''It is quite dire in some places and could escalate if this gets much worse and we don't see some half-decent weather soon,'' Federated Farmers Otago president Stephen Korteweg said.
Heavy bursts of rain, hail, thunder and wind have dogged most of the region so far this month, with Dunedin experiencing rain on 11 out of the first 16 days in November - beaten only by Nugget Point's 14 out of 16.
Dunedin, at 41mm, has recorded 73% of its normal November rainfall, while in contrast Oamaru has had only 10mm, or 24%, of its normal rainfall, Niwa figures show.
Temperatures were also down so far this month, with Dunedin's mean temperature of 11.3degC -1.1degC lower than average, while Wanaka's 11.1degC was -1.9degC lower than usual.
Wanaka's daily maximum temperature so far this month, of 16.8dgeC, is -2.4degC lower than normal.
Mr Korteweg said the unseasonal weather, especially in the South, was becoming quite a concern as farmers struggled to get in winter crops, with ground temperatures too low and the ground too wet for heavy machinery.
''It's what we expect of October weather. It's like we're a month behind.''
It was also about time for silage crops to be harvested but again the wet ground made that impossible.
There were also reports of the lack of sun starting to affect lamb growth, he said.
''It is making life unnecessarily difficult.''
Dunedin hydrologist Dave Stewart agreed, saying November had been really miserable, especially in South Otago.
''Spring weather seems to have extended into November, a month where the weather usually settles down.''
Last week's vigorous fronts, which brought thunder and lightning storms to Dunedin and Queenstown, were also strange for this time of year, lasting five to six hours and affecting only parts of the city at a time, he said.
The unsettled weather looked likely to continue during the next few weeks but it would be broken by brief warm spells.
MetService meteorologist John Law said yesterday's low was set to clear away to the east of the country last night, leaving it in another showery southwesterly feed of air for much of the week. As well as showers, frequent thunderstorms were likely.
''A pool of cold air slinks across the South Island during the middle of the week and is likely to help thunderstorms build and develop. It will be one of those weeks to keep an eye on the rainfall radar.''
