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The Pasture and Crop Research Unit (PCRU) is one of Massey's working farms. This research site is grazed by sheep and includes 4 farmlets:
- Farmlet A – standard pasture under contemporary management
- Farmlet B – standard pasture under regenerative management
- Farmlet C – diverse pasture under contemporary management
- Farmlet D – diverse pasture under regenerative management.
Update
The temperatures have remained low and the rainfall has increased from last month. Pasture covers on the contemporary farmlets are slowly increasing. On the regenerative farmlets, we noticed that the pasture covers were stagnating and decided to remove the beef cattle temporarily to allow for more cover to build before lambing. All ewes were pregnancy scanned. Scanning percentages ranged from 177% to 200%, with most ewes carrying twins, 4 carrying triplets and 1 dry.
Latest pasture covers
Farmlet data
0-point: 1 January 2024
| Date | 17 June 2026 | Farmlet A - SPCM | Farmlet B - SPRM | Farmlet C - DPCM | Farmlet D - DPRM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pasture | Standard | Standard | Diverse | Diverse | |
| Management | Contemporary | Regenerative | Contemporary | Regenerative | |
| 17 Jun | Number of ewes | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 |
| 17 Jun | Number of cattle (R1) | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 |
| 17 Jun | Ewes liveweight (kg) | 69.6 | 70.2 | 71.9 | 69.0 |
| 17 Jun | Ewes body condition score | 3.2 | 3.0 | 3.1 | 3.1 |
| 17 Jun | Calves liveweight (R1 kg) | 168 | 150 | 165 | 199 |
| 17 Jun | Calves average daily gain (R1 kg/day) | -0.13 | 0.63 | 0.27 | 0.39 |
| 11 Jun | Average pasture cover (APC; kgDM/ha) | 1877 | 1727 | 2009 | 1825 |
| 11 Jun | Growth rate (kgDM/ha/day) rolling 3 week average | 26 | 18 | 30 | 21 |
| 11 Jun | Target rotation length (days) | 72 | 96 | 72 | 96 |
| 1 May | Residual (kgDM/ha) | 1042 | 1090 | 1044 | 1074 |
| Soil Temp (°C) | 11.6 |
| Air Temp (°C) | 12.8 |
| Rainfall - MTD (mm) | 79 |
Other Whenua Haumanu research sites
Massey University farmlets: Dairy 1 farm
Dairy 1 is one of Massey's working farms. It borders the Manawatū River, within the city boundary. This research site is grazed by dairy cows and includes 3 farmlets: standard pasture under contemporary management, and diverse pasture under both regenerative and contemporary management.
Lincoln University: Field Research Centre (FRC)
The FRC is Lincoln University‘s hub for applied plant, soil science and ecology research. This research site is grazed by sheep and includes four farmlets made up of 20 plots each.
