The fields of southern Australia are aglow with large patches of yellow due to the spring canola crop – the nation's largest seed crop and our 3rd-largest broadacre crop of any kind.

The contrast of the yellow canola flowers with the green grass of spring almost makes the countryside look like an Aussie sports team decked out in the traditional green-and-gold.

Let's learn a little more about Australia's canola crop and the weather patterns that have brought fields of yellow to life.

Where does canola grow in Australia?

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, as much as 7 million tonnes of canola is grown in Australia each year. That's around a quarter of the volume of the national wheat crop.

Australian canola is highly regarded overseas and is used for everything from biofuels to stock feed to cooking oil. Have you consumed margarine or vegetable oil lately? Then it’s likely that it contained Australian-grown canola.

Canola is grown in all southern states as well as in parts of southern and central Queensland. Our three biggest-producing states (in order) in most seasons are Western Australia, New South Wales and Victoria.

There's cloud over much of southern WA this Thursday, so here's a satellite image of canola crops in the Central West of NSW, in the heart of our second-biggest canola state.

How winter rainfall has impacted this year's crop

Regular winter rainfall is ideal for canola, most of which is sown in autumn and harvested in spring or early summer.

Victoria

As the chart below shows, Victoria had average or above-average winter rainfall in all parts of the state except for a section in the east.

While some canola cropping takes place in Gippsland in eastern Victoria, most canola is grown in central or western Victoria, where winter was relatively wet this year.

Image: Victorian rainfall deciles for winter 2026. Source: BoM. 

New South Wales

The NSW rainfall chart for the 2026 winter tells an interesting story.

While it was very dry along much of the east coast, there was average or even above-average rainfall in areas west of the Great Dividing Range, where the majority of the state's canola is grown.

Image: NSW rainfall deciles for winter 2026. Source: BoM. 

While we're talking about NSW and Victoria, it's worth noting that the Murray/Darling Basin as a whole received 14.51% more rainfall than usual in the 2026 winter, according to the BoM. 

Western Australia

In Western Australia, the far southwest had a dry winter, but other parts of the state where canola is grown had average or slightly-above-average rainfall – such as the region around Esperance in the South East Coastal forecast district.

Image: WA rainfall deciles for winter 2026. Source: BoM.

All up, it looks like 2026 will be a good year for the national canola crop, especially in eastern Australia. The crop certainly looks pretty from space!

Image: Satellite view of canola crops west and northwest of Melbourne at 8 am (AEST) on Thursday, September 10, 2026. Source: Weatherzone.

Does canola cause hay fever?

Not with most people, no.

In spring, it's generally the grasses that cause hay fever, as their pollen is picked up by the wind and blown our way. It's called "hay" fever for a reason!

Canola is pollinated by insects – and it's the case with most plants pollinated by insects that their pollen becomes stickier and heavier than grass pollen, and therefore doesn't tend to be picked up by the wind.