Sheep take up residence in the hop garden!

Take a look at our new VIP grazers in the hop garden.

In another step towards making our business more sustainable, we have enlisted the help of these fluffy friends.

Courtesy of local farmer Chris, the sheep will be grazing the hop garden to keep down the grass and weeds between the alleys, but will also be nibbling off the prolific burst of early hop shoots, which are not required.

Nature's lawn mowers will not only save Estate Manager Matthew and the Hogs Back Hoppers a time-consuming job, but will be adding a little goodness back into the soil as they go! The perfect way to fertilise the field.

Chris from Kiln Side Farm just down the road in Runfold has put up the fencing around the hop garden and loaned us two breeds of hardy native British sheep,  The distinctive, small, black Hebrideans with their horns are in lamb with lambs due in May.  The larger white Lleyn sheep from Wales are nearly yearlings.

The sheep have settled into their new des res but we're not sure what the local deer are going to think when they find "their" hop garden occupied!

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