Summer starts on a good foot with fine weather

Northland can expect a typical summer this year.

A typical summer with long fine spells and a few showers in between is in store for Northland this December.

MetService said now was the time for people to prepare garden beds, add compost to help improve soil structure, encourage worms, and add nutrients, as temperatures were likely to be above average.

Forecaster Hordur Thordarson said the humidity associated with more settled weather recently was as a result of warm air from Australia.

However, a deep low south of the country pushing cold air and mixing with warm air resulted in rain and cool south westerly flows.

Few showers are expected in most parts of Northland today, with daytime temperatures hovering around 19C and overnight lows of 11C.

Tomorrow and Wednesday are expected to be sunny days throughout the region, with top temperatures of 17 and 18C respectively, as south-westerlies will ease off and a high pressure system slowly moving over the country.

Mr Thordarson said Thursday would be a little cloudy but warm with daytime highs of around 22C.

Showers will return on Friday, Saturday and Sunday when temperatures will hover between 22 and 24C.

"December and certainly the first couple of weeks you'll see south-westerlies gradually dying, long fine spells and off showers," Mr Thordarson said.

Seasonal outlook from the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Pressure (NIWA) for November 2014 to January 2015 for Northland predicted temperatures are equally likely to be either above or below average.

Rain will be normal or below normal while soil moisture and river flows will be near or above normal in Northland.

NIWA said a weak El Nino was the most likely weather pattern for the three-month period.

El Nino refers to the effects of a band of sea surface temperatures which are anomalously warm or cold for long periods of time.