Heather Close, Balsar Glen 2/3

What you do to encourage this biodiversity?

We encourage this biodiversity through benign neglect, long grazing recovery periods and outwintering. It is rare that we rest a field for less than 3 months, frequently it's a lot longer than that. The field the cows are in at the moment was last grazed 11 months ago. Since leaving the extended rest periods we've noticed more birdsfoot trefoil, vetch and orchids deep in the fields, whereas previously they'd only really grow along the edges.

Over winter the cows hoofprints leave indentations in the soil, depth varying with how much rain we've had. These little pockets act as initiation sites for many forbs, which increase diversity. They also slow down the passage of rainwater as it pools, and snipe love to shelter in them!

Our cows spend between one and three days a year in a particular paddock. This means that that area is free for wildlife to use as they choose for the other 362+ days of the year. There is room for every being here.

Calf in diverse pasture

How it is connected across the farm and beyond

The watercourses on either side of the farm act as wildlife corridors and connect with neighbouring farms and beyond. One of our next steps will be to link these major corridors with smaller ones across our farm. Some of these will be rejuvenated hedgerows, but I am also keen to open parts of the conifer windbreaks to sunlight (mammoth pruning!) to encourage more native trees, woodland species and grass, which will make these areas more wildlife friendly. The addition of a pond is something else we're contemplating.

Leverets in pasture

What are the benefits to the farm and is it increasing its climate and business resilience?  If so, in what way?

Our low input business model means we are protected to a significant extent from external markets, for which we are particularly thankful right now.

Last year when we had a very late and dry spring and summer up here, I really appreciated our grazing strategy. Grazing tall grass means that our rotation is slow. Though we had little rain (for us) from March to July, we wouldn't be coming back to fields for a second graze until October, and I knew (hoped) we'd have some rain by then! Which of course we did.

Long grass provides a thermal buffer to the soil which enables plants to start growing a little earlier and finish a little later. All of this helps us increase our overwintering capacity, which is the limiting factor for this farms profitability.

Butterfly on a thistle

CONTINUE...