Grazier cuts winter costs to £112 a cow and £6.30 a ewe

Rethinking how hill ground is utilised is unlocking profit potential for an upland mixed tenant farm.

Combined with a move to recorded maternal genetics (and doubling the number of fields on the holding) the approach has saved the Black family of Drochil Castle, Peebles, thousands of pounds.

The business shows a profit after rent and before all subsidies (see “Benefits of changes at Drochil Castle”).

“The aim is profitability, and we are finding that we are far more weather resilient and farming is more enjoyable too,” explains Robert, who farms with his father David and, at busy times, wife Rachel.

See also: How a Stirlingshire flock added £331/ha to lamb cheque

Traditional background

The farm is based on two hills at the confluence of the Lyne and Tarth rivers, with valley ground at 190m. One grass hill – Drochil (60ha (148 acres)) – lies to the rear of the homesteading, and rises to 373m.

The other hill – Stevenson (133ha (329 acres)) – rises to 445m and is rougher, with more heather and bracken. 

Historically, the farm ran a stratified system, using Scottish Blackface, Bluefaced Leicester and Texel rams, keeping homebred Scotch Mules and Texel crosses, with 1,000 ewes in all.

David and Robert Black © MAG/Michael Priestley

A herd of 100 Angus-cross cows ran in a self-replacing system using Charolais terminal sires to produce U-grade calves for Lanark forward spring store sales.

Cows were housed for four months, but grazed in the shoulders of the season when calves were weaned, and in March ewes lambed indoors.

However, pressure was on in summer to produce silage for the housed stock and the Blacks bought 50-60t of ewe rolls to feed through a snacker from January to May.

At today’s prices that would cost £18 a ewe across 1,000-head.

Mindset change

David says they first considered changing their system in the exceptionally wet year of 2012.

“We returned from the Highland Show and the river was up, flooding fields we were wanting to silage that week. We needed to change,” he recalls.

Robert adds that he got a few ideas while spending three silage seasons working for a contractor in New Zealand in his twenties. The rest was from visiting farm events and reading.

Hill changes

Keen to grow more grass, the Blacks started a fencing and water infrastructure project.

They replaced any rotting permanent fencing with steel (Clipex) fencing and installed semi- permanent, three-strand electric wires to halve every field on the farm.

A gravity-fed water system and mains energisers were also installed.

© MAG/Michael Priestley

By running increasingly larger numbers of ewes – followed by cows and calves on a leader-follower system – the Blacks grew more in-bye grass.

This allowed the hill to mostly rest in summer, only being used for weaned ewes from mid-July, then the grass deferred for wintering breeding stock.

Being a lower rainfall area on shallow, gravelly soil, the hill can now be used in dry summers if needed.

As more grass was grown, less supplementary feed was needed, and the money saved was put into fencing and road infrastructure.

Grass mixes incorporated red clover and later-heading ryegrasses and diploids to improved pasture resilience to dry weather.

Breed changes

Wanting to lamb outdoors without hard feed, Robert first tried an Aberfield tup instead of a Bluefaced Leicester in 2016 as a first cross onto the Blackface ewes.

Impressed with the foraging and easily managed characteristics of the ewes, he used Highlanders as a second cross thereafter, producing a graded-up, white-faced Highlander flock.  

Robert says he expected to have to cross to Texel to keep ewes looking smart, but has prioritised lambing ease and lambs born alive, so has stayed with pure Highlanders.

© MAG/Michael Priestley

The only other breeds used in recent years have been Primeras and South Country Cheviots for tupping ewe lambs.

In 2017, Robert changed from Angus to Stabiliser, grading up the herd to allow them to sell breeding bulls privately off farm and through the Stabiliser Cattle Company.

The aim is to breed a fertile cow with fleshing ability for outwintering. Any cow needing help calving or suckling is culled to breed an easily managed herd.

Spring changes

Rotationally grazing in-bye ground allows the hills to winter breeding stock which, in turn, gives a 100-day rest period to ensure cake-free lambing.

This winter, cows grazed Stevenson hill and only got access to bales on 5 January, as they carried flesh so well. Ewes are supplemented on Drochil with grass silage fed through a straw chopper.

Rather than lambing in March, ewes now come in-bye in March for a pre-lambing rotation and lamb in mid-April. Up to 700 twin-bearing ewes graze 4ha/day and are set-stocked for lambing.