The week will see dry weather in many areas early in the week, with showers in some areas. However, this will give way to more unsettled weather from midweek, according to Met Éireann.
Today (Monday, July 24) will see a good mix of cloud and sunny spells. There will be a few isolated showers but most places will stay dry. There will be a light northerly breeze too with highest temperatures of 15° to 19°.
Any lingering showers will die out with good clear spells developing too. A few mist and fog patches will form overnight but otherwise staying largely dry with lowest temperatures of 7° to 10° and light winds.
Tomorrow (Tuesday, July 25) will see a mostly clear and dry start with light westerly winds. Cloud will build from the west later in the afternoon however, with scattered showers developing too.
The showers will be mainly confined to western counties at first with the best chance of any dry spells in the east. Highest temperatures will be 15° to 20°.
Cloud will continue to build from the west tomorrow night with outbreaks of rain spreading across western counties at first. The rain will move through the country overnight with some heavy falls possible.
Southwest winds will be moderate or fresh at times, with overnight lows of 12° to 15°.
Wednesday (July 26) is set to be a wet and windy day. Bands of rain will move across the country during the afternoon and evening with some heavy falls possible in western counties.
There will be moderate to fresh southwest winds on Wednesday, strong at times along Atlantic coastal counties. It will be humid too, with highest temperatures of 18° to 21°.
It will stay wet and windy overnight on Wednesday once more, as rain continues to spread across the country. The rain will be heavy at times too with blustery southwest winds.
Rain will gradually clear to showers before dawn, as winds turn westerly. Lowest temperatures overnight on Wednesday are set to be 14° to 17°.
Thursday (July 27) will be a cloudy and blustery day with scattered showers feeding across the country in a fresh westerly breeze. Some sunny spells will develop later in the afternoon in the east. Highest temperatures on Thursday are expected to be 17° to 21°.
Thursday night will see scattered cloud and isolated showers generally, but the showers will become mostly confined to western counties towards midnight.
Westerly winds will be moderate, although they will strengthen along Atlantic coasts as showers become more persistent there overnight. Lowest nighttime temperatures will be 11° to 14°.
Further unsettled weather is in store for Friday (July 28) as low pressure is set to dominate. There will be fresh to strong and gusty westerly winds with widespread showers through the day.
Some of the showers may be heavy and thundery in the north. Highest temperatures on Friday will be 15° to 18°.
In Met Éireann’s most recent farming commentary, issued yesterday (Sunday, July 23), the national forecaster said that the best conditions for drying and spraying will be today and early tomorrow.
In terms of field conditions, most poorly drained soils are either saturated or waterlogged, except for parts of the southeast where there are soil moisture deficits (SMDs) up to 10mm.
Well and moderately drained soils are trafficable in southern parts of the country but either saturated or waterlogged further north.
All soils will come close to saturation at times over the coming week, with most poorly drained soils becoming waterlogged.