2024
Click on the image to see full graph.
Facial Eczema Spore Counts for the 2024 season as follows:
March – Levels are definitely sporadic across the region, with each area being significantly different to one another.
The drop in overnight temps has slowed things right down, with levels now below 5000 on our monitor sites, and on farms we regularly test.
February – Levels across our sites seem to be staying consistently low around the 5000 mark. Overnight temperatures have dropped which has helped keep them down, coupled with the lack of rain and hot & windy days.
There’s no significant rain forecast in the near future, so we don’t expect to see an increase in counts anytime soon.
We have had samples from the Waimea Plains on irrigated and unirrigated pasture, with levels low at 10,000 on irrigated and 0-5000 on unirrigated.
We’ve been actively testing across our monitor sites since mid-December, with levels at zero during this time. The intense heat and excessive winds have been less than ideal for the spore levels, but since having the recent warm rain mid-January, this has helped them step up.
If you’re interested in being one of our monitor farms, please email del@tcvet.co.nz
You are encouraged to bring in your own samples to be tested. Testing at your own location will give you a better understanding of your micro-climate. Every third test is free! Call us on 035441200 to organise.
2023
Click on the image to see full graph. Please note: Counts that read zero on the graph does not mean the count is zero, it just means no data was entered for that week.
May 2023
We’ve only had one sample brought into the clinic for testing from our monitor sites in the last month, which was low at 5000. Just goes to show how tough these spores are! Mid-May we had some samples brought in from around Wakefield, which were at the 5000 mark. We’ve had heavy rain and cooler overnight temps, but the general rule is if there is still mushrooms around… there will still be spores!
April 2023 – We had no samples brought in week of the 10th, but this week (17th) we had a sample brought in from Redwood Valley which was at 20,000. Bit of a jump considering the count was at zero in the first week of April. Hopefully the cooler temperatures that are forecast will drop the count.
By the end of the month readings were still between 35,000 – 55,000 in the Wakefield region.
As we head into April we’ve had our first count with a reading of zero in Redwood Valley. Eves Valley is at the lowest its been for some time, sitting at 5000.
March 2023 – It’s most definitely been an up and down month in regards to spore levels! The sporadic cold overnight temperatures are lowering counts, but as soon as the weather warms up they jump up as expected.
The last week of March is proving to be a chilly one! But those spores are still hanging in there with levels low but not zero.
On Tuesday the 21st, we had a skiff of snow on Mt Arthur and we expected counts to lower significantly, but counts from Clover Road and Eves Valley were both at 40,000 on Friday the 24th. Even other areas not on our monitor sites were between 30,000-35,000.
Throughout the month we’ve been having counts as high as 485,000 and other readings of 35,000 in pockets of Tapawera, which just goes to show it’s very farm and even paddock specific. Farmers and small block holders are being alot more vigilant with using Time Capsules this season.
