Learn how the Martinborough-based Livestock team has a successful, long-lasting relationship with Birch Hill Station.

The Wairarapa is a region of contrasts, featuring rugged coastlines, fertile plains and hard hill country. The region is well known for producing quality sheep and beef stock that move well off the hills. 

Just a short drive from the township of Martinborough is the picturesque Birch Hill Station, a sheep and beef breeding operation. The 1604 hectare (1300 hectare effective) Station is owned by the Baigent family and has been managed by Stuart and Caroline Ross since March 1997.

Considered hard country, Birch Hill Station includes steep hill land with some flats. The Station runs 300 Hereford breeding cows and 70 replacement heifers, along with 6,100 Romney/Texel breeding ewes.

Birch Hill Station Manager Stuart Ross describes their farming operation as traditional sheep and beef breeding on summer dry country. The male lambs are all gone by the first week in December, approximately 45 percent of these lambs are sent to the works and the balance sent store (the 2018 lambing season was exceptional with 60 percent of the male lambs sent to the works). All the white face Angus Hereford steers are sold at auction, with Hereford bull calves sold on farm. Weaner white face heifers are retained until the spring and sold privately as a breeding proposition.

Stuart said, “Despite the land being prone to drying out, we have a strong focus on getting weight on capital stock and optimising pasture. Our investment in genetics over a number of years is really paying off with an increase in scanning and docking rates year on year, along with improvements in weaning weights. We keep pushing for better results and we need to work with people who can help us with that. That’s where the PGG Wrightson (PGW) livestock team come into play with forward knowledge and expertise in the market.”

“In the 22 years we have been here we have been lucky enough to have had a long-lasting relationship with Livestock Agent Jim Brasell who retired a few years ago, and more recently with Rihi Brown. It’s good to work with a team you know and who knows how you operate. It helps when they understand how we like to get things done.”

“Rihi worked alongside Jim for a couple of years before he became our agent, which included his trainee tenure, so we knew him well. The transition was seamless. Rihi is positive and proactive. He looks for opportunities,”said Stuart.

PGW Livestock Agent Rihi Brown was born in Martinborough, so he knows the farming community well. Rihi entered the PGW livestock trainee programme in November 2015. After his trainee programme finished he remained working alongside Jim until August 2017. At that time, he took over the area formerly serviced by Jim, who retired. As a sheep and beef specialist, Rihi services customers in the South Wairarapa area from Carterton to Martinborough to the coast.

Rihi said, “It’s a dream job for me. I really enjoy working alongside farmers and seeing a range of farming operations. Stuart and Caroline Ross are very good operators and they are respected in the community for producing exceptional stock at Birch Hill Station which attracts regular repeat buyers.”

“To be a livestock agent you need to understand and respect how each customer operates. It’s also important to seek out opportunities for customers, as every year brings different conditions – so they need to modify their farming operation to maximise those unique climatic and market conditions. It’s definitely a career I would recommend. As I went through the training programme, I got great support from the local team. PGW have a network of agents throughout the country so it’s good to have that back up too,” Rihi said.

Pictured: PGG Wrightson Livestock Agent Rihi Brown and Stuart Ross of Birch Hill Station wean and draft calves for the Masterton Weaner Sale in late March 2019.

This article was profiled in our 2019 Annual Report.