First post

The Aims of this Blog

This blog has been set up for the benefit of my two young cousins - Alex and Julian. I aim to post a diary of events that happen during the farming year on our sheep farm.

Aerial photo of Rouyère

A Profile of the Farm

Our farm, Rouyère,  is a 44 hectare (100 acre) all grass farm in the Vienne department of central west France about 200 metres above sea level. We keep 425 ewes and 18 rams. We lamb about 280 in January/February and 70 in March/April. The remaining 75 are the replacement flock who will not lamb in their first year. The breed we keep is the Vendéen - a hardy breed, capable of utilising grass well and of very good conformation. We do not grow any cereal crops but we do reseed our grass fields regularly.

The soil is a relatively stone-free sandy silt over a crumbly granite bedrock. In places the soil is deep although generally no more than average depth. Being almost stone free, it is very sensitive to damage from heavy vehicles when wet, so we use low-ground pressure vehicles - quads/atvs for a lot of the daily chores. In winter, because of the impervious nature of the bedrock, the soil can remain waterlogged for weeks on end, and most of the 850mm annual rainfall occurs between October and March. We get, on average, about 2,400 hours of sunshine per year. In summer, due to the strong sun and prolonged dry periods, the grass growth can come to a virtual halt, sometimes for two or three months. Spring however, if the rain is plentiful, produces grass in abundance, and hay is made from about a quarter to a third of the farm.