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Story: Arable farming

Reaper-binder machines

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Reaper-binder machines

Duncan Cameron of the Springfield Estate was one of Canterbury’s great wheat growers in the 1880s and 1890s. In 1894 he had 5,500 acres (2,226 hectares) planted in wheat. Harvesting such an extensive crop required a good deal of manpower and horsepower. This team of reaper-binders are lined up for the Springfield harvest in the 1890s.

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Archives New Zealand - Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga

Reference: AANR 6329 13 A8,377

Permission of Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga must be obtained before any re-use of this material.

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How to cite this page

Sue Zydenbos, Arable farming – Ploughing and harvesting, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/17570/reaper-binder-machines (accessed 23 June 2026).

Story by Sue Zydenbos, published 1 March 2009.