Longstanding South Island locals, Warren and Joy Darling have been growing and harvesting barley on their Timaru farm, Poplar Grove for the past 30 years.
Each season they work around the clock to produce their highest possible yield - in 2014 Poplar Grove had an outstanding season harvesting 11.5 metric tonnes per hectare of the variety 776 which was bred by Blackman Agriculture.
Completely unaware of the current Guinness World Record of 12.2 tonnes per hectare, the 2014 yield became the catalyst for making an attempt on the world record.
Attempting the world record came via support from the Exclusive Grain Group, along with key partners and suppliers to Poplar Grove. Collectively they have spent the last 12 months preparing for the best season yet - playing to their advantage and a large part of their success has been Timaru’s weather. Located on the coast, Poplar Grove gets the right mix of weather ideal for a high yield - a lot of rain in the winter to carry through to spring and moderate summer temperatures.
The world record attempt took place on Friday 23rd January with a yield of 13.8 metric tonnes per hectare. All involved are now awaiting ratification from the Guinness World Records organisation.
15 сен 2024
