events.

Federated Farmers board member briefs region on cyclone aftermath.

Models show its highly likely tropical Pacific Ocean temperatures will reach El Niño thresholds during our winter.

A pet deer’s mad skills and a stream of bureaucrats in new wellies are among the memories a Mid Canterbury couple have of the aftermath of the floods.

Aim is to ‘get growers and farmers back at operational levels’.

One big high pressure bubble after another drips out of the Indian Ocean / southern Australia area and moves over New Zealand.

Growers’ hopes now pinned on June funding announcement.

Almost a billion dollars in package to fund work from treating traumatised children to repairing infrastructure.