Farmers rejoice as rain falls across WA from Geraldton in the Mid West to Merredin in the Wheatbelt

They say money does not fall from the sky, but for some farmers rain that fell during the past two days is the closest thing to it. Hopes of a mid-winter break were lifted when farmers heard the pitter patter of rain on the roof on Sunday, the second big August front after lacklustre falls in July. A cold front hit WA in the early hours of Sunday morning, with falls of between 10mm to 30mm to farms between Geraldton in the Mid West and Merredin in the Wheatbelt. The patchiness of the rainfall was evident in the geographical spread of the three regional towns that recorded the highest totals by 9am on Monday. Regans Ford recorded the most in the 24 hours from 9am Sunday with 46mm, followed by Bindoon with 42mm, Three Springs with 41mm and Donnybrook with 40mm. Falls of brought smiles to grain growers across the Mid West, with falls of between 20-30mm at Mullewa, Perenjori, Dudawa, Erangy Springs, Yuna and Mingenew. Some of WA’s traditionally low rainfall areas in WA’s north and eastern Wheatbelt fared well, with 19mm at Morawa, 21mm at Latham, and 17mm at Moorine Rock. Further south it was a different story, with the majority of towns dotted across the Great Southern and South Coast failing to record more than 2mm. East of Esperance, Condingup, Mount Howick, Mount Burdett, and Boyatup failed to crack 2mm. Salmon Gums and Cascade North East recorded just 5mm to 9am on Monday. Falls were light across the Great Southern, with just 3mm at Mount Barker, 2.8mm at Gnowangerup, 4mm at Kendenup, and less than 1mm at Gairdner and Manypeaks. Just a handful of Great Southern towns jagged more than 5mm, including Nyabing (7.8mm), Ongerup (5.8mm), Frankland (5mm), Katanning (5mm), and Dumbleyung (9mm). Across the Lakes district, falls ranged from 4mm to 9mm, including 4mm at Pingaring, 8mm at Hyden, 6mm at Magenta, 4mm at Kulin, and 3mm at Woodanilling. Wittenoom Hills farmer Mic Fels’ gauges recorded about 65mm late last week, but none on Monday. “It has just been windy this week, but the people that got a bit of rain last week have just labelled it a game changer,” he said. “Anyone that got a few inches of rain last week has gone to average to above average (crop yield potential) in a matter of days.” Mr Fels, who is the WAFarmers grains section president, said areas east and south-west of Esperance had about 60mm last week, but areas north were struggling. “Grass Patch and Salmon Gums have been dead unlucky this year,” he said. “They are still in the game but they would be getting a bit stressed. “The medium to high rainfall area around Esperance, so east and south of the town, are looking really good. “But the medium rainfall areas are having a hard time.” Chad Eva farms at 18km south-west of Three Springs — 300km north-east of Perth — and tipped 45mm out of his rain gauge at about 12pm on Monday. It was the biggest rain event since February, and completely changed the landscape at his 5000ha property. “All the crops were hurting, the cereals were dropping tillers and suffering,” Mr Eva said. “This will give it a boost... it looks different already, the plants are looking very lush. “The heavy rain started about 4am Sunday morning and then we had 27mm by 3.30pm Sunday, and 14mm on Monday. “It has been a bit windy, but no crop damage. And there is a good forecast for the coming weekend.” Carnamah farmer Brendon Haeusler said the rains were “game changing” for his farm, after receiving 40mm. “There is some damage already done (to crops), but this has really turned things around overnight,” he said. The rain was a welcome reprieve after WA recorded its second-warmest July on record with rainfall 56 per cent below average across the State. BoM is forecasting the cold front and associated rain band will continue to move across the state this week, with winds easing on Tuesday and Wednesday. A ridge of high pressure will begin to develop through parts of the State on Wednesday and Thursday. More rain and winds of up to 25kmph have been forecast for the Great Southern on Tuesday, with a slight to medium chance that rain will continue until Thursday. A high chance of showers has been forecast across parts of the South Coastal areas from Albany to Esperance for the rest of the week. There is a slight to medium chance of showers for Mid West and Wheatbelt areas between Geraldton and Katanning, with conditions easing on Wednesday and Thursday. Southern parts of the South West are expected to have rain on Wednesday and potentially Thursday.