A drive to the coast might convince Canberrans that all is good with our surrounding farming community as late-summer rains in February have turned the paddocks green.
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But while the green pick has lifted the mood of farmers, especially in the Braidwood region, they are not out of the woods yet, hoping for follow-up rains to avoid a green drought and the possibility of hand-feeding or offloading stock in winter.
And it comes as water supplies in Canberra are also falling, despite the downpours of late February. Total water storage for Canberra is now at 76 per cent capacity, compared to near 100 per cent capacity in late-2016.
Icon Water, however, maintains that the enlarged Cotter Dam means the national capital's water supply is "very secure".
In the nearby regions, however, farm dams are not full and producers are trying to remain hopeful for more rain. The final days of summer delivered Braidwood about 70mms, Goulburn 80 to 85mm and Yass 80 to 120mm of rain. But more was needed to shore up stock before winter.
Ian Cargill is the third generation of his family to farm land on the south-east outskirts of Braidwood. His grandfather started farming the property in 1928.
The 650ha-property supports Angus cattle and prime lambs. He said district farmers have had survived marginal seasons for the last few years. The late February downpour when 80mm fell on the property had promoted growth of feed but more was needed to fill dams and encourage more growth before winter.
"If we can get another 10 to 20mms in the next week or so, it'll really respond and kick away," Mr Cargill said.
The green pick on the paddocks did mask the precariousness of the situation.
"The rain has definitely improved the mood," Mr Cargill said.
"It wasn't declared, but realistically we've been in drought since probably last autumn. People have struggled through.
"And now it's green, it's pretty and people will drive from Canberra to the coast and say, 'Oh, it's all pretty and green'. But when you walk around it, there's not that much grass there. It takes time.
"It makes it a lot easier to sleep at night when it's green. It's better than choking on dust. There's still time. The next six to eight weeks are critical."
Helen Smith, an agriculture advisor with South East Local Land Services' Palerang team, said the February rain had been welcomed and it was hoped last winter's "bone-dry" conditions were not repeated.
"[Without more rain], animals may or may not have enough condition on them so people will struggle with their spring calving so people will have to look at feeding their animals or cutting back on their stock numbers," she said.
"The rain has definitely given some positivity to people again but it'll just be a case of what sort of rain they get from here on in and whether they go into winter with decent condition on their animals."
Icon Water, meanwhile, wants Canberrans to remain water-wise. Even though summer rainfall totals were average to above average across the ACT, the amount of water in its dams is falling.
The combined water storage level for Canberra - across all four dams - is at 76 per cent capacity. That compares to a high in late-2016 of 99.5 per cent full.
The enlarged Cotter Dam, opened in 2013, took the ACT's total water storage from 207 billion litres to 278 billion litres, at a cost of $410 million.
At 76 per cent storage capacity, there was currently 211 billion litres of water in the ACT's dams, four billion litres more than before the Cotter Dam was enlarged.
"There is still more water available for town supply than before the Cotter Dam was enlarged in 2013," an Icon Water spokeswoman said.
"This means we have a very secure water supply to sustain periods of low rainfall without impacting the community."
Looking at the individual storages, the Cotter Dam is at 98.8 per cent full while the largest dam feeding the national capital - Googong Dam - is 75 per cent full. Corin Dam is 52 per cent full and the much smaller Bendora Dam at 87 per cent capacity.
The spokeswoman said water consumption levels in the ACT continued to be 40 per cent lower than in the 1990s.
"This doesn't necessarily mean Canberrans are conserving water or going without water. It is really about a shift to wiser use of water, watering gardens at the right time of day, planting the right plants for the climate, water sensitive urban design for new developments, and water efficiency in the home," she said.
