At takeover it was running 5000 stock units – that’s increased to 6260 stock units (4000 ewes, 240 breeding cows and 210 weaner calves) and by completion should be at 7500-8000su.
The Grants have chipped away at development over the past two years targeting 35ha a year, although 65ha was ticked off last year.
“In another three years we should be more or less done,” Cameron says.
Drainage was a big focus of the first development but at Otapiri Gorge gorse and broom removal has been the big job.
Following scrub bashing and burning, fertiliser is applied – typically seven tonnes of lime and one tonne of Superten to each block.
Subdivision started with a contractor upgrading the existing four-wire electric fences by adding another six wires and extra posts.
Also, another two to three kilometres of new fencing was added along with a gravity-fed water system and 50 new troughs.
The template for the latest hill development is very similar to the one used to break-in 1150ha on the Tin House and Campbells blocks in the decade till 2013.
A three-stage process was followed of track establishment – cultivation, fertiliser and seed, and finally subdivision.
The middle line of weaner heifers. The Grants are wintering 850 mixed-sex weaners.
FARM FACTS
Cameron and Bronnie Grant, Robert and Lynne Grant – Southland farming partnership
- Total area – 4230ha comprising:
- Croydon – 176ha (easy country used primarily for lamb finishing)
- Tin House – 882ha
- Campbells – 2262ha
- Otapiri Gorge – 906ha
- Stock units – 37,000
- Rainfall – 1100mm
- Elevation – 200-600m asl
- Extensive medium altitude hill-country sheep and cattle breeding and finishing on four farms in the Croydon, Mandeville-Otapiri areas west of Gore. The Grants started large-scale hill development in 2003, which has more than doubled ewe-carrying capacity and farm income.
STOCK WINTERED – 2016
Sheep (Peters Genetics)
- 20,000 ewes
- 6800 hoggets
Beef cattle (Hereford and Hereford-Angus)
- 970 breeding cows
- 850 mixed-sex weaners
