Did it rain?
Skip the watering can
Tells you whether your garden got enough rain to skip watering today
visit Did it rain?
// the why
I built Did it rain? with my friend Charlie from The Slow Farming Company. Charlie had recently bought a homestead and taken up gardening, but he is out most of the day, packing eggs, behind a desk, or in the farm shop. When he got home in the evening he never knew whether it had actually rained on his plot or whether things needed a water, and the weather forecast only ever looks forward, never back. So we built this together to answer that one question. Then I got carried away and deep dived into weather engines and algorithms. It now starts with how much rain actually fell, reading the nearest rain gauge where one is in range, then adjusts: it holds off if a real soak is forecast soon, leans toward watering after a hot, dry spell when the soil loses more to the air than the rainfall total suggests, and eases off through the dormant winter months when established plants barely drink. A live radar check tells you if it is raining on you right now, even before the gauge has caught it. Where a normal forecast only looks forward, this looks back as well, so the answer reflects what your plot has actually had rather than a generic regional outlook.
// who it's for
Gardeners and growers who are away from their plot during the day and want to know, when they get home, whether it rained enough to skip the watering.
// what it does
- Reads the nearest rain gauge (Environment Agency, SEPA) or open weather estimates
- Live radar check for whether it is raining on you right now
- Looks back at rain that fell and forward at the forecast to decide if you should water
- Watering advice tuned to evaporation, soil type, heat, and season
- Free, no account, runs in your browser
// frequently asked
What is Did it rain?
A free gardening tool that tells you how much rain actually fell at your garden, so you know whether you need to water today.Where does the rainfall data come from?
It checks the nearest rain gauge where one is in range (Environment Agency in England, SEPA in Scotland) and falls back to open weather estimates elsewhere, plus live radar to catch rain the gauges have not logged yet.How does it decide whether to water?
It starts with how much rain actually fell, then adjusts. It holds off if a real soak is forecast soon, leans toward watering after a hot, dry spell when the soil loses more to the air than the rainfall total shows, and eases off through the dormant winter months when established plants barely drink.How much rain means I can skip watering?
As a guide, about 5mm in the last 24 hours covers most established borders. Pots and seedlings dry out faster and need around 8 to 10mm, and free-draining sandy soil needs more than water-holding clay. A hot, windy spell raises the bar as more rain evaporates.Is it free?
Yes, free with no account.
// built by
Did it rain? is a project by Ben Huss, an immersive technologist based in Somerset, UK. Founder of Immersi (VR training and 360° storytelling), CTO at Cobble (location-based audio walks), and host of The Immersive Technologist podcast.