Alistair Campbell describes the variances in paddocks on Earnscleugh Station. On the 16 th of May, the group left Alexandra and headed just outside of town to Earnscleugh Station. This property was originally purchased in 1862 and has changed owners over the years. The current owners are Alistair and Judith Campbell, and their son and daughter are also shareholders of the station. This high country property consists of 25,000 hectares, and they are leasing another 8,000 hectares from a neighbor. They currently have 25,000 sheep and just over 1,000 head of cattle. Over the years, they have had to battle the infestation of rabbits on their property. They currently spend $80,000 a year to keep the population at a controlled level.  They have three breeds of stud cattle including Angus, Hereford, and Simmental. They also have a four-way cross of the previous three breeds and the fourth being Gelbvieh. They have an annual bull sale, and this year’s sale will take plac...

May 15, 2019 View of the Southern Alps on our way to the High Country On this day, the class departed from Ashburton, and headed to visit the Tin Shed, an isolated building whose content on the inside does not match that of the outside. Upon stepping inside, the students were overwhelmed by the contents, a store stocked with wool and wool-based products. Wool socks and sweaters were popular items purchased by many students. Some unique purchases included a pillow cover and a repeat purchase throughout the years for several classes, the Willy Warmer. The excitement throughout the trip was building for this stop, and students all agreed that this stop was well worth it. Family members be prepared for warm socks when we get back. With a short bus ride, we stopped in a cute town called Geraldine where some sampled gourmet cheeses, including examples like Goat Gouda and Creamy Havarti, and ice cream. Many students took advantage of the gift stores that contained $10 t-shi...

Sue Rollinson providing coffee, tea, and snacks for the students before the tour. This is the layout of the Rollinson dairy operation. Our day started off with a delicious breakfast at the Hotel Ashburton. After we were full, we jumped on the bus and made our way to Ted and Sue Rollinson’s dairy farm to learn about their operation. Tom Hannigan is the sharemilker on this farm who educated us on the history and current production status of the Rollinson’s dairy. Diving into the history of the dairy, we learned that Tom and Sue viewed this location in the South Island as an opportunity to establish a dairy farm on the land in 1981.  Students walked into the paddock to visit the cows and check out the irrigation system. They wanted to implement irrigation into their operation. They started out with 400 dairy cows which was a lot during this time. They were able to double their herd size due to the irrigation and improved the quality of the grass. Thanks to...