Mike Gee-Taylor: Installing a Four-Rail Lifestyle Fence

Long-time readers may recognise Mike Gee-Taylor, of Tawai Farm and Tawai Fencing, from last year’s agricultural edition of The Post. This month, Mike took us back to basics: showing us how to install a four-rail lifestyle fence.

When Mike purchased Tawai Farm in Rangiwahia, around 700 acres of land was in need of revamping and re-fencing; to offset renovation costs, his daughter Heather suggested he start a fencing venture and Tawai Fencing was born.

Tawai Fencing was a way for Mike to put years of tried-and-true experience into practice. A born and bred farmer in the Manawatū-Whanganui area, Mike said fencing is “another string to a farming bow,” and while it is hard work, “it’s a great lifestyle”.

Mike tells us that the last couple of years of recession saw farmers cut back on the demand for long fence lines, so he and his dedicated team of two fencers have been doing mostly repair work throughout farms and lifestyle blocks in the Manawatū region.

However, Mike believes fencing jobs are on the uptake coming into 2025. “The outlook on farming is looking positive. It’s not going to start tomorrow, but I’d say in 12 months, our conversation will be a lot more positive as far as work goes. I think that people’s perception of what’s happening will get better. It’s going to take time, but I think in a year or so, people will again be booking fences, fertiliser trucks will be out and about, and the top-dressing planes will be flying again,” he said.

After initially planning to work on a few blocks of fencing on his own farm, he recently got called up to work on some bigger jobs off-farm in early 2025. These include a 2.5km post, wire and batten fence line near Rangiwahia, and a lifestyler near Marton who “wants a lot of fencing done”. Mike noted that he always recommends Goldpine products to farmers as he finds them to be top quality. “I use Goldpine at home, and would always recommend Goldpine, but it depends on what the farmer wants for his farm,” he said.

Since kicking off his fencing business, Mike has also joined the Fencing Contractors Association (FCANZ) and has built good relationships with other Kiwi fencers through the annual meetings.