Acre, Rood and Perches

An Acre, a Rood and a Perches are all imperial area measurements with a rood being a fraction of an acre and perches being a fraction of a rood. Acres, roods and perches were used in New Zealand prior to the measurement system became metric (metres and hectares).

The origin of the measurement of an acre was in the average area of land that a farmer with one ox could plough in one day.

As an area:

• 1 acre equals 4047 m2 or 0.4047 hectares.

• There are 4 roods in an acre, or 1012 m2 (0.1012 hectares)

• 1 rood equals 40 perches.  Alternatively there are 160 perches in an acre.

Some examples are:

1 hectare (10,000 m2) = 2 acres, 1 rood and 35 perches

6000 m2 (0.6 hectare) = 1 acre, 1 rood and 37 perches

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