Farming for nature in Purbeck

Wilkswood Farm – Creating wood pasture

Paul Loudoun, the Trust’s tenant at Wilkswood Farm, Langton Matravers, has embraced the changes on his 300 hectares of land. He has reduced his cattle numbers to a level that supports wildlife habitats. He is also planting trees such as oak, field maple and hawthorn from seeds gathered elsewhere on his farm. The long-term vision is to create wildlife-rich wood pastures, where grassland, trees and shrubs provide a wide and diverse range of habitats.

Paul said: “This is a really exciting time. I came into farming around 40 years ago because I had a real interest in the outdoors and nature. But my focus for many years was more on the intensive grazing of sheep and cattle. I still have cattle now but in reduced numbers and I can focus more on what I always wanted to do – helping nature. I feel like I have come full circle.”

Paul has now set up a sustainable way of managing an organic beef herd. He has around 120 Ruby Red cattle, a hardy, outdoor breed which thrives on rough grassland.

“The cattle are completely pasture fed, live outdoors all year and calve in the fields. It’s a simple, natural system, and much more economical than having to buy feeds and fertilisers. The government payment system enables me to do this as a viable business, supplying the local economy with meat, while creating a place where nature can thrive.”

Paul moved away from intensive sheep grazing because they were stripping away the flowering plants and shrubs he’s trying to encourage. But in order to create the percentage of scrub and woodland that he’s aiming for, he also needs to protect young trees from deer.

“Deer are an issue because of the sheer numbers in Purbeck. They breed rapidly and have no natural predators. They can jump fences and will eat any young tree growth, so finding a way to protect saplings is crucial if I’m to achieve my goals.

“In some areas, I’ve planted young trees amidst gorse bushes or bramble because deer don’t like to put their faces into thick vegetation. In other areas, I’ve built deer-proof enclosures using repurposed mesh fencing. I’ll be monitoring to see which methods best give the saplings a chance to establish.”

Of all the projects he is working on, Paul is most excited about the opportunity to restore glow-worms on the farm.

“These are a humble species but capture people’s imagination. Not only that, but they are also a marker that indicates a healthy eco-system. My aim is to have wood pastures lit by the twinkling of glow-worms. How magical that would be!”

Middlebere Farm – preserving heathland habitats

Jake and Chrissy Hancock are the Trust’s tenants at Middlebere Farm, near Corfe Castle. They also graze cattle over the Purbeck Heaths National Nature Reserve (NNR). They currently have about 270 grazing animals, a mixture of Devon Red, Angus and Longhorn cattle.

Jake’s father was a farm manager, and Jake himself has been grazing herds since 2006. But he also worked for the Soil Association, so is passionate about managing the land without killing all the vital organisms that live on the farm.

He said: “It’s a challenge working with the soil here as it’s largely sand. The only way you can use it for crops is to add loads of fertiliser, but this is expensive and is soon washed out. So my focus is on rearing beef cattle, but in numbers and ways that restore nature. Farming the land here wouldn’t be profitable without the government support – which preserves the heathland habitats and encourages farmers to maximise wildlife across the land we manage.”

Jake works with ecologists on the management of the NNR land. He aims to re-create ponds and block ditches to encourage wetland wildlife, as well as planting mixed native trees. Several of the fields he manages are already reverting from a monoculture of ryegrass to species-rich grassland using locally harvested wildflower seeds.

“Now they are crowded with native wildflowers such as pale flax, cat’s ear, greater knapweed, ox eye daisies and corky fruit water dropwort. Butterflies and other pollinators are increasing, and we’ve got so many skylarks, the air is full of their song. It’s an exciting time – we now have ospreys using the farm – hopefully one day our list of species will also include beavers and sea eagles!”

Another important part of the business is educational visits to the farm. Chrissy, who has a background in environmental science and education, leads the tours which involve a tractor and trailer ride across the heaths with talks about the grazing animals and wildlife conservation. They do about 80 visits per year, the majority for schools but also some for adult groups. The visits and transport to the farm are free to schools, thanks to the Government support.

Jake added: “I drive the tractor and Chrissy delivers the learning – but we work as a double act, introducing various subjects to the groups and fielding a fantastic range of questions. Children need to understand where their food comes from and why nature is important – but as part of a fun experience that they’ll remember.

“Our vision is to demonstrate how farming for wildlife and food can be sustainable in places like this, and to spread this message to other landowners and farmers. We want to help increase wildlife on the heaths, and enable more people to connect with nature. That would be our legacy.”