Wi Pere Trust
Otara Station
Otara Station is a sheep and cattle station located north of Te Karaka, approximately 3 km along the Whatatutu Road. The Station employs four shepherds and two general hands.
Otara Station comprises 3303 hectares with an effective farming area of 2515 hectares. Non productive land area covers 788 hectares, 45 ha of which is a fenced area of native bush reserve. There are also areas of scrub, steep gullies and other smaller blocks of native bush.
The fenced area of bush reserve is of significant botanical interest.
Five ha of land is leased to Puha Nursery for pine trees propagation and there is a nine-hole golf course which is open to the public from late March until the end of September.
An adjoining property of medium hill country was purchased in 1995 and is now used as a fattening unit for cull steers and heifers.
Sheep
Total sheep numbers overwintered on Otara are approximately 15,770. The majority of these are Romney ewes (10,770) of which 2,500 are put to Poll Dorset rams in early January for lambing in June. These lambs are ready for the early lamb market which pays premium prices. All Poll Dorset x Romney lambs are killed for export by the end of December.
Cattle
Total cattle on Otara Station number 2502 of which 943 are Angus x Hereford breeding cows. The Station also has 28 Angus and 12 Hereford bulls.
Station Manager - Tim Rhodes
RD 4
Te Karaka
Home: 06 862 3739
Fax: 06 862 3738
cell: 027 272 5421
email: tim.ngaire@xtra.co.nz