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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
Farmlets A and C (contemporary) moved into set stocking on 13 August, while B and D (regenerative) began their lambing grazing rotations. The shifts for farmlets B and D will be based on minimum pasture residuals of 1400 kg DM/ha. Beef animals are rotating around the remaining paddocks.
While spring has sprung in the Manawatū, pasture growth has generally been supporting maintenance and pregnancy requirements only on the regenerative treatments. Measures may need to be taken on farmlet B in particular if pasture growth doesn’t improve – this would likely involve the agistment of beef animals.
The contemporary farmlets have been feeding stock ad-libitum for the entire gestation period. Ewes in the first cycle (vast majority of ewes) are due to lamb on 20 August. Those in the second cycle are due to lamb on 7 September.
Latest pasture covers
Farmlet data
0-point: 1 January 2024
| Date | 26 August 2026 | Farmlet A - SPCM | Farmlet B - SPRM | Farmlet C - DPCM | Farmlet D - DPRM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pasture | Standard | Standard | Diverse | Diverse | |
| Management | Contemporary | Regenerative | Contemporary | Regenerative | |
| 2-Feb | Number of ewes | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 |
| 2-Feb | Number of cattle (R1) | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 |
| 13-Aug | Ewes liveweight (kg) | 88.62 | 88.99 | 89.14 | 85.28 |
| 13-Aug | Ewes body condition score | 2.85 | 2.73 | 3.25 | 2.55 |
| 13-Aug | Calves liveweight (R1 kg) | 213.9 | 234.8 | 225.8 | 232.8 |
| 26-Aug | Average pasture cover (APC; kgDM/ha) | 2063 | 1826 | 2189 | 2190 |
| 26-Aug | Growth rate (kgDM/ha/day) rolling 3 week average | 37 | 25 | 49 | 37 |
| 26-Aug | Target rotation length (days) | 48 | 48 | 48 | 48 |
| 13-Aug | Residual (kgDM/ha) | 2101 | 1434 | 1996 | 1537 |
| Soil temperature (°C) | 10.4 |
| Air temperature (°C) | 10.6 |
| Rainfall - month to date (mm) | 68.4 |
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.
