4
November 2016
NORTHERN FARMING LIFESTYLES
ESTABLISHING
a career by Ann Morgan
Rachael Blackley grew up on a sheep and beef farm in Purua and now lives in Matarau. After studying Agricultural Science at university she managed her father’s dairy farm for two years before moving on to further educate herself.
“W
e moved to Purua from Tauranga when I was 10-years-old. Suddenly my six siblings and me went from being townies to a little rural school of 11 kids. It was a big shock and we had to quickly adapt to the rural life because the other students had never seen city slickers,” said Rachael. “It was hard at first but I grew to love animals and dad and I started raising calves and we went from there. I initially wanted to be a vet but didn’t get into the class so I changed to agriculture.” The family farm had been leased and when the lease expired Rachael’s dad asked her to take over and she ran it solely
WHANGAREI
for two years. “When I completed my degree he decided to get the dairy farm back into the family. I was straight out of university and didn’t really have enough experience and had no one to learn off as dad was not a dairy farmer. He didn’t want to farm it — that’s why it had been leased. He is a sheep and beef farmer. “I did keep it going but then I decided to better myself and learn more. I needed to work for someone else to get practical knowledge.” Rachael is now an assistant manager on a larger scale farm and hopes she can take more experience back to the family farm in years to come. “I am learning a lot and would like to put it
TRACTA TRANZ NOW PART OF THE PTS FLEET
Rachael Blackley encourages other girls to get into farming as a career
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