We put in the hard yards to achieve results for you
About us
Rocklyn Merino Stud is situated near Greenethorpe in southwest New South Wales. The stud was established in 1938 by Campbell and Ron Diprose, with the current stud principal, Ralph Diprose, taking over in 1970. Rocklyn registered their poll merino stud in 2014 and now offers predominately poll merino rams.
Rocklyn runs 900 stud ewes as well as a commercial flock, with the main lambing in July/August.
The 5 year adult flock fleece average micron is 18.9
Adult flock ewes cut an average of 8 to 8.5kg.
Fertility is a key attribute of the stud, with the overall ewe flock weaning percentage currently 114%.
Both the stud and commercial flock lambs are non-mulesed. Rams suitable for non-mulesed flocks are available in the sale rams.
Wether lambs from the commercial flock are sold off at 10-12 months old. The sale ram portion is selected at around 13-14 months old.
Rams are sold through an on-property ram sale in September followed by private, on-farm ram sales of surplus rams.
Rocklyn is a Brucellosis Accredited Free Flock, has been Gudair Vaccinated since 2002 and has Owner Declared Footrot Free status.
Breeding objective
Rocklyn aims to breed plainer bodied, heavy cutting sheep of around 19 micron that have high fertility and good early growth rates.
Emphasis is placed on producing a long stapled, bright, soft handling wool that is well nourished and has good crimp definition.
Local environmental conditions are also taken into consideration during classing to select sheep/wool that will withstand climatic variances, from extended wet periods to drier, dusty conditions with the local annual rainfall varying from 200mm-1000mm.
Sire selections
Rocklyn offers top genetics to clients, with sires selected to meet not only our own breeding objectives but also client demand. Sires for the stud breeding program are hand-picked by Ralph and include superior Rocklyn sires and trait-leading sires from some of the top studs across the country. In recent years, external sires have been sourced from Bundilla, Centre Plus, Anderson, Poll Boonoke, Wallaloo Park, Glenlea Park and Ridgway Advance.
Classing
Classing of stud ewes and rams is conducted by Ralph Diprose, who has been classing and breeding sheep to suit client demand for over 50 years.
Both ASBVs and Measured trait figures are combined with visual assessments to determine breeding selections.
Advancements
In 1962, Rocklyn commenced testing all rams for wool fibre diameter and yield thus introducing objective measurement into the breeding program. Today, extensive testing is conducted including fleece weighing, micron testing, body weighing, eye muscle scanning as well as 50K genomic testing.
In 1982, Artificial Insemination was commenced and continues to be a major contributing factor to the advancement of stud genetics.
DNA and genomic testing on stud rams began in 2018 as part of the MerinoLink DNA Stimulation Project. Rocklyn now conducts 50K genomic tests on all stud ram and ewe lambs. Full pedigree status was achieved in 2018.
Performance testing
Rocklyn participates in sire evaluations to benchmark the performance of its genetics and submits data to Sheep Genetics to obtain Australian Sheep Breeding Values (ASBVs) that further assist with breeding selections.
Rocklyn is currently involved in the MerinoLink Limited 2021 Drop Sire Evaluation at Bathurst, having obtained good results in the 2019 Drop Standard Sire Evaluation at ‘Ravenswood’, Yass. Rocklyn’s entrant at Yass, 170184, performed particularly well, being a trait leader for greasy fleece weight, clean fleece weight, FDCV, staple length, staple strength, post-weaning body weight, fat and eye muscle depth. To view the results for Rocklyn Sire 170184 click here.
For past results from other sire evaluations we have participated in visit merinosuperiorsires.com.au
“I have been classing Rocklyn’s wool for several years now. The soft handling fleeces are consistently high yielding with excellent style and character.”
— Anthony Myers, Woolclasser
