Field notes
Reading Rainfall Against Planting Windows in the New Territories
Hong Kong growers often talk about a wet year or a dry spring without pinning those comments to the week seed went into the ground. A seasonal briefing that only charts monthly rainfall can miss the real story: a three-day downpour during transplant week can matter more than a wet month that arrived after roots were established.
When we review seasons for clients in Tai Po and nearby districts, we align rainfall notes with planting and first-pick dates for each crop. That alignment turns a weather complaint into a decision aid for the next calendar—whether to shift transplant by a week, add drainage on a particular terrace, or accept that a low-lying block should stay fallow after certain storm tracks.
You do not need a research weather station to start. Farm diaries that simply mark heavy rain days, waterlogging, and delayed picking already improve year-to-year comparisons. We then place those notes beside official rainfall figures so the briefing stays grounded in what your crew actually saw.
If you are preparing for the next planting window, bring last season’s diary and planting dates to a seasonal outlook briefing. We will walk through where weather and timing collided, and which calendar shifts are worth testing rather than debating from memory.