DRYING topsoils and nervous farmers in parts of the state have been given some relief after a band of rain passed across NSW last week.
While the weather event was not as extreme as forecasters had initially predicted, but downpours continued sporadically from Thursday evening to Sunday, as the low pressure system made its way eastwards.
The rain has brought relief to farmers in the midst of getting crops planted and established, who were otherwise being held up due to a lack of moisture.
“It’s definitely been good timing. It’s really going to help the crops in the ground, people were struggling a bit with moisture, so its a big boost,” said Luke Wood, of Parkes, where 29.6 millimetres of rain fell on Saturday.
Tamworth agronomist, Casey Onus, said without the timely rain, winter oats and forage crops already in the ground were beginning to dry out after less than a millimetre of rain in May before the weekend’s downpour.
She said the replenished moisture will allow wheat, barley and canola to keep going in.
“The sub-soil moisture was already there, but the rain’s very helpful,” she said.
Tamworth received 44.4mm of rain on Saturday. Ms Onus said after allowing several days for the surface to dry, farmers in the area will be able to begin spraying fallows to remove broadleaf weeds.
Cootamundra was another town that experienced significant rainfall at the weekend, recording 38mm on Saturday.
Peter Lott, of Lott Rural, Cootamundra, says the timing of the rain could not have been better.
“It’s been one of the best autumn downpours from a timing perspective,” he said.
“It’s quite mild, about 85 to 90 per cent of the crop has already been sown, with still some late season wheat to go in.”
“We already are seeing stock on grazing crops. There has been a slight delay getting back on the field with the amount of rain.”
Mr Lott said this was particularly the case in the Central West with some of the heavier soils, but those on red soil should be able to get back to work fairly quickly.
It was a similar story around Quirindi, on the North West slopes, which recorded 28mm at the weekend.
Agriculture consultant Peter McKenzie said the rain had interrupted the planting of early season wheat, but it would be a good boost for those preparing to plant in coming weeks.
“Canola is mostly in already, chickpeas will start going in at the end of the week – with no more rain we should be ready to sow from the weekend,” he said.
Further north near Moree, downpours of rain were patchy, with areas west of the Newell Highway towards Collarenabri recording less than 5mm. Moree recorded 20mm.
Landmark Moree agronomist, Gary Onus, said faba beans, canola, barley and linseed already planted would thrive after the rain, but wheat and chickpeas still to be planted would have to be put on hold until the paddocks dried up a bit, probably about the end of this week.
Walgett agronomist, Greg Rummery, said the 24mm of rain recorded in the area would help establish the dry-sown cereals and wheat already in the ground, but more rain was needed.
“(The weekend’s falls) will allow the odd grower to sow some wheat, there’s been very little sown here to date,” he said.
“We are still 75mm to 100mm short of rain.”
Rural communities of the Far North Coast also received sizable downpours.
Murwillumbah copped 66mm on Friday and Saturday, while Grafton totalled 39mm.
A spokesperson for the Bureau of Meteorology advised that further showers were expected across the western parts of the Northern Tablelands and the eastern parts of the North West Slopes and Plains on Sunday.
A trough which is establishing over the Northern Tablelands will extend across the Southern Tablelands, the Central West, the South West slopes and the southern and eastern parts of the Riverina, and should trigger widespread falls of 1mm to 5mm. There is also a chance of a further 5mm to 12mm across much of the state by Tuesday.