48 | BALLANCE AWARDS » Brierly Hill Philip is a very philosophical farmer Philip says he and Julia were very pleased to be recognised. Sue Russell BFEA Compact Brand Guidelines V1.0 FEB 2022 Philip and Julia Leaf farm a multi-generational beef property, Brierly Hill, at Matakohe, Northland. The 600ha farm has been in Philip’s family since 1862. He knows the land well, having worked there since leaving school. The farm today runs up to 900 trading cattle. The property hasn’t always been its current size, growing as Philip’s father seized opportunities to purchase surrounding land. Today, with Philip and Julia also buying more land Brierly Hill extends over 1500 acres. “I don’t have any flat land but its very easy rolling country. It doesn’t have any super steep hills,” says Philip. Those parts of the property that are steeper have been planted in a mix of native and exotic trees, with some, Philip says, over 300 years old. “Initially the whole farm would have been covered in trees of course. The first European people in this district began milling for timber. The farm was originally sheep and beef but about 9 years ago I decided to get out of sheep,” Philip explains. Back in the early 2000’s Philip was very involved in farm monitoring. He says his mind works a bit like the Farmax Programme, where a stocking rate and placement is calculated based on kg / ha. He’s established his own cell grazing grid which features up to 32 mobs at any one time. A great deal of his time is spent observing the mobs at least every two days, with weight gain recorded. Brierly Hill featured in this year’s New Zealand Ballance Farm Environment Trust awards as Northland finalists, where judges noted the high level of organisation operating such a system demands. “My system isn’t as intensive as a tecno system, but I keep making it more efficient by bringing the paddock sizes down with more water troughs and subdivision, to make very good use of feed. My paddock size now is just under 0.9 ha average. The system is pretty easy care and I have the help of a farm worker two days a week,” says Philip. Philip looks after the 700-odd cattle himself, with genetics sourced from the dairy sector, generally friesian, hereford/friesian cross stock. Of the herd 15-20% are steers, with a mix of hereford / friesian, charolais and belgium blue. The aim in terms of growth time and weight is to grow bulls out for 2-2 ½ years to 300kg. Steers are grown out up to 3 years old. Philip is a very philosophical farmer, admitting that he’s always willing to try a new approach if it makes sense, experiencing along the way some mistakes and victories. The farm has beautiful pockets of bush, as well as areas where radiata pine is cultivated. Philip has observed that as the farm has got more aesthetically pleasing, it also works better as a farm. “With some of the hard weather we’ve experienced in the past few years, its interesting to see how these lovely old stands of trees withstand nature, and the soil they are growing in remains intact, so there’s some wisdom to keeping marginal areas of the farm in bush.” In all there’s about 45ha of native bush – rimu, puriri, totara, kauri and plenty of other native species thriving. Philip admits that living and working in this environment has resulted in ‘green’ being his favourite colour. “When you look at the bush, you realise there isn’t one colour green at all, but many shades that all blend in together.” It’s also a visual feast to be able to look down on bush, from the many hills on the property. “That way you get to see the tree tops rather than looking up at them. We will keep looking at more options for planting. Maybe some poplar for milling. Having the steep areas planted means the stock are not grazing these areas, so its a very balanced, sensible approach to land-use.” The couple’s approach to farming is to consider themselves stewards of the land, rather than owners. This attitude impacts the way they view their responsibilities, care for the stock, the waterways, the bush and land. “We host a horse hunt every now and then. Visitors say the farm is so nice.” One of the things Philip says he is quite proud of is the lack of weeds. Along with his father, removing weeds has been a constant focus for Philip, resulting in pastures now with a very low seed Teamplayers make for better results Thanks for having us as part of that team. Dargaville | p. 09 439 8385 | e. advice@myaccountants.co.nz www.myaccountants.co.nz Joanna Ewenson CA | Joanne Biddles CA | Jo Bradley CA | David Cutts CA Proudly Supporting Brierly Hill 029 423 8030 kelvincolthurst@gmail.com bank of thistles. “We’ve grubbed out 95% of them and it minimises the need for spray. Because there are so few weeds, I see them very quickly and when I do, I deal to them.” Philip says he and Julia were very pleased to be recognised for the situation of the farm that goes back so far in the family’s history. “This is a lovely farm to live and work on. It’s very special to us.”
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