Higher temperatures coming

Winter has arrived but more warm temperatures are forecast for later this week. Photo / Paul Taylor

Hawke's Bay temperatures have settled down to normality after a warmer-than-usual May but highs in the 20s are predicted for later this week, MetService meteorologist Arno Dyson says.

The cooling has meant frosty mornings, usually paired with still sunny days.

"You really need clear skies for the lower part of the atmosphere to cool down a lot," he said.

Clouds acted like a blanket and clear skies with windy conditions were not conducive to frosts either, mixing air temperatures so cold air did not settle on flats and gullies.

Rural areas felt frost more than cities where there was plenty of heat-storing concrete.

Most of New Zealand south of Auckland has shared the frosty start to June but Hawke's Bay will likely experience warmer nights and wetter days from Wednesday thanks to a trough moving in from the Tasman Ocean bringing rain late Thursday.

"From Tuesday we will get north-easterlies, which are a little bit warmer than what we are getting at the moment - a little bit more cloud and a little bit more wind."

When the trough passes through Hawke's Bay it will likely bring "a little bit" of rain on Thursday through to Friday.

"You won't see really big rain. There will probably be a few showers and rain in the ranges.

"With this trough there will probably be some warmer air and temperatures will be into the 20s - a little bit warmer than normal."

Unfortunately Dannevirke will miss out on the mild late-week temperatures.

Hawke's Bay Federated Farmers Hawke's Bay president Will Foley said it was dry from Waipukurau to Havelock North and too cold for significant pasture growth should good rain arrive.

Fortunately farmers had options - there were strong prices for store stock because most other regions had plenty of grass and there was plenty of supplementary feed available locally, due to a lush spring last year

"It is not all bad but it is pretty worrying going into winter without feed," he said.