Blog Post
6th Aug 2025
Hannah shares an update on Summer at Chapel Farm, where she and her husband Sion (our Farm Manager) live – its history, its quirks, and the thoughtful work being done to nurture it for the future. From growing food to protecting biodiversity, it’s a glimpse into the heart of a farm shaped by people, place, and purpose.
The landscape has come to life and livestock is growing.
The Summer season is well-underway at Chapel Farm, bringing with it longer daylight hours and pastures in full growth.
Narrow lanes are fuller with hedgerows in full bloom and fully leafed trees offer shade on a warm day.
Our cattle and sheep are out in the fields which means daily checks on these animals as well as maintaining of water supplies and fencing across this grazed area.
Some of the grassland species on the farm include herbal leys like chicory, plantain, red and white clover which not only provides a higher quality forage for livestock but brings a diverse root structure to the ground, boosting soil health and supporting pollinators and other wildlife.
This type of multi-species sward is designed to improve soil health, enhance livestock nutrition and benefit biodiversity across the farm – and during the warmer months is when it really comes to life.
To make the most of what the multi-species grassland has to offer, we split the fields up into smaller paddocks to create a rotational grazing system.
This means cattle and sheep are moved every few days onto fresh pasture, giving them access to a varied and nutritious forage diet while helping to regenerate the pasture behind them.
Across this grazing area, cattle will follow sheep into the paddocks meaning sheep graze an area first with cattle coming in behind them once sheep have been moved into the next one.
As cattle and sheep have different grazing preferences, this works well as cattle tend to graze more broadly and can graze down to a certain height, while sheep are more selective and graze closer to the ground. This means that together, they utilise a wider range of vegetation.
This complementary grazing behaviour can lead to healthier pastures, increased productivity and healthier animals and is a natural, efficient way to manage our land and livestock.
There are also woodland pasture areas on the farm which are grazed by cattle only. Cattle are less likely than sheep to damage tress and young saplings, while cattle are ideal for maintain the balance of open pasture and tree cover in woodland systems.
Sitting alongside these more productive pastures on the farm are areas of moorland, some which can be seen from the services – here a herd of Belted Galloway cows can be seen grazing.
A breed that is well-equipped to thrive outdoors in any climate and well-suited to grazing on the exposed, higher ground on the farm.
While livestock are out grazing, Summer work continues…
Find out what’s new on the farm in our next blog – coming soon!
Want to find out more? Check out a few of our other blogs below.
Butchery 7.15am-6pm