Sheep

We run a flock of 1,000 ewes, comprising of a commercial flock of Lleyns and mules, and a pedigree flock of Suffolks and Hampshires, who are sympathetically managed on our Norfolk grasslands.

Lleyn is a Welsh breed which finishes well on grass, rears 2 lambs easily, and are relatively small therefore can improve stocking density. The main flock is pure bred, so we use a Lleyn tup to breed replacements, and a Suffolk or Texel cross tup on the others to improve the quality and flavour of the meat, and improve growth rate of the lambs.

Our lamb feed on lush herb rich meadow grasses which in turn gives good strong lambs with a sweet and succulent flavour. Having the combination of cattle and sheep means that our grasslands are of different sward heights and therefore habitats. They are insect rich We use a system called mob grazing, this approach sees our sheep moved onto clean pasture every 1-3 days to improve grass quality and reduce need for wormers. Faecal egg counts are done as in the cattle, rather than unnecessary use of wormer. This helps the soil and pastures regenerate efficiently whilst ensuring our animals take the best nutrients from the grasses.