WITH a drive for hard work and responsibility, Harley Pittard has finally made his way up the ‘farming food chain’.
The 24-year-old hasn’t had a farm to call home for a long time, since the family property at Pingaring was sold in the early 2000s.
But perseverance and knowing when to take the next step has landed Harley with a new farm managing role, a wife and a child on the way.
Currently working at Badgingarra, Harley has lived in several towns across the State, including Lake Grace, Narrogin, Narembeen, Lake King, Ongerup and Jerramungup.
When Harley’s father Wayne sold the farm they moved to a smaller farm at Bremer Bay.He then went to Lake Grace District High School, where he stayed with his mother Nadene Owen until year 10.
After that Harley went to WA College of Agriculture, Narrogin, where he started a certificate in agriculture.
While at Narrogin, Harley met his now wife Kiara Pittard (Leeson), as she attended school in Narrogin and lived in Wickepin.
After graduating Harley started a heavy duty diesel mechanic apprenticeship at Narembeen, but after 12 months he decided that it wasn’t for him.
“I don’t regret doing the apprenticeship, but I just wanted to base myself back in farming,” Harley said.
“Where the yard was in Narembeen, I would look over the fence and see someone doing something in their paddock and I wanted to do that.”
Leaving his apprenticeship, Harley went to work for Murray and Vicki Dixon, just out of Narembeen.
“After three and a half years with the Dixons I moved to a corporate farm just out of Jerramungup for just over a year,” Harley said.
“I didn’t really like the corporate structure of things and I just wanted to work back on a family farm.”
His next move was to a farm just out of Ongerup to work for the Harding family for the next two years.“I looked at Wes (Harding), who was 28, he had come back to the farm and was running the place,” he said.
“I looked at him and said that’s what I want to be.”Wes was in control of most of the family-run operation.
Harley said Wes organised things, “he would be here, there and everywhere".
“He wouldn’t spend a lot of time driving machinery, he was too busy setting everything up for everyone and that’s what I aspire to be.”
Earlier this year, Harley left Ongerup and moved to Badgingarra to work for John Scotney.
“I got to the point where the Harding farm had two boys home and I couldn’t have gone any further with my career there,” he said.
“John had an opportunity for me to take on and I am now employed as the farm manager in training, but I’m not the farm manager yet.”
John told Harley that he would be employed as the manager, hoping that in the next three or four years that he could develop into that role and manage the whole farm.
“He said come and work for us and as time goes on, we will just give you more and more and more,” he said.
Harley looks at the opportunity as a great foot in the door to a farm management position.
After spending a lot of time driving machinery, Harley said he wanted to get more involved in the financial side of things and the reasoning behind why farm decisions are made.
He also enjoys looking at different styles of farming, with John running a cropping and stock program. Harley said his dad has been a big help in regards to managing stock.
“My dad is a great stockman and it’s good having him on the other end of the phone, if I ever have a question he is right there,” he said.
With his dad’s farm in Bremer Bay only small in size, Harley never had the chance to inherit a farm. “We were never big enough farmers for me to come home and take it over,” he said. “But at the moment I am on a good wage, steady income and I get to do the job I want.
”In the future, Harley said share-cropping and share-farming was definitely in his sights.
“When I quit my apprenticeship I promised myself I wasn’t just going to be a farm worker,” he said.
“Some people don’t want to deal with more and they are quite happy just driving the airseeder and that’s fair enough, that’s great if it keeps you happy.
“But I have always wanted to find more and always wanted to do something more and I guess that’s part of my drive.”
Harley said working with people like Wes, who was a passionate go-getter, was something that drove him to do more.
“A very successful man I worked for in Lake King for one harvest was Bob Iffla, he started out with nothing years ago,” he said.
“I went and worked with him and I told him what I wanted to do and he said, I can’t give you much advice but the only advice that I can give you is if you want to be a winner you have to mix with the winners.”
Harley said the comment made perfect sense.
“If you want to be a shearer go be a shearer, if you want to drive a tractor go and drive a tractor, or if you want to be something more go and do something more,” he said.
“We are only limited to what we want to limit ourselves to.”
Harley said Bob’s words have always stuck with him.
The past five months have really tested Harley and his wife – after marrying in October, they moved to the opposite side of the grainbelt and are preparing for a baby due this September. Harley said the move was big and being back to a single wage, his young family needed to make the right decision for their future.
“We needed to weigh up what we were doing, what I was doing and what I could do better to earn a bit more money and take on that responsibility,” he said.
“It wasn’t just money orientated, but it’s important with a kid on the way.”
Harley said he doesn’t regret anywhere he has been because all of it has got him to where he is now, working his way up to manage a 4000ha farm with 6500 sheep in Badgingarra.
“If in the next three years John puts me on as the manager and trains me into that role, all of a sudden I’m in my late 20s managing a farm, I think that’s a great achievement,” he said. Harley said he is interested in completing his certificate 4 in agriculture where he can be more responsible for the management side of farming.
