On the Farm - a wrap of conditions around the country

Many drought-declared areas have now had some rain, but farms still have very low pasture covers going into winter. There's been superb weather for the gold kiwifruit harvest in Bay of Plenty which only has a couple of weeks to go and the Hayward variety is underway. Lamb prices remain depressed making some question the future of the sector. Dairy herds are being dried off and cull cows are off to the works. In Northland farms are turning green and grass is starting to grow, now there's been some reasonable rain. Farmers have been re-grassing but pasture has been slow kicking into gear because soil moisture levels were low. Dairy herds are being dried off and cull cows are off to the works. Pukekohe vegetable growers have been motivated by last season's higher prices and good weather. They've planted extensive areas of brassicas, lettuce and other green crops and now there's oversupply. Prices to growers have been very low on the whole.In Waikato the warm wet April has pushed grass growth along nicely. Re-grassed paddocks are growing really well. Bay of Plenty dairy farmers have nothing to complain about, with cows in good condition, grass coming along well and the OK payout. Eighty percent of the gold kiwifruit harvest is now in, and it will be completed in the next two weeks. Most of the green kiwifruit's yet to be picked but there are plenty of workers around for picking and packing. "It's all tickity boo", our contact said.Thursday was a cracker of a day in King Country, after temperatures plunged last week. Lambs are off to the works. Normally they're sold as store lambs to be fattened up elsewhere, but with such low prices farmers have been trying to do that themselves. There's plenty of grass around. The ram's nearly done his job and is starting to hang out by the gate. Ewes were in good nick for mating.Most of Taranaki's had a good autumn but the southern coastal area has been very dry and drought was declared. It looks green, but there's been no rain and dairy herds have been dried off. Milk production figures for all parts of Taranaki are a few percent down on last year, but last year was a cracker…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details