A rainy harvest period for Niigata's rice farmers

Most of the time I feel like a forecast like this would feel pretty nice, especially after what has been the hottest summer on records. However, out here at the moment, rainy days one after another are less than ideal.

For anyone who doesn't know, rain at this stage of the year is super annoying if you're a rice farmer. Wet fields mean machines can't run properly without sinking or damaging the crop. The rice itself becomes harder to handle, and if the moisture lingers too long there's a real risk of quality loss. Farmers wait all year for this short harvesting window, so every day of rain probably feels like the calendar tightening around them.

Suffice to say, I think many people out here are hoping that those 50% chance of rain days are leaning towards the drier side of things.