Grass growth back on track in the west after 50mm of rain in past week Heavy rainfall in many parts of the country in recent days will have been greatly welcomed by farmers, but a significant amount is still needed to restore land to workable conditions after one of the longest droughts in Irish history.
An absolute drought is a period of 15 or more consecutive days without 0.2mm or more of rain.
"And a heavy downpour could lead to a lot of direct run-off, especially on compacted soil types with ground conditions being extremely firm in many parts of the country.
"There’s definitely a change in the weather pattern and we are starting to make progress," said Galway dairy farmer and Farming Independent columnist Henry Walsh.
"I walked the land over the weekend and the green has re-established itself in the grass.
"We put fertiliser down two weeks ago in anticipation of the rain, which came, so now we are aiming for a second cut at the end of August which will be about two weeks behind.
"If we can put down fertiliser after that we can aim for a third cut, or use it for grazing.
Everyone needs to put a plan in place now for the winter."
For 70-year-old New Ross dairy farmer Billy Moroney, the recent rains have brought some hope.
"Last week it was not looking great but hopefully now I will be able to get a good supply for the winter," he said.