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80 | RURAL PEOPLE » Austin & Victoria Garden
Central Otago sheep-and-beef farmer Austin Garden
is expecting a good lambing result given the warm
spring weather.
With a keen eye on increasing production and
his bottom line, a focus on triplet survival provides
the most promising opportunity.
Rising 1000 metres above sea level, at the
bottom end of Central Otago, the rolling hill to high
country of Avenel Station commands breathtaking
views of Teviot Valley.
Avenel Station is home to 10,000 stock units –
4500 ewes, 350 breeding hinds and 200 breeding
beef cows. The 2500-hectare station has been
in the Garden family since the 1960s when Eoin
Garden, in partnership with his brother and father
bought the property, farming sheep, beef and deer.
These days, Eoin and wife Noeline are in
partnership with son Austin and his wife, Victoria.
Austin now has operational oversight of Avenel
Station and the family’s 290ha/750-cow dairy unit
in Heriot. Both properties run independently of each
other.
Austin, Victoria and their four young children
moved onto the station in 2012. Austin had
previously been managing the Heriot operation.
In the summer, condition-score-three ewes
go out to the tussock country. The ewes are a
composite and, lately, some new genetics have
been introduced to develop more hardiness for
the tough hill-country conditions, constitution and
longevity.
“We’re using landmark and snowline,” says
Austin. “Landmark ewes are getting very good
production on some big properties where they are
obviously not pampered.
“The snowline are very hardy and a lot of
them have smaller frames than ours. I’m trying to
increase ewe efficiency, and I think ours are getting
a little bit big.”
He has been achieving 140 per cent at weaning
in recent years, and is keen to target 150%, but
needs to reduce lambing wastage to achieve that.
Triplet survival rates production
Richard Loader
“We’re quite extensive and haven’t done a
lambing beat in the past. With lower lamb prices, it
wasn’t economic. But I think that if we are getting
over $100 a lamb, it will be, as we expect to hand-
rear 100 lambs over the season.”
Austin sees the biggest opportunity to increase
survival rate lying with triplets, which traditionally
have a similar lambing percentage to twins.
He says that from 4400 ewes mated, he can
normally expect 685 triplets, and there is potential
for one extra lamb per triplet ewe through better
feed and management.
After scanning, the triplet ewes are separated off
and preferentially treated by feeding them a lot of
barley and managed to increase their intake.
“The problem is that so much of the ewe’s
stomach is full of lamb she cannot eat enough, so
The Garden children, Honor and Leo, lend a hand moving the mob at Avenel Station, home to 10,000 stock units – 4500 ewes, 350 breeding hinds and 200
breeding beef cows.
Identifying potential.
Optimising productrivity.
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
EXTRA KG
LAMB WEANED
PER EWE MATED
COMPARED
TO YEAR 1
YEARS IN STOCKCARE
Over the years in the stockcare programme the ewe flock has
produced 15.5KG more lamb per ewe than in the first year.
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We haven’t done a lambing beat in the past. With lower
lamb prices, it wasn’t economic. But I think that if we
are getting over $100 a lamb, it will be, as we expect to
hand-rear 100 lambs over the season.
needs a highly nutritious diet. The barley is great
for that.”
Triplet ewes are lambed in the best lambing
paddocks with the higher covers.
He’s looking to increase lamb survival by
keeping a check on triplets and picking up mis-