LANDMARK agents and staff deserve a bonus after the marathon task of drafting, penning and weighing more than 1600 mostly excellent quality cattle at the Boyanup store sale last Friday.
An additional 400 cattle above the expected and advertised numbers can cause a logistical nightmare in presenting cattle at their best, but this wasn't the case, with the yarding presented in top order by Landmark.
Just a pen or two did not reach vendor reserve, so unless these were sold after Farm Weekly left the yards, a gross of more than $1.827 million and an average of $1128 was achieved to be right up with all the other top rate sales of the season.
A variety of cattle types were presented with a smaller number of pens of Friesian steers topping at $1457 and 282c/kg, while appraisal dairy steers made up to $1005.
Most of the smaller dairy steers were just above poddie size and these still sold around $700.
Beef steers and beef-cross steers reached $1532 with light calves reaching 408c/kg.
Beef heifers continue to attract buyers, selling to 400c/kg and $1471, mostly to graziers and lotfeeders.
A couple of pens of first-cross unmated heifers sold to $1200 with a pen of mated beef heifers making $2200.
A good selection of sound mated cows sold consistently to a top of $2650.
Cow and calf units were smaller types and these sold to $2400.
The top Friesian steers selling liveweight were 10 offered by D Proctor with the 583kg steers selling to Landmark Margaret River agent Jock Embry at $1457 and 250c/kg.
Greg Jones secured the next line of nine steers weighing 523kg from J & K Highet, Bridgetown, costing $1255 at 240c/kg then added another 10 for $1259 and 256c/kg.
A pen of nine from L & V Ferris sold for $1244 and 266c/kg at the end of the liveweight section while 10 averaging 422kg sold by MJ Lynch made the top of 282c/kg when bought by Masham Nominees.
A large offering of beef steers reached $1533 and 316c/kg, paid for eight Simmental cross from MS & AM Talbot, Brunswick, among the many bought by Willowbank number three account.
Harvey Beef Farms (HBF) paid $1453 for seven Murray Grey steers sold by Telarah Farms and it also secured seven blacks at $1464 from SJ Mateljan.
Semini Enterprises were strong, particularly on the pens of Angus steers from Frank Tomasi, taking all three pens for $1399, $1375 and $1303 at 328 and 330c/kg.
Near neighbour lotfeeder, GJ Watt, paid to $1422 for Murray Grey steers from Shorelands Pastoral, paying 360c/kg.
Landmark southern livestock manager Bob Pumphrey made the trip from Albany worthwhile, securing numerous pens for an Upper Great Southern lotfeeder, paying more than $1200 for several pens.
Sheron Farms, Benger, sold numbers which were mainly bought by lotfeeders from $1146 to $1302.
The top of 408c/kg was for eight Angus weighing 258kg sold by GJ Hales, Boyup Brook and bought by Landmark Waroona agent Richard Pollock.
Appraisal dairy steers topped at $1005, paid for 14 from Yallingup Earthworks.
Again, very small, almost poddie size calves still sold around $730.
Rodney Galati had a good number of bulls to operate on, securing most of these for Livestock Shipping Services.
Murray Grey heifers from Harvey Springs Estate blitzed the heifer top prices when the first line of 13 weighing 383kg made $1471, bought by Landmark Boyup Brook agent Jamie Abbs.
The next 13 then sold for the top of 400c/kg to cost Mr Abbs, $1423.
Silverlands, Bridgetown, had numbers for sale and these topped at $1031 for a pen of 14 heifers weighing 308kg.
Lanstal Pty Ltd, Pinjarra, sold several pens of Shorthorn heifers with a line of 14 weighing 321kg making $1014 at 316c/kg when bought for RA Rogers.
Limousin heifers weighing 397kg sold to GJ Watt at 330c/kg to return $1312 for a Havey vendor.
Ten Simmentals sold by GC Brown, Cundinup, weighed 356kg and went to Landmark Albany for $1190 and 334c/kg.
Mastaglia Brothers, Greenbushes, sold 12 Murray Greys for $1136 when Mr Abbs bid to 320c/kg for the 355kg heifers.
Several pens were sold by RG Major, Williams, with a line of nine Angus selling at 300c/kg and $1013, while a line of their lighter Herefords topped at 350c/kg.
First-cross unmated heifers saw a pen of seven Angus from DM Sier & Co make the top of $1200 when bought by Mr Embry, while Ralph Mosca, Landmark Harvey, bid to $1000 for the next six.
Minga Flats, Cookernup, had a line of four heavy, Charolais mated heifers sell for $2200 to Landmark Brunswick agent Errol Gardiner.
Several lines of Red Angus cows from GL & RK Dickson, Nannup, attracted buyers with the genuine reduction females topping at $2650 (twice) paid by N & B Holdsworth, Bridgetown.
Another five also went to that buyer for $2550.
Primaries South West representative Neil Foale secured three pens for up to $2500.
Five Angus cows from PB Ward sold to RM & MMC Italiano for $2600.
Cows and calves from I & C Tognela topped at $2400, while a line of five Murray Grey units and three Angus from Olive Hill Pastoral sold for $1750 each to Green Grass Pty Ltd.
