Bull sale saved by irrigation

Press, 28 July 1989, Page 21

Bull sale saved by irrigation

A new irrigation system helped the Te Mania Stud at Clarence Flats to survive the drought and prepare bulls for its annual sale. The owner of Te Mania, Mr Tim Wilding, said without the irrigation, the sale would probably not have been held. Some cattle had to be sent from the Angus stud during the drought but were now arriving back in “dribs and drabs.” The 57 bulls auctioned on Monday had remained on the property. The new irrigation system draws water from the Conway River and can cover 40 to 60ha. With the help of irrigation, Mr Wilding now hopes to steadily increase the number of cattle on his property until about 100 bulls pass through the annual sale. Artificial in-

semination and embryo transplants will also be used. The lift in numbers will probably take several years to achieve because of the stud’s policy of culling 50 per cent of calves in order to maintain and improve standards. Mr Wilding said he expected a renewed interest in black bulls which would make the expansion worth while. About 200 people attended Monday’s sale with buyers coming from most parts of the South Island. Bidding was fairly brisk throughout the sale with 65 lots taking little more than 90 minutes to sell. The top price was $B2OO and the average for 57 bulls from Te Mania was $2817. Eight bulls from the Anstey Stud sold at an average of $1912.