Organic Farming

For our first two years we rented out the fields for a suckler herd. In late 2003 we bought ewe lambs and took the land in hand. We changed these animals for other ewes in 2004 and raised our first lambs in 2006.

We began converting the land to organic in early 2005, and at the end of that year changed Certification Bodies, joining the Soil Association. The land has been fully organic since February 2007.

We have put the land into the Government’s Organic Entry Level Stewardship scheme for five years from 1st January 2006.

Initially we had no little trouble with the Government over its new “Rural Land Register” and the Single Payment Scheme (the new land-based general farm subsidy scheme). These schemes were very badly implemented by the RPA who have wasted millions of pounds of taxpayers money. Things have now settled down.
Links: The Soil Association, DEFRA / OELS, the RPA
Images:

Sheep in Nov 2005
Defra Booklets

Blondie and Her Lambs

Ewes and dead tree Nov 2006

Lambs on the top