NEW CHAIRMAN OF NEW ZEALAND WOOL BOARD

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29324, 1 October 1960, Page 8

NEW CHAIRMAN OF NEW ZEALAND WOOL BOARD

9 An Acland From Mt. Peel A Canterbury man, Mr Jack Acland, is the new chairman of the Wool Board. In its relatively short life so far the board has had only three other chairmen and Mr Acland has the distinction of being the first from this province.

An uncle, Mr H. D. Acland, a lawyer first in Ashburton and later in Christchurch, who had a deep affection for the land and was intimately associated with the running at the family’s Mount Peel station following the death of his pioneer father, was an early metaber of the Wool Publicity Committee, the forerunner at the Wool Board. Representatives of this committee attended a meeting in Melbourne in January, 1937, when the International Wool Publicity and Research Fund, which is administered by the International Wool Secretariat was set up. One of the representatives at that meeting was Mr B. E. H. Tripp, a sou of Charles George Tripp, who with John Barton Arundel Acland were the first men to settle on a high country sheep station in Canterbury. A grandson of the pioneer Acland, Mr .Jack Acland is by virtue of his present office a member of the executive of the fund and the I.W.S. Manager Mr Jack Acland, who is the eldest son of the late Sir Hugh Acland, has been managing Mount Peel for a partnership of which he is a member since 1931. For the first two years of this period a brother, Mr Colin Acland, who is now farming at Oxford, was associated with him. Mount Peel lies 37 miles inland from Ashburton on the south bank of the Rangltata. Today, it comprises about 18,000 acres of freehold and leasehold, including the front facings of Mount Peel lent by Mr Haldon Beattie. The country ranges from 1000 ft to 5600 ft and Includes about 2000 acres at flats of which about 800 acres are ploughable. The pioneer Acland, a barrister and master of arts with honours In mathematics, and his equally talented partner as young men settled on this country about 104 years ago. In the early days thestation was of about 100,000 acres and carried up to 40,000 to 45,000 sheep. The old and the new are harmoniously blended in Mount Peel, The property was one of the first in the South Island on which beef cattie were given an Important place. The quality of its young chiller beef type cattle was underlined this year when a Mount Peel carcase was placed third for the whole country when it was judged in London. The property was also probably the scene of the first aerial topdressing in South Canterbury, and as on so many other properties in recent years fescue, browntop and gorse has given way to rich green pastures.

AH of this has gone on against toe backdrop of a beautiful old English-designed two-storey brick homestead of 18 rooms with toe gables of its black slate roof and its windows picked out by their white framing. This house, built in 1865 and 1868 from bricks made on the station and out of timber cut on the property, has changed little over the years. It stands amid pleasant green lawns and amongst trees the planting and nurturing of which was supervised by the pioneer Acland. In 1955 a Wellingtonia planted almost 100 years ago was 115 ft high and had a circumference of 30ft. A pinus radiata planted about the same time was 125 ft taH as long

ago as 1933, and in 1955 a pinus ponderosa was 130 ft high. Among the shady trees there are today masses of Himalayan lilies at this time of the year about to begin their spectacular upward thrust of 10 to- 12ft .to break forth into beautiful creafoy trumpets for Christmas. How these flowers came to cover toe ground is not quite certain, but it is possible they were thrown out when an old conservatory was dismantled.

Over a stream and on top of a small hill hard by the homestead is the little Church of the Holy Innocents, so named for three children buried in the little churchyard. This church, with its lovely stained glass windows and hallowed atmosphere, is part of the country, made of faced boulders collected in the Rangitata and nearby river flats and limestone blocks burnt at Mount Somers and hauled across the river in bullock-drawn waggons. The builder was William Brassington, builder also of the Canterbury provincial council chambers.

Against this background modern farming methods are practised. Mr Jack Acland is a lover of fine cattle in very much the same way as his wife, who is a sister of Mr John Ormond, chairman of the Meat Board, is a lover of horses. When Mr Acland came to Mount Peel as manager in the early 1930's there were only about 130 cattle on the place. Today there are about 850 all black cattle, including 440 cows, 75 two-year-old hejfers, 40 18-month-old steers, and 281 yearlings including about 190 heifers. But a big factor in the move to cattle has been that the country and its climate suits them better than sheep. When the Canterbury plains are blistering in the summer heat Mount Peel, is having its wettest time of the year. In the- November to February period the monthly rainfall can vary from two to as much as 12 inches. There can be as many as 20 to 25 wet days in December.

