One of the best known homestead garden properties of the Goulburn district, “Pejar Park”, will go to auction next month in an offering likely to appeal especially to Sydney-based “tree-changers”.
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“Pejar Park” is today a 573 hectare (1416ac) grazing property at Woodhouselee, 25 kilometres north-west of Goulburn, where it straddles the remains of the former Goulburn to Crookwell railway line.
Owned by Sydney businessman Nicholas Rowe, it has been listed for sale by Chris Meares of Sydney-based Meares and Associates and will go to on-line auction on December 17.
Situated within an easy 2.5 hours’ drive of Sydney, “Pejar Park” is expected to attract bids in a range of $5-$5.5 million, or $8750-$10,000 a hectare ($3500-$4000/ac), in line with recent sales in the district.
“Pejar Park” came to statewide prominence in the 1950s and ‘60s under the ownership of Len and Beatrice Bligh, when its garden won regular awards in the Sydney Morning Herald’s garden competition.
The Blighs bought “Pejar Park” – then an area of 3727 acres – in 1939 when it was sold as part of the 5500 acres built up by the Siggs family from an original 1820s grant.
During the 1970s an area of several hundred hectares of “Pejar Park” was acquired by the government for Pejar Dam on the Wollondilly River, to which the property now has a 6km frontage.
The remaining country was left in 1990s to Len and Beatrice’s sons, Michael and Hugh, and it was the homestead portion held by Hugh that was bought in 2007 by the present owner.
Over the ensuing decade, Mr Rowe has substantially developed the property, with judicious investment in pasture upgrading, fencing, water and stock handling infrastructure.
This has resulted in a significant boost to productivity, with the previous carrying capacity of 1100 ewes being more than doubled, to 2500 ewes rearing close to 3000 prime lambs.
Comprising gently undulating country of predominantly basalt soils with areas of granite and loam, the property has a long history of topdressing, and in recent years, new pasture establishment.
Average rainfall is 760mm and the property is watered by two spring-fed creeks, an equipped bore, large dams and two reticulation systems to paddock troughs.
Estimated now to support a stocking rate of 10 DSE/ha, the property is home to a self-replacing flock of Primeline composite ewes, mated variously to Primeline and White Suffolk rams.
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It is currently carrying 2200 ewes, which are expected to rear 2650 lambs, but the property has both sheep and cattle infrastructure.
A fenced laneway runs through the property, and three sets of strategically located sheep yards are complemented by a near-new set of steel cattle yards.
The undoubted marketing centrepiece of “Pejar Park” is its classic bluestone homestead, erected in the 1870s with extensions added in the 1950s under the direction of heritage architect John Mansfield.
The four-bedroom, north-east-facing homestead is set in the Edna Walling-inspired garden of Beatrice Bligh with its sweeping lawns, stone walls, beds of perennials and stands of mature English trees.
Other structures include two three-bedroom staff cottages and the original (but recently upgraded) four-stand shearing shed.
There is also two machinery/storage sheds and two elevated silos.
