Tom Moore - Tarras
For five years Tom Moore has managed a 3756 hectare fine wool and hogget fattening farm at Tarras. Kaituna lucerne is persistent enough to survive the dry weather the farm is prone to.
"We get an average rainfall of 25 inches," says Tom. "The lucerne doesn't die."
The farm is about one third flat country, of which 650 hectares is in Kaituna lucerne, 200 hectares lucerne only, and 450 hectares lucerne/cocksfoot. Ryegrass/clover mixes lasted three to four years in the dry, whereas the first lucerne paddocks are still going strong after eight years with no noticeable drop in production. Tom once participated in the Lincoln Pasture Plan, sending samples from the old and new pastures for comparison. "The lucerne was producing 2.5 times as much dry matter as the old grass. "Tom winters 9000 Merino ewes and 5000 hoggets. While the farm could only carry 6 lambs per hectare on the old pasture, it now carries 10-12 per hectare.
