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The winner of a prestigious national award for forestry says farmers need to change their attitude towards trees.
Gordon Levet, who manages the Kikitangeo Romney Stud near Wellsford, was named Husquvarna North Island Farm Forester of the Year at the New Zealand Farm Forestry Association annual conference in Rotorua last month.
Mr Levet says he has been planting trees on his 600ha property for more than 50 years for aesthetics, for environmental sustainability, to prevent soil erosion and to harvest commercially.
Despite the success of these efforts, he says farmers generally have been largely hostile to trees.
“Basically, farmers don’t like trees. They think they are untidy and are a nuisance when they shed branches and so forth,” he says.
But Mr Levet believes such attitudes are shortsighted.
He says most farms have otherwise unproductive land that could be successfully planted with trees, and if they were, the benefits would be enormous.
Among his successes over the years has been the planting and harvesting of 10ha blocks of pines, and the planting of poplars to protect watercourses, lower water tables, eliminate sinkholes and shade stock. He has also planted Japanese cedar, macrocarpa and liquid amber.
Mr Levet believes poplar, which is grown extensively commercially in Europe, is a highly underrated tree in New Zealand.
“You can plant them widely spaced on damp country, and you don’t lose any grass,” he says.
It’s also good for timber, being both light and hard. It is useful for things such as cupboard doors and coffins.
Although Mr Levet remains primarily a sheep breeder, he says forestry has contributed to the financial success of his farm.
“Trees make sense from a business perspective just as much as from an environmental perspective,” he says.
For example, trees planted for aesthetic reasons mean a farm becomes more attractive and commands a better price when it is sold.
Meanwhile, plantations of trees to be harvested operate like a compulsory savings scheme.
“You don’t have any income from them for about 25 years, but then suddenly you do get a big income and you can afford to buy a tractor and all those other things, which otherwise you would not be able to do.”
Farm Forester of the Year judge Dean Satchell says Mr Levet is a forward thinker who has been considering issues of environmental sustainability long before it became fashionable to do so.
His progressive ideas extend into his breeding operations. While most farmers have been happy to use chemical drenches, Mr Levet has concentrated on breeding parasite-resistant sheep. The wisdom of this move is now self-evident, as parasites have developed resistance to drenches, leaving flocks vulnerable.
Mr Satchell says Mr Levet’s award win followed a day-long inspection of his farm where his forestry was evaluated against high standards across several criteria.
“It’s a very prestigious award that is awarded once a year to the very best farm forester in the North Island,” he says.
The Husquvarna North Island Farm Forester of the Year award has been presented annually for about the last 30 years.
