Has it rained enough in Sydney?
Seven showers have passed over in three weeks. Every one wet the leaves and was gone by lunchtime — none of it reached the roots.
Sydney has had 20.9mm of rain in the last 30 days. A normal September here brings 43.9mm, so that is about 48% of what the ground usually gets — and the driest September in 30 years was 5.6mm.
Rain in Sydney through a normal year
Across a normal year Sydney gets about 757.9mm of rain, most of it in March (90.7mm) and least in July (42.5mm).
That makes Sydney one of the drier places this site covers in Australia in September — 8th of 12, against Melbourne at the wet end (58.6mm) and Darwin at the dry end (18.8mm).
What that means for what you grow
- Pots and hanging basketsWorst hit, and first to suffer. Very little soil, fully exposed, and nothing to fall back on — in this weather they can empty in a day.
- Salad and leafy vegShallow-rooted and quick to bolt once they run dry. First priority of anything in the ground.
- Beds and bordersA long soak that reaches the roots is worth more than a daily sprinkle, which only wets the surface and is gone by lunchtime.
- Established shrubs and treesFine as they are. They draw from far deeper than a dry spell reaches.
Your own garden, not the town average
This page is worked out for Sydney as a whole. Your garden has its own soil, its own shade and its own planting, and the front page will use your exact location instead.
Check my garden