Sheep and Wool
Our original flock of was made up of a range of pedigree breeds. However over time we have evolved to have a mixed flock of these originals having many descedents. Our selection criteria for deciding who to keep in the flock are easy;
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come running to a bucket when you are called
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do not escape
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easy lambing for twins each year
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look after your own children with lots of milk
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dont go lame
Although the primary purpose of the flock is now for meat, we still retain some pedigree Cotswold ewes who crop an exceptional yield of fleece. The remainder of the ewes have hints of Wensleydale, Poll Dorset, Speckleface beulah, LLyn and Jacob from the UK, Zwartbles from The Netherlands and Gotland from Sweden. We aim to retain a minimum of sixty breeding animals, with a crop of over 100 lambs annually. In recent years we have used Bleu du Maine, Millenium Bleu and Dutch Spotted rams to improve the commercial properties of the flock.
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Lambing
One of the highlights of our year! We love it so much and keep it going for as long as possible. It starts in December and finishes at the end of May. Generally the ewes are brought indoors to lamb so we can protect against bad weather and predators in the first few days. By lambing our ewes in small batches it ensures a managed approach reducing lamb losses, staggers the availability of new season lamb and also provides the opportunity for multiple lambing courses in a season. Please see our Education and Wellbeing page for the next events at the farm.
Shearing and Wool
Our flock is generally shorn at the end of May by Ed Archer, who has been doing them for many years. Although wool is not the primary purpose of the flock, we do still have some pure Cotswolds and their daughters who have exceptional fleeces.
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Some fleeces are available post shearing, the black ones are ideal for lining hanging baskets. Others are use to make an organic mulch around tender plants. Some of the better fleeces will also be available in their raw state for handspinners. Please ask for details.
