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Story: Volcanic Plateau region

Breaking in pumice land

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Breaking in pumice land

With the problem of ‘bush sickness’ (a wasting disease of animals) solved, government-sponsored land development on the Volcanic Plateau gathered pace in the late 1930s. This farmer is ploughing an area of pumice land.

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Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: MNZ-1475-1/4-F

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Malcolm McKinnon, Volcanic Plateau region – Farming, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/15175/breaking-in-pumice-land (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Malcolm McKinnon, published 2 March 2009, updated 1 May 2015.