A dry start to today (Tuesday, August 3) will give way to wet conditions with rain and showers, according to Met Éireann.
Following bands of rain today and tomorrow, it will remain changeable and unsettled for the rest of the week and next weekend, with temperatures around normal or a little below, the national meteorological office says.
Looking first at today, it will be dry in most areas this morning, with patches of mist and fog clearing and just a few scattered showers.
Showers will become more widespread today, some of them heavy and possibly thundery, but dry intervals will occur also, with some bright spells, the forecaster says.
More persistent rain and drizzle will develop along west and southwest coasts later, which will turn heavier and extend inland across much of Munster and Connacht this evening and early tonight.
Maximum temperatures will range from 16° to 19° or 20°, in mostly light southerly or variable breezes.
Tonight will see outbreaks of rain extend gradually from the west, with a few heavy bursts, mainly in the western half of the country. However, rain may not reach the east coast until the early morning, Met Éireann says.
There will be mist or fog patches also and minimum temperatures of 10° to 14°.
Tomorrow
Tomorrow will be wet in most areas at first, with outbreaks of rain, according to Met Éireann.
Brighter conditions, with scattered showers, will extend gradually from the west during the morning and afternoon, with some heavy showers in the eastern half of the country, but more isolated further west.
Maximum temperatures will reach 16° to 20°, in mostly light to moderate winds, southerly in the eastern half of the country, westerly elsewhere.
Tomorrow night will see rain extend eastwards across the country to most areas, with some heavy bursts.
Minimum temperatures of 11° to 14° are expected, in mostly moderate southerly breezes, strengthening on western and southern coasts.
Thursday
Thursday will be cloudy and wet, with widespread rain, which will gradually give way to more showery conditions.
However, there will be some heavy and thundery falls, especially in the southern half of the country, with a risk of localised flooding.
Maximum temperatures of 15° to 20° are expected. Winds will be mostly light to moderate easterly or variable, but it will be windy on south and southwest coasts, with fresh to strong southwest or west winds.
Drier conditions, with scattered showers, will extend from the west later Thursday and early Thursday night, with mostly moderate northwest winds developing.
Farming and field conditions
Drying opportunities will be poor over much of the coming week with showers or longer spells of rain every day up to the weekend and beyond. There will be some drying between showers today and tomorrow but, after that, meaningful drying will be limited.
Spraying opportunities will also be very limited over the next seven days in unsettled conditions. Winds will generally be light this week, so in areas escaping showers on Tuesday and Wednesday there may be some opportunities.
Regarding field conditions, soil moisture deficits currently range from 20 to 60mm for all soil types. However, over the next week deficits will decrease countrywide with above average rainfall.
By the end of the week, some soils locally in Connacht and the midlands will be close to saturation, the national meteorological office says.
Conditions conducive to the spread of potato blight are expected early and mid-week in the western half of the country, extending to much of Munster and Leinster late Thursday into Friday. Opportunities for spraying are limited.