Betty Farrelly’s 1986 book (Farrelly, Elizabeth J. Whatawhata Hill Country Research Station — An historical Review 1949–1986, including early farming in the Waikato and formation and activities of the Department of Agriculture, (No ISBN number) is the main source of the Whatawhata Hill Country Station history, and much more. The photos in particular bring back … Read more
Making moving images – Video and DVDBy D.C Dalton and G. R. Moss The power of moving imagesMoving pictures are much more powerful than still pictures and the written word in getting a message across. Everyone knows that, and it’s especially true in farming where so many things we do are concerned with ‘action’. In … Read more
By Dr Clive Dalton Summary of urgent priorities Priority 1 Give the PrimaryITO total responsibility to oversee all New Zealand primary industry training and education (below University level), and to provide basic information for all entering the primary industries. If there was overseas interest, then they could handle that too. Priority 2 Provide the PrimaryITO with … Read more
By Dr Clive Dalton Pregnancy scanningPregnancy scanning (at around NZ50c/ewe in New Zealand) has been a great innovation to help farmers improve the management of pregnant ewes. Scanners are now doing more small flocks if the opportunity arises between large flocks, more as a service than a money maker. The good thing is that after … Read more
By Dr Clive Dalton Picture 1. This picture shows markers ‘zig-zagging’ up the hill on the course. The sheep start at the bottom and are moved to the left, then they move to the right, and complete the course by moving to the left again. The competitor is waiting for the sheep to be released on … Read more
By Dr Clive Dalton The Straight HuntThis is where the dog has to drive three sheep up a steep slope in as straight a line as possible. These pictures were taken at the Karioi Dog Trial grounds near Raglan in the North Island of New Zealand Picture 1: The sheep have to be driven straight up … Read more
Northumberland, Redesdale, agriculture, farming, history, moor burning, moorland management, dialect, humour Moor burning: A Redesdale Daft Laddie’s burning desire By Donald Clegg The smell of reekFor hundreds of years man has used fire as a means to clear scrub and invasive plants off land so that he could farm it in one way or another. … Read more
By Dr Clive Dalton Cranking handles in the 1950s As a student in the 1950s, we did statistics labs on small Brunsviga hand-cranked calculators with tiny levers pulled down to select the numbers wanted. You cranked the handle clockwise until a bell rang (I think when dividing), and then cranked it anticlockwise for a reason … Read more
By Dr Clive Dalton Remembering the students in my time (1993-2000) who went through The Waikato Polytech (TWP) farming courses, we learned so much from them and their experiences, and we also learned from their employers, many of whom had been former students years before. There are a host of issues for young folk leaving … Read more
Avoid making fundamental mistakes.Key essentials for a successful presentation By Geoffrey Moss Marred by errorsRecently I attended a presentation by a famous scientist. It promised to be an interesting motivational address, but was marred by several errors which could have been easily avoided if there had been a little more preparation and rehearsal. First, the … Read more
Joe McLean – research station farm manager Research on hill country farming neededIn 1952 Joe McLean went to work at the ‘Ruakura Hill Station’ where his father was a fencer. The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries had purchased the block to do sheep and beef research to help farmers increase production after WWII. The station … Read more
Agriculture, animal husbandry, goats, Angora, Mohair, health, giving injections, practical adviceBy Dr Clive Dalton & Dr Marjorie Orr Injections General hygiene Subcutaneous injection (under the skin) Intramuscular injection (into the muscle) Intravenous injection (into the vein) Intramammary injection (into the udder)In sheep (and goats), antibiotics for mastitis are normally given intramuscularly but you may need … Read more
Agriculture, animal husbandry, goats, Angora, Mohair, information, further reading, references By Dr Clive Dalton Further readingARC Report No. 10. (1998).The nutrition of goats. Report of technical committee on responses to nutrients.ISBN 0-85199-216-1. Batten, G. (2002).Simply goats. A guide to making money from your farm with goats.A FITT project funded by New Zealand Woolpro. ISBN 0-473-07077-4. Charlton, … Read more
History Photo of ‘Old Hemp’ bred in Northumberland (UK) and now has his DNA in dog trial and working dogs around the world. Dog trials have been part of New Zealand life since the establishment of sheep farming. The late Neil Rennie’s research found that the first NZ trial was probably held at Wanaka in 1867 … Read more
By Dr Clive Dalton A new approach is URGENT New Zealand’s primary industries should be screaming for a new approach to education, using every possible aspect of the Internet access aided by ultra fast fibre. What we are using today is already old technology. The big problem for our future exports is that we are … Read more
–> By Dr Clive Dalton The law Ownership of a working dog carries with it some clearly-defined legal responsibilities under current legislation. Your main responsibilities are to: · Make sure a dog is registered and that the certificate is in a secure place and readily available. · Have collars, discs, or … Read more