More rain would be good, if it's followed by a good breeze: Bendigo winegrower

The Bureau of Meteorology is expecting showers and the chance of a thunderstorm on Friday, with the possibility of 10 to 25mm dropping.

The rain would follow last week's 65mm deluge, when many areas recorded a month's worth of rain over 24 hours.

Growers like Mandurang Valley Wines' Wes Vine are trying to shepherd their crop through summer rains that have brought a new set of challenges, even if they have been enthusiastically welcomed.

"Things like grapes splitting and powdery mildew. A lot of growers are just covering the bases right now to get their crops through," he said.

"It depends on the humidity. We were quite lucky last time around because we then had those dry winds that blew through over the weekend."

Mr Vine hoped that would again be the case if forecasts for rains later this week come to pass.

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He currently expects to begin his red wine grape harvest in five to six weeks.

The harvest is likely to be average or above average in size, Mr Vine said.

That is because last summer's dryness and heat left less fruit on the vine.

"You often find that you get an above average yield the year after," Mr Vine said.

Most summers produce their own challenges for winegrowers in the Bendigo region.

In 2019, their harvests were impacted by extreme summer heat, including two January heatwaves.

The mercury climbed during one of the heatwaves to nearly 46 degrees on one sweltering afternoon.

The run of hot weather extended into February and meant most fruit ripened on the vines at a similar time, forcing winemakers to harvest at what one Ravenswood farmer described as a "frenetic" pace.

Not all the region's fruit growers are facing challenges brought on by last week's heavy rains.

In Harcourt, where 40 percent of the state's apples are grown, Pollards Harcourt Orchard's Gary Pollard said the rain had brought less challenges.

"It saves us irrigating, but last week's rain hasn't affected (adversely) us at all," he said.

Mr Pollard said that he always preferred rain over irrigated water, saying it always appeared to give his crops a boost.

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