Christmas Eve

Friday morning is set to be cloudy, with a band of rain and breezier conditions in the south slowly moving northwards, reaching Ulster in the afternoon.

Clearer, brighter and drier conditions will follow in from the south, extending further north as the rain clears. Highest temperatures of 8°C to 11°C in moderate to fresh southeasterly winds.

Rain will return to the southwest later in the evening.

Friday night will see outbreaks of rain pushing in from the southwest. Some patchy mist will form elsewhere before the rain extends to all areas by night.

Lowest temperatures of 7°C to 10°C with light to moderate southeast winds.

Christmas Day

Christmas Day will start off quite cloudy, with outbreaks of rain moving in from the south and becoming more widespread by the afternoon. Highest temperatures of 8°C to 11°C with light to moderate southeast winds.

Some clear breaks in the cloud will develop at night, as the rain slowly moves away to the north. The winds will fall to a light southerly and overnight temperatures will dip to 4°C to 7°C, with some patchy mist developing.

St Stephen's Day

Sunday will be a generally cloudy day with scattered outbreaks of rain at times.

There will be some afternoon clear spells, with generally light winds.

Highest temperatures of 7°C to 10°C.

Management notes

Beef

Adam Woods has the latest tips and advice for beef farms in this week’s beef management notes.

Dairy

Aidan Brennan has said that 2022 will be a wake-up call for farmers in high-cost systems, whether that’s meal, fertiliser or both.

Sheep

With lamb performance above normal for the time of year, Darren Carty has said that producers should weigh and assess lambs regularly and draft accordingly to avoid costs being accumulated and free meat being given to factories.

Tillage

With what has been a good year winding to a close, Andy Doyle urges tillage farmers to make time over the next few weeks to ensure that all essential records are completed and on hand in the event of a cross-compliance check.