The weather has got so bad in Ireland that priests are now praying for and end to the rain.

The Catholic Bishop of Ferns, Dr Denis Brennan, has asked for prayers for fine weather at all Masses in Ferns this month.

Bishop Brennan said he requested the prayers to try and avert disaster for the farmers in the area.

The farmers are facing a washout harvest after the wettest summer on record; it rained pretty much every day during late June, July and August.

The average Irish summer sees 32 to 38 days of rain, but this summer there were 43 to 52 days in some areas.

Bishops Brennan’s call for prayers comes as the farming lobby is warning of dire straits for Irish farmers.

Irish Farmers’ Association president Pádraig Walshe said farmers faced the worst income crisis in generations and says the weather bears much of the blame.

"This is the worst product-price and weather-related income crisis situation in generations," he said.