WITH four generations before him contributing to building White Rocks Farm, Benger, into one of Western Australia's top performing dairy farms, it was always a fair bet Harrison Partridge was going to be a dairy farmer.
For Mr Partridge, who turns 19 next month, White Rocks Farm with its distinctive granite outcrops, a 900-cow dairy operation with veal sideline and a rich family history - documented in a museum created by his grandparents David and Elizabeth Partridge in the original 1891 cottage - has always been home.
Growing up he did what most dairy farm kids do - all the fun things about the farm such as riding the motorbike to bring the cows in for milking and helping feed calves - while leaving the serious work to dad and the farm's eight employees.
But at the start of a gap year last year, between graduating from year 12 at Bunbury Cathedral Grammar School in 2019 and hopefully, this year, starting at university, Mr Partridge made a decision about his future.
He decided he really did want to become a dairy farmer.
He made his first formal step towards a dairy career by signing up for a dairy traineeship on White Rocks Farm.
For the past year he has worked on the farm five days a week, not as the heir apparent, but as the youngest and newest employee, the trainee who gets allocated all the dirty or hard jobs around the farm that no-one else wants to do.
The experience has not put him off, only firmed up his resolve to become a dairy farmer.
"I've been doing a bit of everything, the hard stuff such as fencing, regular milkings, mustering livestock, treatments - learning different things," Mr Partridge said.
"I'm treated the same as everybody else.
"I have to do everything that everyone else does.
"There's no love from the family - I can't be late."
As well, in his spare time he completed a Certificate III in dairy production and a Certificate IV in agriculture remotely with South Regional TAFE
The Certificate III was introduced in 2016 in a collaboration between Western Dairy and South Regional TAFE as accredited training to introduce people beginning work on a dairy farm to the basics they needed to know.
It is a part of a dairy traineeship.
The Certificate IV is accredited training for management roles on a dairy farm.
Mr Partridge completed mandatory English and mathematics subjects in year 12 and also geography and biology - he considered them the more relevant to dairy farming of the subject choices available - towards an ATAR (Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank) score for university entrance.
But he needed the Certificate IV to undertake the three-year bachelor of agribusiness course at Curtin University he has applied for.
"Rob La Grange (Western Dairy's dairy training officer) would come out (to White Rocks) once a month with booklets and units and he'd mark and assess the previous month's units," Mr Partridge said.
"I had to get on with the Cert IV for my uni applications, so I went straight into it as soon as I finished the Cert III.
"They're supposed to take as long as you need, usually like a year (each), but I kind of had to smash them out to get done so I could get my uni application in - I did them both in 10 months."
Mr Partridge confirmed there was no pressure to follow in the family tradition from parents Leanne and Michael - a former WAFarmers dairy section president and Australian Dairy Farmers national council member who has worked White Rocks since 1984.
Nor from his "pop" David, 87, who worked White Rocks from 1949 and was also heavily involved in agripolitics through State and National farmers federations.
But he admitted part of his consideration was the heritage aspect - before his pop, his great-grandfather Walter Partridge and great-great-grandfather John Partridge ran White Rocks which John purchased as a core 440 acres (178 hectares) in 1887.
"I have always kind of known (that he would go into dairy farming), there's always been - not so much an expectation - but that generational thing on this farm," Mr Partridge said.
"I wasn't pressured into it, it was pretty easy to make up my mind, I couldn't imagine doing anything else.
"I've heard about what dad did and what pop did and what others did and I kind of liked the sound of that life, so dad will definitely be proud and happy with me following on."
His immediate plan is to complete his degree then gain some practical experience - both in dairy outside of White Rocks and in life in general outside of south west WA - before returning to the farm.
"Dad has kind of recommended I should go over east (after university) to Victoria because they do dairy well and differently - so kind of explore that," he said.
"Perhaps even go international if I wanted - just travel and take a break for a year.
"I'm pretty much following in dad's footsteps - finishing school, going to uni, taking a break and then coming back to the farm, but I think dad didn't make up his mind (about what career he wanted) 100 per cent when he was my age.
"His older brother John was going to take the farm over.
"But I've got a pretty good idea it's what I want to do, so taking a break is a chance to explore a bit before coming back here."
He is not sure yet whether any particular aspect of dairy farming might become his special interest - while requiring a good knowledge of all aspects, many dairy farmers go on to develop an expertise in animal husbandry, genetics or growing pasture for example.
He is hoping university might expand his horizons and lead him into developing one or more specialty interests.
"Dad's always said growing grass is the important thing and if you've got that sorted you should be OK with everything else," Mr Partridge said.
"For me nothing really stands out, but I think after university and some experiences elsewhere I will find something I really want to specialise in and learn about in depth and bring that knowledge back here."
With much of the original White Rocks Farm rising up the Darling Scarp - in the past 15 years a sizeable portion of flat land has been consolidated on the other side of the South Western Highway and added to the farm - only 926ha of its total 1236ha are arable.
Of those, just under a quarter can be irrigated, but judiciously because the irrigation water is from Wellington Dam and has a salt content.
So building on his dad's experience in growing grass seems a likely specialty for Mr Partridge to lean towards.
Apart from settling on a dairy farming career, his gap year was also momentous in other ways.
Having played for eight seasons with Australind Junior Soccer Club, he graduated to the seniors last year, playing the left back defensive position - he is a left-footer - with the Australind Soccer Club reserves team.
"We never did very well, but it was good fun," Mr Partridge said.
"I ended up getting the coach's award and was runner-up best and fairest."
