This rain forecast will bring tears to your eyes

An onion, some ordinary table salt and a naked eye is all Hally Herrmann needs to predict the future. And he's adamant his method has not let him down in 60 years.

LOWOOD'S own backyard weather forecaster Hally Herrmann's methods might not be the most scientific, but he is adamant they have not let him down in 60 years.

The "Onion Oracle" kept a proud German tradition going this New Year's Eve by using an onion to predict the rainfall for the year ahead. Not everyone will take Hally's forecast as the gospel but, if you do, it looks as though it could be a while until we see any decent rain again.

In the early hours of yesterday, Hally concluded January would be a dry month.

Our first relief from a hot, dry summer could come in February, with Hally's onion telling him it will be a month of "good rain".

Hally Herrmann has made his onion weather predictions for 2019.

Skipping ahead to later in 2019, Hally said there was one aspect of the year's predictions that worried him.

"I was disappointed to see that October would be dry," he said. "I was hoping that might be one of the wetter months."

One ordinary garden variety, some table salt and his keen eye is all Hally needs to make his bold predictions.

"Hally's weather prediction" takes place at midnight on New Year's Eve every year and the results are checked at 4.30am on January 1.

Hally peels the onion and cuts it in half. Checking the left side first, he removes six rings, with each one representing the months of January to June.

The other half represents July to December.

"Put your salt in the ring and leave it until 4.30 the next morning. It makes water from the salt and you measure by eye. You guess how much is in there and the more water there is, the more rain for that month," Hally tells us.

While an ordinary onion will do, Hally insists on using local ones that are of a decent size.

"I get them from my mate near Rosewood," he said.

Hally hopes to pass the tradition on to his grandson Luke, who accompanied Hally in cutting the onion this year. Luke's forecast came up different to Hally's, but the Onion Oracle is confident his protege will learn.

"Lukey is very pleased to learn and I'm really happy about that," Hally said.

Hally's 2019 predictions

• January: Dry
• February: Good rain
• March: Good rain
• April: Some rain
• May: Some rain
• June: Dry
• July: Some rain
• August: Some rain
• September: Dry
• October: Dry
• November: Some rain
• December: Dry