Country Life: Conditions on the farm

Each month Country Life brings you a round-up of conditions on farms and orchards around the country.

Parts of Northland-Te Tai Tokerau have also been under pressure due to dry conditions which have left water levels in dams and springs low. Many dairy farmers have been supplementary feeding maize and palm kernel. Our agent contact says many herds have already dried off a couple of weeks early which is "unusual". Despite the dry conditions he thought most were "quite happy", with good beef prices - especially at the recent weaner fairs and a strong dairy payout.

In Pukekohe, stable low rainfall weather has continued. Much of the district has turned brown, but irrigation has helped some with grass and crop growth. Weatherwise it's been a good run for vegetable growers and orchardists.

Waikato farmers say forecast rain will be "critical" for milking into May and getting an autumn bank of feed for winter. Many dairy herds will likely be dried off early, says our livestock agent contact. Cull cows and non-pregnant or empty cows are being sold, with most farmers down to "rock bottom, minimum numbers". It's made all the more important by the maize harvest having finished and new pasture being planted. Supplementary feed supplies are also starting to run low.

Follow Country Life on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart or wherever you get your podcasts.

Meanwhile the dry has helped make for a great harvest for Bay of Plenty kiwifruit growers. Our grower contact says they've been having "such a good run" and the industry is well ahead of what was planned. Shipments are heading out with about 1/3 of the gold harvest underway and picking of greens having just started. She says volume and quality has been good across all varieties. Some forecast rain will be welcome news in terms of refilling dry soils and also giving pickers and packers a break.

In drought hit Taranaki some recent rain has seen fields green up, but a "good dump" is still needed with pasture cover low. Fertiliser has yet to go on as it's still too dry. Our dairy contact says many coastal properties have destocked and some herds are being partially dried off and it will be a shorter season for many on the coast. A lot of supplementary feed, mostly pasture silage and palm kernel, has been bought in and maize has just been harvested. Good rain, which is forecast, will help them grow feed for the winter with good soil temperatures.

East Coast-Te Tai Rāwhiti farmers have been busy weaning calves and most have the rams out. Our farmer contact says rainfall has been good, and everyone has a "decent amount of feed". Most farmers seem to be making a bit of money which is a nice change after the last few years and has seen the mood more positive. The region is set to celebrate its A&P show in Gisborne this weekend, it marks 150 years and is its royal event.

It's a hive of activity in Hawke's Bay with trucks busy transporting freshly harvested apples and grapes - this year's set to be a fantastic season for both. Maize is also coming off though yields are back a bit following a dry spring. Our farmer contact says the region's reasonably green now though some parts are getting dry. Very little supplementary feed was made during the spring so things were pretty tight but good growth over summer has helped some build up supplies.

Things are in "good order" across Manawatū-Rangitikei though coastal parts of the region and Rangitikei are very dry. The rams out now and most are happy with body condition of their sheep. Crops are also coming off. Most have grown enough feed to build up supplementary supplies, some have even shipped some off to neighbouring Taranaki. Interest rates coming down and a good dairy payout have seen many catching up on fertiliser spending and deferred maintenance.

Wairarapa has been the "odd one out this year" says our farmer contact, with good conditions including fairly consistent rain until recently. Feed quality and availability is good across the region though river levels are getting low. It's been more of a challenge for croppers with the wet weather. The mood is more positive though.

Across Cook Strait to Tasman - Te Tai o Aorere and our fruit grower contact in Richmond was packing feijoas he'd picked yesterday. He says it was a good time to be in the shed too, as it was raining outside. Most apple growers are harvesting mid-to late season varieties like jazz and red Braeburn, now that the early ambrose and royal gala varieties are in the bag. Taylors gold and Beurre Bosc pears are also coming off, while irrigation is winding down in most orchards. Due to a heavy crop of apples and the struggling economy, the local market is flooded with fruit.

A sheep and beef farmer in Marlborough says his hill country farm near Blenheim is very dry, but it's is not unusual for this time of year. Rams are out with the ewes on lower country. The ewes are in tip-top condition so he's hoping for good pregnancy rates. Calf sales have been very strong with 6-month-old calves selling for $1,100-$1,200. A lot have gone to the North Island, where they'll be fattened up and sold 14 months later for nearly double the price. In vineyards, grape harvesting is well through and in terms of tonnes per hectare of grapes, it's been one of the heaviest on record. One grower says his 12-hectare block of sauvignon blanc grapes is capped at 16 tonnes a hectare but this year it's produced 25 tonnes. Anything over the cap is dropped on the ground. The surplus grapes haven't gone to waste though, hoggets love them and are feasting in between the harvested vines.

A good dose of rain this week on the West Coast was welcomed by the Lake Brunner farmer we spoke to. The grass is finally coming away after an unusually dry summer. Milk production is faring okay despite the lack of quality pasture. Our farmer contact says she's been feeding out tons of supplementary feed. TB testing's done and with pregnancy testing results back, dairy farmers can work out how many cows to keep over the off season and how many to sell off. Lime's going onto paddocks and people are effluent spreading and sub-soiling to air-out the soil and reduce compaction.

Dairy farmers in Canterbury-Waitaha are having a great season with good grass growth coupled with a record payout. Sheep and beef farmers are similar to dairy in that early in the season it was looking ominous for a dry summer, but the rain started and hasn't stopped. Feed is plentiful, lambs are big, prices are good and ewes are about to go out to the ram in tip top condition. Arable farmers have had a tough season with very few hot dry days to harvest crops. Costs are also increasing and incomes remain flat. With harvest nearly done, many have their calculators out.

Central Otago is sitting pretty after getting 70mm of the wet stuff last month. Normally, March only gets about 25mm. Contractors are still cutting hay for bailage and winter crops are shooting out of the ground, with kale and rape already at knee height. Prices were firm at Wednesday's calf sale in Omakau with the top price for a steer coming in at $1,400.

Crop farmers are busy harvesting barley in Murihiku - Southland. Most of the wheat's in the silo and oat harvesting will get underway soon. On sheep farms, the rams are about to go out, while some dairy farmers are moving from twice a day to milking every 16 hours. Our contact in Edendale says he's been undersowing this week. This involves direct drilling half the rate of grass seed into grazed paddocks. The cows are still producing 1.8 to 1.9 kilograms of milk solids per day. The farmer said despite the challenging season, milk production is only slightly behind normal. This has come at a cost though, supplementary feeding the herd of 650 cows has gone over budget by $100,000.