| 3 RURAL PEOPLE » Clifton Station Diversi cation supports Clifton legacy Kim Newth Sheep still roam the hills of Clifton Station in Hawkes Bay, where the Gordon family has farmed for more than 150 years. Yet the family’s long stewardship here owes much also to their entrepreneurial spirit and openness to change. Angus Gordon and son Tom are fth and sixth generation farmers respectively on the station’s 800 hectares, whose hills and gullies are so deeply embedded in their shared ancestry. Angus has fond memories of growing up in this special place, near Cape Kidnappers. “We had horses to ride, pet sheep dogs from an early age, creeks and the sea to swim in, and I got to help my father with mustering on the farm.” Stock trading is a big part of life for Angus and Tom today. They fatten several thousand trade lambs through to October, run a ock of around a thousand self-shedding Wilshire ewes and have a herd of 260 cows. Fodder crops for lambs include Raphno, a kale-radish hybrid. On the station’s irrigated ats, 30ha is leased to Bostock Brothers to grow organic maize for chickens. “In autumn, we replant it with oats used to fatten lambs in winter.” It has been some time since the property’s 1886 woolshed was needed for commercial shearing. In more recent times, it was used to host historic woolshed shows for cruise ship tourists. “We ran that as a tourism venture from 2006 to 2020. We actually had our best season ever in 2019/20 and then Covid came along and put an end to it.” Angus and Dinah Gordon rst took over the station’s reins in 1982. Their rst big diversi cation project involved the growing of early squash for the Japanese market on the irrigated ats. Later, they built a café facing the ocean that became a popular stop for tourists, locals and day trippers. “We wanted to do something that would not depend on the land or vagaries of the weather. We ran the café with a manager for 13 years and now lease it out to some very good operators, who have their own business there called Hygge at Clifton Bay – it’s a roaring success.” The latest diversi cation is a glamping operation run by Tom and wife Lucia, with two luxury campsites developed ve years ago. “Lucia is very good at marketing and does the day to day running of the business while Tom did a lot of the building. They’ve done a wonderful job with the garden and landscaping. It has been at out since they opened again last September. It has worked out really well.” Trees have long been planted for timber on the station, but are now planted for carbon credits with some 50ha of pine planted last year. Gorges have been fenced off over the years as has the property’s boundary with the Maraetotara River, creating a lot of regenerating bush areas on the station today as well. Meanwhile, Angus is fast gaining a following as an author with three books published to date on family history, the area’s historic wool sheds and the latest on ‘Historic Homesteads of Hawke’s Bay’ that includes a section on Clifton’s 1900 Edwardian homestead built by Angus’ grandfather Frank. One senses that Frank would be very proud indeed of how his descendants have kept the place going and thriving through the years. Tom Gordon dagging fat lambs before trucking them to Affco. Insets: Angus Gordon’s three published books. Top quality equipment and an experienced team Phone Mike 021 733 918 www.mikekettlecontracting.co.nz One of the irst farms Mike Kettle remembers working on as a young haymaker 30 years ago was Clifton Station, near Te Awanga. A few years later, Mike bought out his boss and began investing in business growth. Today, Mike Kettle Contracting Ltd still does the round bales at Clifton Station and much more besides, with services having expanded considerably over the years. Based in Hastings, Mike Kettle Contracting is today a progressive agricultural contracting business providing extensive cultivation, hay and silage solutions. Mike and his team have a top notch reputation for reliability, operating a large modern leet of John Deere tractors, Claas forage harvesters, hay equipment and a quality range of the latest cultivation and ground engagement machinery. At Clifton Station, Mike started o working for Angus Gordon but now works closely too with Angus’ son Tom on jobs like baleage, drilling, and cultivation of new crops. “I’m noticing that with a lot of the people I’ve been working with over many years, the sons are now taking on more of the management and ownership. It’s a privilege for our team to still be working with these loyal farm families and now servicing the next generation!” Having such a long connection with the local rural scene ensures Mike and his team can be relied upon to respond quickly and e iciently to farmers’ speci ic needs. They know the land inside out and what needs to be done. Mike is very proactive about investing in new gear to avoid breakdowns in the paddock. The frontline John Deere tractors are traded at 6000 hours and replaced with new. A similar trading policy is true across all equipment. All machinery goes through the workshop over the winter. Virtually all servicing is done in-house, with the full-time team maintaining the machinery. This further builds reliability in the ield as the core team is very familiar with all the gear. Jobs such as baling barley straw, hay and baleage will keep Mike and his employees busy through the late summer season. Soon drilling will be starting again as farmers begin cultivation for winter feed. Mike Kettle Contracting services include mowing, raking, tedding, hay baling with conventional medium and big square balers, round and square baleage, ploughing, power harrowing, rotary hoeing, discing, roller drilling, direct drilling, maize silage, grass silage, tree planting, buying or selling hay, straw or standing grass, and transporting. Proudly servicing Hawke’s Bay’s agricultural sector YOUR ONE STOP CONTRACTORS Mike Kettle Contracting is proud to provide a total contracting solution for all livestock, cropping and lifestyle farmers all year round. We’re your one stop shop for the cultivation, planting, harvesting and delivery of crop to your farm. Let us use our knowledge, expertise, equipment and experienced team to maximise the productivity of your agribusiness. HAY • BALEAGE • BULK SILAGE • MOWING & RAKING DIRECT AND ROLLER DRILLING • DRILLING CULTIVATION • ORCHARD DEVELOPMENT
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