Some local gardeners, on the strength of this rain, have been purchasing and planting this week. Of all the general tenets that exist for gardening, one is that planting shrubs and trees in the middle of summer is not the best approach - gardeners undoubtedly are eternal optimists!

The forecast is for a medium to high chance of rain on more than half of the days over the next month, which is very promising. However, there is still a good part of summer left so plenty of time for temperatures to get hot again.

If you are planting at this time of year, there are a few things which can make summer planting a less risky approach.

Plant in shady areas or where you can keep the water up to the new plantings. Try to plant on an overcast day and early in the morning or later in the afternoon.

Before planting, soak the pot and all, in a bucket of water with some seaweed solution or compost tea added to help reduce stress on the plant.

Also, fill the hole you have dug with water, wait for it to drain, and then fill it again to wet the soil around the plant's roots before putting the plant into the hole as normal and then watering it well again. Another great idea is to create a moat around the tree or shrub to direct the water to the plant's roots.

If you have had rain, weeds will have germinated; a quick 10-minute weed-focused tour to a different part of the garden each day will help keep on top of them.

If your lawn has come back to life and grown enough to need tidying up, let it grow a bit longer (8-10cm) to shade the roots and soil for the rest of summer, instead of mowing it really short.

Pinch out side shoots on tomatoes to get a larger crop. Try to keep your vegies regularly watered to stop them getting woody and less flavoursome.