Otago drought drives lambs to new fields

Press, 13 December 1989, Page 5

Otago drought drives lambs to new fields

By

DIANE KEENAN

Thousands of lambs have been trucked out of drought-affected areas of Central Otago and the Mackenzie Country for grazing. Farmers in the drought areas are desperately short of feed after a prolonged winter-spring drought, described by some as one of the worst known. Significant rain has not fallen on many, farms since June and with rivers and creeks low, there are fears that irrigation sources might dry up. The farm manager at the Tara Hills research centre near Omarama, Mr Bob Penden, said, that rainfall in the area since June was back to a third of a normal season. He had recorded between 6mm and Bmm a month compared with the expected 40mm. Frequent hot north-westerly winds and high evaporation rates had compounded

the problem, he said. Farmers facing serious feed shortages had been forced to sell their lambs early or spnd them down-country or grazing. Mr Penden said Tara Hills was running 1500 fewer sheep than usual and he planned to send another 800 wethers away for grazing later this month. He said it was fortunate that farmers nearer the coast had grazing available. Another problem was that creeks used for irrigation water were “drying up fast and we could run out of irrigation water by Christmas.” A MAFTech farm consultant, Miss Sandy Harper of Alexandra, said irrigation sources in Central Otago were also •drying up quickly. The effects of the drought had been felt early in the season and Maniototo farmers faced with critical feed shortages had trucked out 10,000 ewes before lambing. Newly weaned lambs now made up most of the stock exodus.