How many of you are being affected by this dry spell - drought! I can't help but get a bit peeved when the weather presenter says 'A lovely sunny day for all you holiday makers" or words to that effect!!! When we are starting to go very brown and there is not enough feed for the sheep and we can't get a second cut of hay for winter feed etc etc!!!!!!!! Heard on the news that the prices for sheep is a 1/4 of last years too! With so many farmers selling off their stock as there is no feed around, the situation for incomes is just going to get worse. Someone suggested we go out in the paddock and do a naked 'rain dance' like they did on McCleod's daughters a while back - and it actually rained!!! I am to long in the tooth and in other 'droppable' areas for that caper but if anyone is willing to do so in the canterbury region - please feel free!!!!!

Funny you should mention this, cos our daughter is currently on the Guides jamboree in Chch. One of the girl's grandfather went to the Open Day on Sunday and took some photos, which we've had emailed to us in Auckland. The first thing I noticed was how brown everything was, and assumed it was from the Scouts being there previously. Then I saw the news and realised the true extent of the problem.


Linda.

Somebody has done a rain dance tonight!!!! But - just a little one as we only got about 15 minutes of good rain and it has now stopped! Keep up the dancing, girls!!!! We need more of the wet stuff!!!!

Maggie.
That might have been me when I got home from swimming and rushed out to the cloths line to hang out the wet gear ,( everthing comes off at the line and I rush back in to the shower), and had no shoes on and there were little prickles in the drying lawn.
I was hoping it would work for us in north west Waikato.
Pleased it worked for someone.
Will have to try again tomorrow.
The chooks don't seem to mind they just hide as they know they are not meant to be in that part of the garden and the dogs create a little as they get miffed as I'm not rushing down to feed them.
Jean

Jean

We have a small farm in HB and yes it is frustrating at this time of year to see the rain falling everywhere but here.
Certainly HB isnt suffering the effects of the El Nino (?? - think thats the right one, with many hot & dry months over summer) as much as the East Coast in the South Island - but I have heard mention that we all will need to review our use of the land as weather patterns change in the future.
In the meantime it would be so nice to have a little bit of green to look at outside, plus know that all the veges & flowers will survive the next 6-8 weeks.
Lyn

How about photos, Jean T???

Sorry haven't trained the chooks or the dogs to use the camera.
Jean

Jean

Jean - why didn;t you take a bit longer with your rain dance????? We really needed more than the 15 minutes!
I gather you don;t have neighbours over the fence!!!!! We are in Nth Canterbury and feel quite envious of all the rain we see on the West coast but someone from there told me at the weekend that it is their driest season for decades. Doesn't look like it on the weather maps!
Thanks for reminding me about the dogs - I was about to go to bed and forgot to tie the pooch up! have never left him off at night so don;t know what mischief he would get up to while our eyes were closed! At the moment he is curled up in his own lazyboy chair. A golden Lab at 18 mths and hangs over the edge but it is HIS chair and he doesn't like it when the cat reigns in it! Goodnight all!

Hi maggie40.

We have 91 ha and are dairy grazing. Our irrigation bore is dropping daily and the irrigator cuts out after a few hours due to a lack of water. Our bore is only 8 feet deep and we are the only farmers using this aquifer in our area. Stock water drains are dry all the way to the coast and those without water troughs have destocked as there is no water for their animals. Adding to the frustration is the power cutting out every couple of days for hours on end, meaning no power to pump water to the house or stock, and no irrigation. If we can't grow grass we have no farm. As farmers we are extremely aware of water conservation - despite what some of those who live in town may believe! Another factor is the extra work involved to keep animals well fed - we are feeding out baleage that should be saved for winter feed, and we cannot make any more because there is no grass. Phew, I'm not sure if I feel better for writing all that down or worse!

No, no neighbours close enough to see or in line of vision. Sorry couldn't repeat the dance as have the topdressing planes flying over yesterday and to-day and if the pilot saw that there might be a problem.
We are not as bad as you folks sound. As yet no water problems but others in area do. Not feeding out but neighbour is and he has dairy grazers and deer as well as bulls on their home farm about 5 ks away. They have been in the area 27 years and said on Monday night that the rainfall for the last 3 months is the lowest it has been in all that time.
The last bit of rain that came through we got 1 ml but people about 30 ks away got 21ml
We are at the mercy of the weather when it come to the land.
Jean

Jean

Jean - I am sure the rain dance would still work after dark!
Please??????? I see what you mean by distracting the top dresser pilots though! Haha.
It is such a fact of life that we are so dependent on the weather. I can still remember a few years ago at this time of year, we had so much rain the normal January trickle of a ford was a raging torrent with trees uprooted further up the farm and surging down through the ford. Still have photos of husband and son inching their way across the wire fence at the top of the surging flood water - the ground under it had given way and the fence was still there hanging in midair -to try and get to the other side to feed and check sheep as it was the only route to the back of the farm! Who said farming was boring??!!