Mount Peel steer calves have been sold regularly at Temuka, and this autumn they earned the

'very good average of £34 3s. But 'it is likely that they will pot come on the market again at this stage. The intention is to carry all the steer calves over with the aim ot having them ready for sale at the 18 months stage at 500 to 5501 b. It is Mr Acland's personal feeling that any further increase in .stock numbers on toe station will be in cattle, and that increase, he feels, will have to be in young stock rather titan in cows because of management problems with cows. - Mount Peel cattle have earned an enviable reputation at toe Canterbury Agricultural and Pastoral Association’s chiller beef contest In the first year of toe competition in 1955 the property gained first place on both the hooks and the hoof, and this year Acland cattle were first, second and fourth on the hoof and second, third and fourth on toe hooks. Top Steer The steer that was second in both sections in Christchurch went on to take third place for the whole of New Zealand in London, with Mount Peel cattle being judged first and second among Canterbury entries. Of the top place carcase toe London judges said: “A good body of beef, full of flesh and highly suitable for toe trade, although tending to fat.” An 18-months-old, it weighed 5261 b.

Mr Acland says that the cattle have benefited toe country in cleaning up the roughage on the hills and tussock and the young

stock by grazing more lightly than sheep have facilitated the establishment of new grass. Because of his interest in cattle Mr Acland has sometimes been asked jokingly by his friends whether he still has the 100 sheep needed to qualify him for membership of toe Wool Board. Flock numbers have dropped away from the 20,000 carried at the beginning of the 1930’5, but the station has also decreased in size since then by about 38,000 acres of leasehold. Today the tally is about 7000 with a little more than 4000 ewes and 2300 hoggets, wethers and rams. They are a RomneyMerino cross. In the last two or three relatively dry years it has been possible to fatten all lambs on the mothers or off grass, but in less favourable years for sheep there is an outlet for store lambs when down country fanners are usually better placed for feed. The trend in recent years has been to aim for higher lambing percentages and better wool weights. Percentages have risen from 80 in the 10 years before 1948-49 to 100 in the last two or three good weather seasons, but

Mr Acland says that he would be satisfied with 90. Wool weights have gone up from 7%1b 15 yuan ago to 91b in spite of a change over to pre-lamb khearine, ThH is the second year that aU ewes have been shorn before lambing, which la now starting. Pre-lamb shearing has worked out every well on the property. Previously "because of the summer rainfall it was the practice not to shear until the end of January when the lambs were weened. The change has eliminated yellow stain. Caught In Snow But when shearing was in full swing about three weeks ago two inches of rain fell in 10 hours and six inches of snow fell on the flats. A mob shorn three or four days was caught in the snow six inches deep without a great deal of shelter, but there were no losses. Since heavy losses were experienced on the station shortly before Mr Acland became manager Mount Peel has gone back to blade shearing and normally for a day or two after shearing ewes go on to autumn-saved pasture to ensure that at this critical stage they are well nourished. Where possible they are placed to take best use of shelter.

Gorse seed was sown on sod banks on Mount Peel in toe early days and during World War I, in particular, when labour was short the golden weed spread far and wide. On stpep slopes it is

difficult to tackle by air or by heavy stocking but with the bulldozer, swamp plough and hormones large areas of accessible country have been cleared and following applications of a ton of lime it has been sown to turnips and then to grass after a further ton of lime. Because of the friable nature of the soil the digger plough has been used to reduce surface cultivation and wind blow. The usual grass mixture has been 151 b of perennial ryegrass, 51b of short rotation ryegrass. 51b of Timothy, 51b of cocksfoot, lib of crested dogstail, 21b of Montgomery red clover and 21b of white clover. In 1953 Mount Peel pasture won the South Canterbury pasture competition against all comers. No Hay-Making But for all the growth there is in the summer the weather is against hay-making and hay is bought in. Some of the flats are swept by such chill winds in winter that they are too cold to be worked by man and too frigid for stock.

On the pastures one and a quarter cwt of super is spread annually and since topdressing of tussock began recently one cwt has been applied every second

year. Tussock is now being topOrvased in January and sulphurised super is being used. Some white clover and crested dogetail is being spread on the top of the frost in August. Mr Acland's grandfather when he returned to England In the late 1850’s told farmers that if they were considering migrating to New Zealand they should first take a job there to get their feet His grandson also believes that a farmer's son or a young farmer should look beyond his home farm before settling down there. Mr Jack Acland himself worked on a mixed farm in North Auckland after leaving school and then on Orari Gorge station. He worked as a stock man and then a stock agent for Pyne, Gould, Guinness Ltd., and spent two years in Australia. including a term on a Wes Australian sheep station. Last year his sons John, aged 24, and Mark, aged 21, visited Australia, the United Kingdom and America studying farming methods. Both boys have also worked in the North Island.

With their father now so often away from home on Wool Board business, John and Mark are having to increasingly take over the responsibilities of management.