July was an average month overall – slightly more rain, slightly less sun and average temperatures. The rainfall was, at 67 mm, just 17 percent above the average for the area, of 56.7 mm. This was due mainly to four individual days of sustained rainfall, as may be seen on the chart. However, there were 22 days with no measurable rainfall. So far this year the overall total is above average.

The average temperature of 17.9°C for July was exactly that of the area. This was due largely to a very warm week at the end of the month, for temperatures were well down on the average earlier in July. This led to a maximum temperature of 32.4°C at my weather station in Offchurch on 30 July. Without the very warm days at the end of the month this July would have been quite as miserable a month as was the case in July last year. 

Another relatively calm month with no named storms.  Winds were mostly light, mainly westerly in direction with a maximum gust of 22 mph on the 27th. The sea-level atmospheric pressure was relatively stable, varying between a maximum of 1025 hPa on the 28th and a minimum of 1003 hPa on the 6th. The average pressure was 1016 hPa.

The month saw sunshine every day but one, the 9th, although just glimpses were on offer on three other days. This gave a total for the month of 167 hours, which is 20 percent below the average for our area but still 35 hours more than in July last year. The UV Index maximum rose to 7.1 on the 8th, which is high for the UK but not so unusual for this time of year.

Some good news from farmers

According to recent reports in the media July’s spell of dry weather helped the farmers. The largely dry, very warm spell at the end of the month came just at the right time for once, with wheat, barley and oil seed rape mostly ready for harvesting. Combine harvesters can work in fields much more easily when the ground is not wet and muddy and the dry grains do not require further treatment in energy-hungry kilns to meet the required moisture levels. But problems with waterlogged fields over last autumn, winter and spring (the wettest 18 months on record in the UK) means yields have suffered and later planting needs more spells of fine weather to complete the harvest in the coming weeks.

Some fruit crops have also fared very well with strawberries enjoying periods of sunshine and rain leading to exceptionally large and juicy fruits. Despite the lack of frosts over the winter, which are necessary for some blackcurrant varieties to develop properly, they have cropped particularly well in some areas. Indeed, my own two bushes gave plenty of big, if not particularly sweet blackcurrants (if they ever are). Even the wild blackberries in the hedgerows seem to be benefiting by producing large, sweet and juicy berries. The birds are certainly enjoying them, as are we.

Unfortunately, the vegetable crops are not looking so promising as yields are down, partly because fewer areas could be planted-out with vegetables after the wet autumn and winter. Let’s hope the weather settles down over the coming weeks to help our farmers bring in the harvest for this year and prepare the fields for next year’s harvest.

Sources: The Times Newspaper and BBC Radio 4 Farming Today programmes.     

For local weather details and forecasts go to: https://offweather.hopto.org

Richard Seaton

rkseaton@outlook.com