February rain? Napier's January rainfall only a fifth of normal average

Sheep standing in a drying paddock south of Hastings, but farmers aren't worrying yet. Photo / Warren Buckland

January's rainfall in Hawke's Bay was significantly low with only just over half the amount of average rainfall recorded, according to Hawke's Bay Regional Council statistics.

HBRC principal scientist air Dr Kathleen Kozyniak said all areas in Hawke's Bay were below average for the month of January.

"It's two consecutive months of below normal rainfall for all except northern Hawke's Bay and Waikaremoana," she said.

MetService meteorologist Alwyn Bakker said there is rainfall likely in the first week of February with showers expected on Friday and Saturday - but this will be mainly confined to Wairoa.

"Don't be expecting a thorough wetting over the weekend," he said.

Bakker said the rest of Hawke's Bay was looking fine tomorrow and on Thursday with temperatures around the mid to low 20s.

Napier received only a fifth (13mm) of the average expected rainfall in January – which is about 67mls.

Crops being watered south of Hastings. Photo / Warren Buckland

Mahia Peninsula had 21mm of rain in January and Wairoa received about 26mm.

HBRC's rainfall report for January showed that Wairoa's historic mean is 85mm.

Federated Farmers Hawke's Bay president Jim Galloway said Wairoa and other areas of Hawke's Bay were looking drier than expected for this time of year.

He said farmers weren't worrying yet as February is usually a dry month, however they are veering on the side of caution.

"We're in a better situation than we were this time last year because we had better late spring and early summer growth. That November rain was vital to us," Galloway said.

"We've made good amounts of silage and hay in the area so we've got a bit of feed on hand. But everyone's got to have their trigger points."

Galloway said for Hawke's Bay farmers, planning was key.

"I think farmers learnt a lot from last year as far as making early decisions and the options that are available to them," he said.

One thing that is a cause for concern, Galloway said, is getting drinkable water to stock as the ground is drying up.

"The biggest thing we've got to really watch is stock water," he added. "Last year we had a few properties had issues with getting stock water - they had to really change things around to get water to their animals."