A warm, humid weekend is expected, with mixed weather to give way to showers and rain over the coming days, according to Met Éireann.
Following a mix of cloud and sunny spells today and tomorrow, heavy rain and blustery weather on Sunday followed by cooler and unsettled conditions.
Today will be cloudy or overcast with patchy outbreaks of light rain and drizzle, mainly affecting Connacht, Ulster and west Munster, the national meteorological office says.
A good deal of dry weather further east with some sunshine is forecast in the far south or southeast.
There will be moderate westerly winds, fresh at times in the northern half of the country. It will be humid with highest temperatures generally 16° to 19°, up to 20° or 21° in sunnier weather in the southeast.
Tonight will be humid in cloudy conditions with some light rain or drizzle continuing, mostly in the west and northwest.
Some mist and fog patches will develop also, with winds easing early tonight to a light southwesterly. A very mild night is expected with temperatures not falling below 13° to 15°.
Weekend weather: Tomorrow
Tomorrow morning will have a cloudy or dull start with some patchy light rain or drizzle, Met Éireann says.
Cloud will lift during the day allowing for a mix of cloud and sunny spells, with drizzle becoming more isolated through the afternoon, mainly retreating to coastal areas.
Moderate south to southwest winds will freshen on western coasts later in the day. It will be mild for the time of year with highest temperatures of 17° to 20°.
Tomorrow night will be dry in many areas with clear spells with some light rain or drizzle on western and southern coasts.
It will turn breezier overnight with southerly winds increasing fresh to strong on Atlantic coasts. Another mild night is in store with temperatures not falling below 14° or 15° in most areas.
Weekend weather: Sunday
Rain will move into the west Sunday morning which will be heavy at times, spreading eastwards during the day, Met Éireann says.
Conditions will be blustery or squally in fresh and gusty southerly winds. Highest temperatures of 16° to 20° are expected, mildest in the east.
Rain will clear from the west in the afternoon, turning noticeably cooler with winds easing too.
On Sunday night, rain will continue near eastern coasts with further heavy falls as it clears into the Irish Sea overnight.
A mix of clear spells and showers will follow from the west, with some showers heavy.
It will be a cooler night than of late with lowest temperatures of 7° to 10°, in moderate southwest winds, the national forecaster says.
Field and farming conditions
Weekend drying conditions up until Sunday will be relatively good over much of the country with just some light rain and drizzle at times, mainly in the north and west. From Sunday onwards, drying conditions will deteriorate.
There will be some spraying opportunities today but winds may be a little brisk at times.
While winds will be lighter on Saturday, light rain and drizzle may cause a problem. The opportunities currently look to be very limited thereafter as rain and showers dominate the forecast.
Regarding field conditions, soil moisture deficits are around 10 to 50mm across much of the eastern half of the country across all soil types.
Amounts are generally just above 0 to 25mm in the western half of the country with some poorly drained soils in the northwest saturated by around 5mm.
With above average rainfall expected over the course of the coming week, soil moisture deficits will decline across all soils with much of the moderately and poorly drained soils in the western half of the country becoming saturated along with some well drained soils in the northwest.
There is also a Blight Advisory in operation for Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford, Wicklow, Cavan, Donegal, Munster and Connacht, Met Éireann warns.