July marks 3rd month in a row of below-average rain for Ottawa

A dry lawn in Carleton Place, Ont., near Ottawa, on July 21, 2025. (Camille Wilson/CTV News Ottawa)

Meteorologists from Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) say July marked the third straight month of below-average precipitation in the nation’s capital.

Most of Ontario was drier than normal in July, with Ottawa seeing an estimated 51 millimetres of rain last month, well below the monthly normal of 88 mm.

The most significant rainfall came on July 7, when 8.8 mm was recorded, and July 24, when 8.4 mm fell at the Ottawa airport. Both of those dates were notable in ECCC’s monthly weather summary for Ontario, due to the major storm systems that passed over the province on those days.

Drier than usual conditions were also reported in Ottawa last May and June, with forecasters recording 61 mm of rain in May (81 per cent of the normal monthly value) and 66 mm in June (68 per cent of the norm). April saw much higher precipitation, with 118 per cent of the usual amount of rain and 151 per cent of the usual amount of snow.

Several conservation authorities in eastern Ontario have warned of lower than usual water levels in watersheds across the region and have asked residents to voluntarily conserve water when possible.

Kingston, Ont. saw 19 mm of rain in July, roughly 30 per cent of its normal amount, ECCC says.

At Maple Hill Urban Farm in Ottawa, manager Don Trott says this year is the driest he’s seen.

“I really haven’t been concerned about the dry weather until the last week or so when corn starts tasseling. That’s kind of a critical time for the corn crop,” he said. “The corn’s pollinating, the silks are moist, and the pollen has got to hit that moist silk in order to pollinate the corn. And then, you need the moisture to fill out the kernels.”

Veggie Trails Farm co-owners Steve Baker and Tammy Bannon say some of their crops are being affected, but they’re managing.

“My kale is course because it’s hot, it’s dry. The leaves are coarser than normal,” Bannon said. “It affects us, but my plants are more drought tolerant. Because we don’t irrigate, the roots go down. They go down deep and feel the moisture on the root. It’s cool. And it’s moist down there and all those nutrients are deep down in the soil.”

Baker says there’s still lots of water in the soil.

“Also the plant is going to collect humidity every morning. It’s going to run it right down its stock into the ground right at its root. So yeah, I don’t worry too much about dry weather.”

And there could be an upside.

“Corn, tomatoes, peaches... they’ll be smaller, but they’ll be sweeter,” said Bannon.

Temperatures in Ottawa were relatively normal for July, with the monthly mean temperature only one degree hotter than usual. There were 11 days in July when the high temperature exceeded 30 C. The hottest day was July 16, when a temperature of 34.2 C was recorded.

The outlook for August is warmer than normal, with no specific notes on precipitation.

“Canadian model guidance suggests warmer than normal conditions are most likely across the province especially toward the north and east. Precipitation guidance does hint toward wetter conditions in parts of the northwest,” ECCC says.

With files from CTV News Ottawa’s Dave Charbonneau