Australian farmers get last-minute rain reprieve

SYDNEY, June 11 (Reuters) Australian farmers breathed a sigh of relief this weekend when the best rainfall in months set up winter crops for success after dry weather had brought the planting season to the brink of failure.

It was a repeat of last year, when months of parched conditions were brought to an end by eastern rainfall on June 11 -- the last possible time for farmers to plant winter grains.

''We've had a fantastic 22 millimetres overnight. That's enough to sow the winter crop,'' said farmer Chris Groves from Cowra in the centre of Australia's eastern wheat-growing belt, 250 kilometres west of Sydney.

''Just the sort of rain we wanted, nice gentle rain,'' he told Reuters.

Australia is the world's second-biggest wheat exporter after the United States and the winter crop is normally planted between late April and into May.

Some farmers last year and this year planted seed into dry ground hoping that rain would fall later. But like last year, the main plantings are taking place in mid June.

At least 20 mm (less than one inch) of rain fell this weekend throughout the cropping areas of the key growing state of New South Wales, including in centres such as Gunnedah, northwest of Sydney, and Parkes, southwest of the city.

Although more patchy than last year's June 11 downpour, this weekend's rainfall was enough to have farmers in central eastern growing areas trudging through sodden fields and offering thanks.

''Last night's rainfall is a major thing as far as the agricultural industries are concerned,'' Groves said. ''It's given us a break, it's given us a chance to get a crop in.'' A Bureau of Meteorology official, tracking the rainfall on Sunday, said no substantial rain was forecast for coming days.

''We had a nice rainfall last night, a fairly good amount.'' The bureau had said earlier this month rainfall deficiencies had intensified across eastern Australia.

''This is the sixth successive year that significant amounts of southeastern Australia have recorded a dry autumn,'' it said.

This weekend's rainfall did not extend into southern growing districts, or into Western Australia, another big crop state which is experiencing patchy weather this planting season.

But sugarcane growers in southeast tropical Queensland state received heavy rain. The Bundaberg district received 168 mm yesterday.

The rain was a ''big relief'', with cane crushing due to start next week, Alwyn Heidke, Bundaberg chairman of the Canegrowers organisation, told ABC radio today.

''We have had very little rain since Easter, so this rain will certainly secure the crop. The crop was stressing because of a lack of rain,'' he said.

Farmers were only slightly more subdued this year than in 2005, when they danced in the rain as a 50 mm deluge along a 1,500 kilometre front interrupted years of drought.

REUTERS SHB HS1259