Victor Szwed
Autumn usually provides some of the nicest and stable weather conditions. March this year has continued this pattern with quite a few pleasant days as well as some cooler temperatures.
The Autumn equinox in Australia occurred on March 21st, marking the official start of autumn in the Southern Hemisphere. On this day the Sun sat directly over the equator with equal day and night lengths.
You would have noticed that gradually it has been getting darker in the morning, unless you sleep in late. Also, the sun rises further north of east. In my picture, you can see that the sun was about to rise to the left of Wombat Hill, a few weeks ago it rose over Wombat Hill and earlier during Summer to the right.
Daylight Savings ends Sunday morning 4th April so remember to reset your clocks back one hour. There will be more light in the morning and it will get darker earlier in the evening.
Several good rainfall events from late February into March provided much needed totals after a very dry start to the year and a drier than normal 2025. So far 169mm of rain has been recorded for the first three months by the Weather Bureau nicely above the 135mm long-term average.
Unfortunately, the Bureau continues to forecast drier than normal conditions for most of Australia during April to June. The serious fuel supply issues are likely to push up prices for food and vegetables. If you have a vegetable garden it is a good time to increase the range of vegetables you grow that suit our local Autumn and Winter conditions. It is also a good time to review how you water and mulch your vegetables. Most people gave up watering lawns years ago.
Our local reservoirs are currently 78% full and Central Highlands Water continues to monitor these in case drier conditions have a significant impact.
Victor Szwed is a Daylesford resident who has been involved in various community roles in our Shire for more than 26 years.
Editor’s note: check out the local weather at https://thewombatpost.com.au/live-weather-history/
