When I first bought our property on the Herbert Hill, there was a lot of grass and it was a surprise to the local that I decided to run cattle. The reason for their surprise was that we were on the back of a five year drought and they were apprehensive to believe that the drought was actually over.
I recall Phil (Snow) Wilkie telling me that super phosphate that he applied on his hill country had not dissolved during those five years.
Sometime I will post pictures taken in 1916 that show that the farmland on the lower Kakanui Range was very hungry and farming was indeed a struggle.
The climate has changed because those severe droughts no longer seem to happen and I believe it is because of increased precipitation due to the forest - some may argue about that - and they are welcome.
This is Albert Stringer who was the Forest Clerk who I have already wrote a little about - he is now 80 years old and still tends the gardens of several elderly ladies.
I often talked over things with Albert, and he was a constant help to me. I mention him now because he was interested in cattle, and milked a cow called Polly.
I bought a bobby calf [day old] from Tubby Stewartson, an early dairy farmer from Kakanui. Albert had offered to rear it for me as he had a surplus of milk from Polly. The calf grew steadily due to Polly's rich milk and Albert's care.
The calf was strong and healthy and it was time to release it in my paddock. I had the exuberance (foolhardiness) of youth and told Albert that it was a simple matter of tying the calf's feet (hog tying) and lifting it into my Commer Cob.
Hand reared calves are quiet and this one was no different, but it did object to me trying to drop it onto the ground so I could tie its legs. It took off down the hill! It had a rope around it's neck which I hung on to and tried to stop its' progress.
I lost my balance and the calf dragged me down the hill through thistles, through cow pats and over stones!
Determined, I held on and eventually I managed to halt the animal and turn it over so I could tie its' legs.
Albert had the rope and he was up the hill laughing his head off, so I had to hold the writhing animal until he settled down and brought the rope.
I made a very secure job of tying the legs and the calf could not move [save for its' head].
Albert took one side of the animal and I the other - on my command we lifted! It was too heavy we could not even clear it off the ground! Albert laughed again!
We had to let the calf go and I had to borrow a stock trailer to move the calf as Albert had suggested in the first place! It all went smoothly.
Hand reared calves are quiet and this one was no different, but it did object to me trying to drop it onto the ground so I could tie its legs. It took off down the hill! It had a rope around it's neck which I hung on to and tried to stop its' progress.
I lost my balance and the calf dragged me down the hill through thistles, through cow pats and over stones!
Determined, I held on and eventually I managed to halt the animal and turn it over so I could tie its' legs.
Albert had the rope and he was up the hill laughing his head off, so I had to hold the writhing animal until he settled down and brought the rope.
I made a very secure job of tying the legs and the calf could not move [save for its' head].
Albert took one side of the animal and I the other - on my command we lifted! It was too heavy we could not even clear it off the ground! Albert laughed again!
We had to let the calf go and I had to borrow a stock trailer to move the calf as Albert had suggested in the first place! It all went smoothly.
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