Last year, New South Wales enjoyed its third wettest winter on record, but this year is leaving the ground dry as chips. June finished as the driest such month for the state since 2002. But this doesn't paint the picture of the minimal rain inland, with the Murray Darling Basin seeing its driest June since 1986 and the Riverina district its driest on record. The district wide average for the month was a paltry 2.77mm. July has started the same way and looks like it will keep going too. In the next ten days there are no strong indications of any significant rainfall for New South Wales. As we look at the long range forecast for the remainder of winter, and the start of spring, it also looks like the general trend will be towards drier than usual weather. Despite this forecast, occasional rain-bearing systems are still likely to occasionally break through the belt of high pressure, bringing some useful falls. However, it's important for farmers, and communities at large, to be aware that this year is continuing to trend very differently to the same time last year.