| 9 ARABLE » Seaton Farming Quinoa. • from page 7 Ash looks after the cropping and pasture management side of the business, while Warwick looks after the stock side of things but they ‘both do a bit of everything really’. The beginning When George Seaton arrived in New Zealand at Lyttleton from Co Tyrone in Ireland on board the Mermaid in 1864, he worked hard to save up and purchase 20 acres of land in Courtenay, Canterbury, just south of the Waimakariri River just two years later. In 1867 he married Mary Rodgers and they had three children. George farmed all kinds of livestock and grew chaff for the horses. He continued to farm until his death in 1899, when his son, George, took over the farm; increasing the area to 119 acres. It’s hard to know if George Senior would have envisioned his descendant Ash still tending the land nearby at Courtenay well over 100 years later – but that’s what came to be. In 1903 George married Charlotte McLaughlin and they had four children. George continued to farm livestock and grow wheat and oats. In 1936 George’s son, George married Edith Sewell and they had four children. In 1938 he purchased 85 acres of land which included the Desert Run homestead. George Robert raised livestock and grew grain crops. A traditionalist through and through, he was the last farmer in the district to change over to tractors from horses. George Robert’s father passed away in 1948 and he took over the whole farm, also purchasing another 140 acres in 1951. George Robert passed away in 1992. George Robert’s sons, George (Gerrard), Malcolm (Mal) and Robert (Bob) began farming as soon as they left school. In the 1960s they added another 600 acres to farm. They grew oats for chaff, wheat, peas and potatoes. Sheep and cattle were also farmed and they did some baling and harvesting contracting. Bob started up a Suffolk sheep stud with which he had much success with. Gerrard and Mal were bachelors, while Bob married Leslie Cooper in 1983. While all three brothers have since passed away; Bob and Leslie’s two sons, Ashley and Warwick and their families continue to run the farm today. Warwick married Amanda Gilmore in 2016 and they have two children, while Ashley married Anna Boleyn in 2009 and they have three children. The current farm area is 760ha growing a variety of crops and fattening sheep and cattle. Irrigation has been added to two thirds of the farm in recent years. Each generation has been involved with exhibiting livestock and grain at the Courtenay A&P Show with George Robert, Bob, Ashley and Warwick all being past presidents of the association. Prices for grain are reduced a bit this year, so Ash says it’s not going to be a huge year for onfarm investment, beyond a bit of fencing and maintenance work, but he is confident that the quinoa and buckwheat harvests will continue to grow in 2024 and beyond. County Tyrone to Courtenay www.accounting.co.nz 6 Show Place, Christchurch 03 343-4448 Business Advisors & Chartered Accountants Congratulations, Seaton Farming, from one 100-year-old business to another! We’re proud to support you. Keen to make your business last the distance? Call us and mention Business Rural to book a complimentary consultation. Power Farming Canterbury Rolleston and Amberley Phone 03 349 5975 | www.powerfarmingcanterbury.co.nz Power Farming Canterbury is pleased to support Seaton Farming
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