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ON FARM » Paratiho Farm
Business Rural
Paratiho includes six guest suites, a spa, a gymnasium with sauna, a manager’s apartment, offices and garaging for six large vehicles. The grounds include four lakes, a croquet lawn, a professional standard putting green, nine hole golf course, swimming pool, tennis court and a heli-pad. The 7690-hectare property runs 7500 stock, 75 per cent sheep, 20% cattle and the remainder deer.
Farm manager in the lap of luxury Karen Phelps Paratiho has undergone substantial changes to its farming operation in the last four years. And if anybody knows just what has gone on, it’s manager Dave McEwen – he spent part of his childhood growing up on the property when it was owned by his parents, Peter and Gwen, back in the late 1970s. It was a ballot farm when the McEwens bought it and over a decade they developed it to around 4000 stock units. The property was bought by British couple Sir Keith and Lady Sabine Whitson in 2009, and Dave returned as manager four years ago when he saw potential for further development. Paratiho is now on he market again. The 7690-hectare property runs 7500 stock units – 75 per cent sheep, 20% cattle and the remainder deer. The farm doesn’t sell store stock; all animals leave the farm gates prime. “I can’t see any point in selling it to someone else to make more money from,” says Dave whose business-focused attitude has brought significant changes and has seen profitability increase substantially over recent years. He previously worked for Lone Star Farms in the Nelson Lakes region, managing two units. “I’ve always loved the Motueka region,” he
says. “In other farming areas, if you can’t talk about rugby, sheep and cattle at the pub, there’s nothing to talk about. Here it’s very diverse.” His wife, Kate, shares his love of the rural life. Although officially she has no role in the farming operation and works full-time as a nurse at Jack Inglis Friendship Hospital in Motueka, Dave says she often lends a hand. “She has helped dag the lambs and she has got up at 5.30am to feed two orphan calves. Good farming families help out to get the job done. She’s extremely supportive, maybe she works harder than I do.” Major changes he has instigated include restructuring staff so that the farm now employs just one full -timer, and dramatically changing grazing management to increase efficiency. He says he is a big believer in rotational grazing and has implemented a focused, re-grassing regime. “The farm has roughly 60ha of irrigated flat. I can’t see the point in putting water on run-out under performing grasses. So we put in a winter crop, followed by a summer crop, then into semipermanent pasture for four years. This land is now riddled with plantain, chicory and clover, so when water is put on, we get a good crop.” The farm is irrigated by a travelling irrigator supplied from two large dams and numerous smaller reservoirs, a government group supply, and various bore-holes and wells. Dave noted water
wastage from applying too much at one time, so implemented a policy of rotating the irrigation faster to avoid this problem. This resulted in more grass growth. He says lambs put on these paddocks since have thrived, livestock production has increased, and animal health issues have diminished. Another major change has been identifying drench resistance in lambs. “When I came here somebody told me the lambs had just been drenched, but I couldn’t believe it – they were riddled with worms. So we changed the drench.” There has also been a change to a romneytexel flock from a five-way composite base. Dave says putting texel-romney rams to the breed has improved wool, hardiness, survivability and lambing percentages. This season the farm is targeting lambing percentages of 139 per cent for the mixed-
D & S KRAMMER AGRICULTURAL CONTRACTING
age ewes, 117% for the two-tooth ewes and 50% for the hoggets. Expectations have also risen for cattle and deer. Calving rates are now 95% and fawning 90%. The farm used to farm red deer and well fawns straight off the mother at weaning. Dave saw capacity to increase the size of the deer operation, and fawn numbers have now almost doubled. No stags are held on the property. They are leased for mating, using a wapiti/red cross that produces larger fawns and makes finishing easier for a quicker sale to market. As all fawns are now finished and sold each season the farm buys in 20 in-fawn deer replacements. The angus cows are introduced to a terminal sire, with a charolais bull put over the cows from which replacements will not be bred. A bull is put
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Motueka Tyres
Proud to support Paratiho Ltd
Loyal to wool since 1888 H Dawson Farm Direct Packing Shed Corner Riwaka, Motueka Store Phone: 03-528-7980 | Fax: 03-528-7903 | Cell: 027-207-4004
H Dawson Farm direct are proud to have marketed all the wool for Paratiho over the years We wish them well for the future
On site service available
Contact Dave & Suzie 03 528 8467 suzie.krammer@xtra.co.nz
For 24 Hour service Call 03 528 1020 E: motueka@tyregeneral.co.nz
www.tyregeneral.co.nz
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