Hi all,
My father has 20 acre single block of land that stocks 40 mountain ewes. The ground is 3/4 quarters good ground and grass quality, 1/4 is poor heather foliage. Lambing rate would be under 1.5. we start lambing mid/late March.
So at the height of spring/summer, we would stock ~100 sheep (ewes and lambs). We sell all lambs in autumn and sell old ewes and buy in newer younger ewes.
We don't make hay or silage nor due we feed our sheep. Sheep are out all winter with no feed. Lambing occurs naturally with surprisingly few fatalities.
We have sheds to avail of but don't house anything.
To be honest, the farming effort here is relatively easy and not too strenuous. The farm is 15 miles hence, this farming model.
40 years ago the farm was once set up for paddocks with stone walls that some are knocked and overgrown but the layout of the paddocks are still there. You could divide the good ground of the farm into 3 paddocks(4 acres) or 6 paddocks (2 acres). (Presuming we had permanently fenced the paddocks)
Based on the information above, would you be able to say how much more stock would we be able to manage if we went to a paddock system and keeping all stock outside as normal?
Obviously, we could factor in some basic feeding (hay/meal) over the winter and spring to preserve some paddock grass.
I guess this is a open question as it depends on how we manage it and how good of farmers we but I guess the question is how many more sheep could be handle of paddocks were introduction and a rotation grass management was in place.
Any thoughts or ideas is appreciated.
/Thanks
My father has 20 acre single block of land that stocks 40 mountain ewes. The ground is 3/4 quarters good ground and grass quality, 1/4 is poor heather foliage. Lambing rate would be under 1.5. we start lambing mid/late March.
So at the height of spring/summer, we would stock ~100 sheep (ewes and lambs). We sell all lambs in autumn and sell old ewes and buy in newer younger ewes.
We don't make hay or silage nor due we feed our sheep. Sheep are out all winter with no feed. Lambing occurs naturally with surprisingly few fatalities.
We have sheds to avail of but don't house anything.
To be honest, the farming effort here is relatively easy and not too strenuous. The farm is 15 miles hence, this farming model.
40 years ago the farm was once set up for paddocks with stone walls that some are knocked and overgrown but the layout of the paddocks are still there. You could divide the good ground of the farm into 3 paddocks(4 acres) or 6 paddocks (2 acres). (Presuming we had permanently fenced the paddocks)
Based on the information above, would you be able to say how much more stock would we be able to manage if we went to a paddock system and keeping all stock outside as normal?
Obviously, we could factor in some basic feeding (hay/meal) over the winter and spring to preserve some paddock grass.
I guess this is a open question as it depends on how we manage it and how good of farmers we but I guess the question is how many more sheep could be handle of paddocks were introduction and a rotation grass management was in place.
Any thoughts or ideas is appreciated.
/Thanks
