Rnz: On The Farm

The green kiwifruit harvest is underway in the north where winter is making its presence felt and in the south feed is being trucked from the West Coast to bone dry farms in the east.

Lovely rain this week in the north has not been so welcome on Bay of Plenty orchards in the midst of kiwifruit harvest and there's been sleet, snow and some wicked frosts down south.

It's bone dry on the East Coast of the North Island, a hunter out near Hikurangi says in the 20 years he's gone out it's never been so dry and Marlborough is still hunting for rain while the West Coast of the South Island wants some drier days.

Most North Island regions that desperately needed rain didn't get any this week and snow has appeared on Mounts Ruapehu and Taranaki, meanwhile the situation is grim on many Marlborough and North Canterbury farms as the dry is biting harder and harder.

In the North Island many east coast regions are desperately short of rain, and elsewhere ground water levels are still low, while conditions in coastal Marlborough are beyond dire, and a drought committee is planning to bring un-picked apples from Tasman over the hill to feed stock.

Farmers are starting to struggle in a drier than normal autumn in many places around the country. In Hawkes Bay apple picking conditions have been fabulous with fine, windless days.

In the North Island at least one Taranaki farm's on track for a record milk production season while in the South Island Southland farmers think they've dialled up one of the best possible autumns.

Bay of Plenty gold kiwifruit growers are waiting for clearance to pick the fruit. Tasman apple orchardists are still crying out for workers.

Waikato dairy farmers are doing their budgets for next year and there's no shortage of ways to spend their increased fortunes. In the South farmers are trying to set up for winter but it's dry.

More than a sniff of rain is needed in the north where weaner cattle are fetching good prices at the sales and in the south farmers are busy with autumn sown crops.

Waikato had hail this week and in the South Island, Marlborough farmers are trying to keep weight on ewes ahead of mating.

Northland has received welcome and significant rain while the South Island is still on the hunt for moisture.

In Northland lots of dairy herds are being sold and in the South Island nearly all the regions are trucking along well for the time of the year.

Good rain helped ease the dry in the north and South Canterbury farmers woke up to two frosts this week.

Waikato is trucking steadily into a drought and Marlborough has seen one of its earliest picks for pinot noir bubbles.

Over much of New Zealand pasture quality is dropping in the heat but stock are generally doing well. There are some sensational Hawkes Bay nectarines in shops.

Temperatures plummeted in Canterbury this week from near 40 degrees to 2 on Friday morning. Hawke's Bay grape growers have had heat and rain when they've needed it this summer.

Stock need sun on their back with more than enough rain in the north, vines are spurting along in Marlborough and Hawkes Bay and farmers are fighting to maintain pasture quality in Southland.

Bay of Plenty kiwfruit growers are being kept awake at night over the worker shortage and calves are being weaned, drenched and vaccinated in South Otago.

An isolated bout of hail hit some maize crops in Waikato this week, while in the South Island the Marlborough region is looking a picture.