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SUPERFINE MERINO WOOL PRODUCER
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Barvennon is a merino wool property occupying most of a smallish valley in the Stringybark Ranges near a town (population 100, elevation 920 meters) located in the central NSW tablelands of Australia. The town has a Pub, a general store, an etcetera (equipment) shop, a schizophrenic motel (thinks it is a railway station), two churches, ANZAC (Australia & New Zealand Army Corps) war memorial park, footy paddock, and a two classroom primary school (K-2, 3-6) established 1856.
Anecdotal evidence is that the valley that contains Barvennon was settled in the 1830's. There is evidence (in the form of rusting flour mill machinery & etc.) that there was a largish settlement in the valley, possibly associated with the nearby (now abandoned) goldfields that were part of the Australian gold strikes in the nineteenth century. Neighboring properties are named Pennsylvania and Kentucky, a reminder that the USA was the source of many immigrant gold diggers.
The valley has a creek (we call it the Styx) which is dry for about nine months of the year, & is a string of water holes for most of the rest of the year, except for about 5 days a year when it is a raging torrent. When it has water it flows into the Abercrombie river, thence into the Lachlan river and the Wyangla Dam. The rainfall is about 750 mm p/a (30"), and there are permanent (so far!) springs. The Department of Agriculture reckons that the country in this area will support about 5 DSE/Ha. A DSE is a "Dry Sheep Equivalent" which means a ewe with no lamb. Global warming (via "el Nino") seems to be reducing the rainfall in this part of Australia.
Most of Barvennon is natural Australian (drought resistant) pasture, with outcroppings of introduced varieties of sub clover, rye, phalaris, cocksfoot and St. John's Wort. St. John's Wort was originally introduced to Australia as a herb, but has spread with such rapidity that it has been declared a noxious weed. St. John's Wort flowers in late December and again late January. St. John's Wort contains natural substances that produce anti-depressant effects similar to those of the anti depressant Prozac. However the active constituents have not been identified, and St. J. Wort is proven to interfere with the functional reliability of the female oral contraceptive pill (COC and POP). As a consequence the weight of medical opinion (4 July 2002) is that St. John's Wort is not a reasonable or reliable substitute for commercially available anti-depressants.
For many people, wool garments feel "prickly" and evoke an allergic reaction. Wool scientists have determined that when the mean fiber diameter is less than 20 m (microns) and less than 5% of the fibers have a diameter in excess of 30 m, the fabric made from the fiber will have "reduced prickle intensity to a level which will not be perceived as skin discomfort by most people under normal conditions." Superfine Barvennon wool with fiber diameter tested at eighteen microns should not produce "allergic prickle".
The fineness of wool is estimated visually by a wool
classer, who used the number of crimps per inch to estimate the number
of 560 yard hanks of yarn that could be spun from one pound of combed
wool. This estimate is called the "count" or "Visual Quality
Number". Advances in technology have made it possible to
measure the average wool fiber diameter in microns (1m
= one millionth of a meter). The table below shows very
approximately a generalization of the relationship between the type of
wool, the count or VQN and the approximate fineness in microns(m).
| DESCRIPTION |
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| COUNT (VQN) |
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| MICRONS(m) |
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Wool scientists have found that the fineness of wool
is related to the ratio of Secondary to Primary (S/P) follicles.
The higher the ratio, the finer the wool.
| BREED |
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| S/P |
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The breed of sheep is the
most important factor in determination of the fineness of wool.
The merino has the finest wool of all breeds. Australia has bred
variations on the merino suited to Australian conditions. Most
merino wool sold in Australia has a micron measure between 19m and 27m. Non
merino (Corriedale, Border Leicester, Dorset.), merino X (50% or less
merino blood) and comeback (more than 50% merino blood, eg Polwarth)
sheep breeds commonly found in Australia have micron measures ranging
up
to 40m. In Australia non merino rams
are frequently crossbred with merino ewes (to give merino X) for mixed
farming (wool + mutton and lamb production).
| BREED |
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| MICRONS |
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| VQN |
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| POPULATION |
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In summary, the fiber diameter is what gives softness to wool. Wools with the smallest fiber diameter are called "fine" or "superfine" wools. The finest wool comes from merinos.
Barvennon has prepared a directory of the Merino Wool Producers of Australia on the WWW.
About 140 million sheep live in Australia, which is about 15% of the world sheep population. Three quarters of Australian sheep are merino. Australia produces one third of the world's wool, which is more than double the quantity produced by the next largest producer. Australia produces two thirds of the wool sold on the world market.
Until recently merino breeders selected rams based on the fineness of their wool as estimated by the count or VQN. Now that it is possible to measure fiber diameter objectively, Australian breeders are developing new lines that have 17 - 18 micron wool with a VQN in the 70s and lower. One such line is called "SRS" (soft rolling skin).
In Australia there are three main bloodlines of merino suited to different climates.
The "strong" merino bloodline is mostly found in South Australia and far western NSW & Queensland and is suited to the extremely dry and dusty conditions found in those areas. Merinos of this variety graze paddocks measured in kilometers, typically with one watering hole in the corner of the paddock. They are a large framed & hardy breed and produce the broadest micron (23m - 28m) wool of all merinos.
The "medium" merino bloodline is most suited to the dusty plains of central NSW and Queensland where the rainfall is around 400 - 500 mm (15" - 20") per annum. This breed has strong associations with studmaster George Peppin who started the station named "Wanganella". This breed produces a typical clip of about 8 kg per sheep of 20m - 24m wool.
The "fine" merino bloodline thrives in wet 600 - 1000 mm (25" - 40") tablelands & ranges regions. It is a small framed sheep, and cuts around 4 - 5 kg (10 lb.) of fine wool (fiber diameter 19m - 21m). "Superfine" & "Ultrafine" is the description of wool having a fiber diameter finer than 19m.
After breed, the most important factor in determination of the fineness of wool shorn is the climate and land on which the sheep graze. The effect of land on the fineness of the wool produced is not (so far as I am aware) the subject of any scientific studies. Nonetheless it is known to wool producers. Barvennon has purchased sheep with micron counts in the mid 19m from nearby regions in the tablelands. Within a season the ranges of Barvennon have fined the wool by more than a micron to a high 17m - mid 18m. The effect works in reverse. I have heard tablelands producers complain of purchasing rams from stud producers in the ranges of the upper Lachlan & Abercrombie rivers, only to find that the rams have gained a micron or more by the next clip.
WOOL
Australian producers normally sell wool in bales at auction. A bale contains between 100 Kg & 200 Kg of wool. Because fine wool is springy, the finer the wool the lighter (in general) is the bale.
BARVENNON.COM reserves a portion of it's clip for sale to spinners.
Individual "spinners quality" superfine raw skirted fleece wool (average tested 2000 was 76.9% yield, 0.8% VM, and fineness is 18.2m) can be purchased for A$14.00/Kg. plus postage.
"Australia Post" postage cost is not proportional, (select calculator then international parcels) but as a guide, the first and second kilogram costs $16 AU per kg, the third & fourth kilograms cost $8 AU per kg (1 kg = 2.2 lb) to the US via economy air.
Please also Note:The 2005 clip is in. I will be sending most of it to auction, but have kept a few kilogrammes aside for spinners. Next clip will be October 2006.
Links to hand processing & hand spinning web sites can be found on the links page. |