Could this weekend finally see the start of some regular rainfall in Aylesbury Vale?

This brought significant rainfall, with 22mm being recorded in Wendover, and around 100mm in parts of equally parched East Anglia.

Ironically, this means it was one of the wettest days of the year so far in our area, which will be a welcome relief to gardeners and farmers alike.

However, it is still some way short of what is required to counteract the lack of rainfall so far this year.

Despite the deluge last Thursday, we have received less than half of what can be expected for August, and even less for summer as a whole.

The rainfall deficit will require weeks, if not months, of regular heavy rainfall, with water resources severely depleted.

One impact you may have noticed from the drought is the number of leaves falling from trees. It looks more akin to October than late summer.

This is due to trees going into ‘survival’ mode in order to protect themselves during dry conditions.

Trees lose a lot of water from transpiration through their leaves, and will shed leaves in order to conserve the little water available to them.

This may also impact the availability of nuts and berries for wildlife before winter arrives. Many species have produced an earlier, thinner crop of nuts and berries due to the hot, dry summer.

So is there any sign of further rain to come after last Thursday’s blip? Well, the week so far has been largely dry, settled and warm, with this theme expected to continue over the next few days too.

However, the weekend and the start of next week look like seeing low pressure begin to take hold. This could finally bring the more regular, reliable rainfall that we need.