RESULTS from the first phase of a trial six-month shearing have Anna-Lisa Newman and husband Craig, Karradale Trading, Varley, excited by the potential.
On Wednesday last week the first 48 bales of short wool from six-and-a-half to seven-and-a-half months’ growth, from just over one third of their total flock, sold at the Western Wool Centre (WWC) with an estimated discount of no more than 50 cents a kilogram from similar specification full wools.
The top line of 17 bales of 17.2 micron fleece with the shortest staple length of 54 millimetres, yielding 65.6 per cent, sold at 1669c/kg greasy.
Three other lines of 18-21 micron fleece with staple lengths ranging from 57 to 67mm and with yield percentages also in the mid 60s, sold for between 1250 and 1464c/kg, and a line of pieces sold for 1089c/kg.
Given their trial run was effectively summer wool growth and a heavier wool cut could be expected from the next shearing due September-October, Ms Newman, who is the immediate past president of WIFE – the Women In Farming Enterprises group – said the results were promising.
“We haven’t worked through the figures yet, but based on what we’ve seen so far it’s very exciting,” Ms Newman said.
“We’ll have to wait until after the second shearing and then go through the figures to see whether the return balances out against the cost of an extra shearing and the additional management.
“When we shear later in the year we will track the wool and keep the bales from that (six-month) group separate so we can see any discount and the returns compared to the rest.
“The (short) wool should be cleaner and stronger and there is anecdotal evidence it (shorter shearing interval) is better for animal health – we’ll have to wait and see.
“At this stage the figures are very close and it will only be on the figures that it (six-month shearing) is knocked out (of contention with 12-month shearing),” she said.
Ms Newman said they normally crutched their entire flock of 10,000 sheep in April and shore them in September-October.
“What we did this year was replace a crutching with a shearing for some of them,” she said.
“From a management point of view, we were bringing them in to crutch anyway so there’s not a lot more work.
“From a timing aspect, it suited our local shearing contractor, he still had his team together and it was on the end of his run.
“There’s really only the cost of an extra shearing so far, and that works out at about $5 a head.”
On the advice of Primaries of WA wool manager Greg Tilbrook, three-year-old blue tag ewes from their breeding mob and a small mob of dry ewes were selected and shorn in April on the basis younger sheep and dries in particular, would produce more wool over the shorter timeframe.
“In hindsight, we probably should have included some two-year-olds as well in the trial,” Ms Newman said.
She said the pregnant ewes cut an average of 3.4kg a head from six-and-a-half months’ growth.
The dry sheep cut an average of 4.2kg from seven-and-a-half months’ growth.
“That was effectively the summer cut, so we are anticipating a better cut per head when we shear them, along with the rest, after lambing and winter,” she said.
Over the past three seasons the Newmans have invested heavily in pasture legumes as high-quality forage for their sheep and doubling as a weed control and soil renovator.
They had starting sowing serradella on one farm of 3600 hectares near Newdegate and now expected to complete sowing the Varley home property next year – about 7000ha in all.
Mr Tilbrook said the trial, to establish whether shearing at six-month intervals was a “viable option or not” for the Newmans, had produced good results from the first shearing, aided by another very strong wool market at the WWC.
“I would say there was a discount of no more than 50 cents maximum for their six-month wool at 54 to 67mm than what they would have got for 90mm 12-month wool, and they got better strength,” Mr Tilbrook said.
“There was some mid-break, but that was just the season more than anything,” he said.