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A large-scale Mid Canterbury foothills farm is up for sale for the first time in 18 years.

The 1,465ha sheep, cattle and deer property Wakare is located near Mayfield and Mount Somers. Ashburton-based Bayleys rural salesperson Mike Preston says the foothills rarely come on the market.

“We don’t get much of this in Mid Canterbury, as we are predominantly flat and irrigated,” he says.

It has around 1,000ha of hill country at the back and about 400ha of easy rolling country at the front.

“It’s an important balance between finishing country and breeding country, which makes that part of the world very special.”

He says a reticulated stock water system draws from Limestone Creek on the farm and gravity-feeds troughs, backed by dams and creeks on the hill blocks.

“Just enabling the development of that system just enables higher carrying capacity and ability to finish their stock.”

Preston says laneways run stock to covered sheep yards, cattle yards with hydraulic drafting and a covered deer shed.

Owners Mike and Nicky Salvesen bought the farm in 2008, and were finalists in the 2020 Ballance Farm Environment Awards, where they won the water quality and livestock awards.

“They’ve planted a lot of riparian natives as well,” Preston says.

He says the farm brought sheep back after COVID, when the venison market fell, and they dropped some breeding hinds to make room for ewes.

“It’s just a real strength of the property that can breed and finish.”

Wakare sits in the upper Hinds catchment, where it can farm at up to 15kg of nitrogen, and currently runs at 14kg.

“If someone wants to develop the farm further, there may be increased stock numbers, I’d imagine that will trigger the need for a consent.”

Preston says stock is available at valuation, including about 390 mixed-age recorded cows from the Wakare Angus Stud, 400 mixed-age red hinds and 1,600 breeding ewes. Three full-time staff run the farm, which has three houses.

He says the rural property market is going well.

“We’ve already had some quite good local interest. I do believe we’ll get a lot of interest from further afield as well.”

The property could work as an add-on to a large operation, or bring back the dairy heifer grazing it has carried before.

To learn more about Wakare, visit the Bayleys listing or contact Mike Preston or Rob McConachy for further information and inspection opportunities. The property is being offered for auction unless sold prior.

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