Hello Rachel
Hope you are getting this morning drizzle we are having in South Canterbury.
right now.
Chin up and remember every drought has an ending. I'm sure we will get a good rain in February,
. Yesterday we went to the Temuka Stock sale , cattle was selling. and farmers seemed confident.
We have been through several big droughts in our 50 years of farming so I can understand your concern.
Hope you can keep smiling and just think everyone is in the same position!!

Thanks Janice :-)

We shifted to Ashburton from Wairarapa in 2003. We had droughts up there but with artisian (sp) water the irrigation was reliable. Here in Mid Canterbury there is a severe water shortage. A different way of farming! On the drizzle front we have had 2.5 mls. A rain dance is in order!!

Hi Rachel
I somehow missed your first posting and went onto the ones below it! Sorry!
Water shortage is pretty acute in our part of the country isn;t it? I don't ever remember droughts like this when I was a kid growing up in Dunedin and surrounding areas. I have friends in Adelaide and other parts of Oz who have been on water restrictions for months. Hang in there and hope and pray for rain soon. WE thought it wasn't too bad up till Christmas as we had a few good rainfalls but since then, the sun has been so hot that it has just scorched everywhere. One of the problems is that so many are sending stock away because they can't feed them, and there aren't buyers because not many have feed. It is a vicious cycle. Yes indeed a rain dance is definitely in order!

Group rain dance in order I think! we will all have to give it a try but I do think it might not be good for tourism in South Canterbury if I do it in my birthday suit.

I think the wee showers we have had are just teasing us!!!

Warm fuzzies
Lisa

I don't know about the tourism thing Lisa - I would imagine it could have the tourist buses flocking to Timaru!!!! If I did it however - the only thing flocking would be police cars to arrest this woman behaving in an obscene manner!!!!!!! Or maybe in my case something like "whale watching!!' I am not that bad actually after all the extra goodies over Christmas - my GP weighed me last week and I didn;t put on any extra! A minor miracle I would say! I am sure if I got into some of your absolutely delectable goodies I would indeed be a 'whale watching phenomena!' Just looking makes my mouth water.
where on earth do you get your ideas from for all those marvellous creamy delights you make???
warm fuzzies to you too.
maggie

Can you all please stop rain-dancing now. The scrub-fires in the Coromandel ranges are now out and I'd like the hot weather back. It is summer, after all.

The rain dances sure ain't working for us in Canterbury!! We got about 2 minutes of rain today but nothing more. So - all you in the Coromandel can have your hot weather back. Guess it does have some benefits - I washed 4 double wool blankets yesterday and got them dry in about 2 hours!!

'Tis 10:43am on Tuesday and not a drop of rain. The grey skys are taunting me. Think I'll go & watch Sir Ed's farewell - now there's a man who wouldn't complain about a bit of dry weather ;-)

Jeepers creepers, I think our rain dance has worked in the north not so good in the south! sorry Lorna! I will stop frightening the neighbours and put my birthday suit back under covers.
Warm fuzzies
Lisa

Hello Rachel
Here in South Canterbury we have had 18 mls of lovely rain.today Tuesday.
Hope you received some too.
Best wishes Janice

We had 8mm this afternoon and more drizzle after that so hopefully it will continue through the night! Lovely to see but actually quite cool after all the heat. was very humid in town today but whenI came out from the s/market with a trolley load - it was chilly and wet and I was dressed for summer! please let it continue for a day or so!!!!!!

Hi Janice.

Yes, 18 mls yesterday! I was so happy I cranked up the stereo & danced through some housework :-)

I hear that Christchurch has had rain does that mean that Rachel, Maggie & Janice are celebrating as well?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/12/2008 04:05AM by helen.

Yes, still getting some rain in Ashburton, and more forecast for the rest of the week.

Great, isn't it Rachel?

Margaret

No its not great Margaret !! We have not had a drop of rain. and we live near the coast.
Pleased you and Rachel got some though. Guess our turn will come.
Keep on smiling
Janice

Margaret it look like we will be getting some more tonight!
My fingers are crossed for you.
Warm Fuzzies
lisa

Yes the fingers are crossed for all, but the Waikato is still suffering and it will take a hell of alot of rain to resolve the draught, the first lot of rain won't even really get absorbed and if we get heaps it normally causes floods as it doesn't seem to absorb itself into the ground, as a result of being so hard and dry.
But the rosary beds are out for a steady happy flow of rain for all and my thoughts are with all living off the land - great for the beach bunnies though...
Some of our friends may have to dry off their herds early and have already used up most of their winter fodder, the potato and onion crops seem to be struggling through thanks to a load of irrigation...

We have had 11 mls over the past 3 days. Not enough to break the drought but enough to put a smile on our faces :-)

It is bad.. son that now has the small family block in North Waikato, has totally run out of water. In all the years we were there as a family of 4 (with the kids being very young so lots of washing etc) we never had to buy in water. He is living there on his own and has had to buy in water. This is scary stuff. The water troughs are on a separate tank, and only one trough has any water in it now - that tank is also empty.