26 July 2014

Peter Evans laughs and says wryly, ''Farm foresters are a hardened bunch''.They face ''a lot of disappointment'' and stories of perseverance are legendary.

A fourth generation farm forester, he speaks from experience.

He and wife, Jane, farm Alpine Farm in the Pareora Gorge. It is a 1050 ha traditional sheep and beef farm with nearly 100ha in forestry, made up of 80 ha of pine, 6 ha of macrocarpa and a further 10 ha of mixed species.

The couple have invested more than $300,000 in forestry since the 1990s.

This year, they were acknowledged not just for their own work but for the diligence of the Evans family who, since 1875, have nurtured and earned their living from their land.

The New Zealand Farm Forestry Association this year presented the couple with the New Zealand Landcare Trust innovation in sustainable farm forestry award at its conference in Marlborough.

''We were thrilled, not just for us, for the family,'' Mrs Evans said.

Her husband was pragmatic.

''We bought a lot of land infested with gorse and we chose to do something with it.''

Six kilometres of the Pareora River winds through the property and lies at the heart of the home farm and its management.

But its swimming holes, rocky features and shrublands also draw hundreds each year who want to while away the hours swimming, picnicking, camping and exploring.

Today, almost all the river is fenced off from stock and edged with plants designed to absorb run-off and provide habitat for native birds and insects.

Springs and wetlands are being protected and planted with naturally occurring trees and shrubs.

Ecological specialists like the Timaru District Council's environmental consultant Mike Harding and lizard advocate and conservationist Hermann Franks have praised the way the various ecosystems are sustained by the environmentally sensitive nature of development.

Story by Ruth Grundy, Courier Country. To read the full story >>