Formerly horse pasture, the site is now several years into being developed as an agroforestry system. We are experimenting with various approaches - such as strategies for tree establishment; trying different layouts and densities of tree cover within the landscape; and trialling some novel tree crops. The main components so far are an apple orchard; a walnut orchard; wildflower meadows; several new coppice stands for various outputs; a diverse native broadleaf wood and a mixed evergreen timber stand / shelterbelt.
Almost all of the land continues to be grazed rotationally by our Badgerface Torwen sheep, who show a marked preference for the fields with access to trees. There have been a few challenges with the protection of young trees from browse damage, but nothing insurmountable. The benefits of diverse silvopasture have far outweighed the drawbacks for us, even after only a few years.
Enhancing biodiversity is core to the decisions made on the farm. Tom has a keen eye for spotting opportunities for planting ecologically important species in otherwise unutilised niches and Jacqui is responsible for moving the flock at the right moment to add or alleviate grazing pressure. By managing the land in this way we have been observing a steady increase in all aspects of biodiversity, perhaps most notably in insect biomass.