At Viewfield Romneys, we start the new year with fluking all sheep. Being a wet area we've always fluked our flock at least twice a year and as a result (touch wood) we have avoided a fluke outbreak.

We also scan our ewes in January, splitting singles, multiples and late lambers and we mob stock in those lots for grazing. We aim to scan at 175% with a view to lambing at 155%. Any ewes scanned with triplets are sold in lamb, so get in touch if you are interested (late January), and empty ewes are sold.

During February, we keep an eye on the ewes in the run up to lambing and supplement feed where required. We do this with silage and kale to ensure that the ewes are getting the nutrients required from a natural source. We go through the ewes to take out any leaner ewes and split them into their own mob so they can get the higher nutrients required.

Most of March is spent hoping for good weather and the onset of Spring! We treat any ewes expecting triplets, as well as lean ewes for worms. We also giving Heptavac boosters and Spot On treatment, which we have found reduces the number of ewes that get stuck on their backs (cowped).

The ewes are crutched in the run up to lambing to keep them clean until shearing in the summer. Towards the end of the month, the ewes are set stocked, depending on the amount of grass.

We start lambing around the 10th of April. With 2,800 ewes to lamb, it's certainly a busy month, but thanks to our breeding practices over the years, we find ourselves having to get involved in fewer than 1% of lambings on the farm. We check the ewes twice a day to make sure everything's going smoothly and lambs are docked and treated with heptovac and scabivax to avoid orf.

As the days get longer throughout spring, we're reminded that it's not always grey and raining! The ewes and lambs remain in the lambing paddocks before being spread out around the farm later in the month. We keep them set stocked as singles, multiples and lates.

The flats have been shut up to prepare for silaging at the end of the month, and we always hope for a good cut. We aim to shut off our grass as early as possible to ensure a quality crop for our ewes. The silage is cut and we leave the grass for three weeks to freshen up for ewes and lambs.

Summer is well and truly on the way in June as we clip the ewes and rams in the first shear. This keeps them cool in the summer months and prevents fly strike; keeping the fleeces off as we head into the warmer months gives time for a second shear later on in the year. Once shorn, the rams go through the first selection, deciding which will be kept, sold and culled.

We drench the lambs to prevent nematodiris and give them a multivitamin drench, as well as treating them in order to prevent flystrike.

Summer is in full swing; the ewes and lambs are moved onto flat land for 4 - 6 weeks before weaning, and we weigh the stud lambs at 100 days old.

By the end of July we have a pick of singles where we draw over 90% of male singles (approximately 100 days old). The lambs are weaned by the end of the month and we draft lambs, splitting them by sex and weight.

The lambs are shorn in August. Not everyone shears their lambs, but we believe that if we get warmer weather towards Autumn, the lambs will continue to graze once they are shorn, rather than heading for the shade to keep cool. We find that they put on more weight without wool, and it's also a great way to avoid fly strike. Lambs wool is a fantastic by-product and our wool is used in the British textiles industry.

The fat lambs are put on to silage ground to finish and we draft and select ewe lambs. Any lambs under 36kg are drenched and given a vitamin, whilst cull ewes are sent to the mart.

We also have rams for sale from August. Prices range from £650 - £750 per head, but please contact us for more information.

The shearers are back in September, this time to clip the ewes and rams for a second time. We second shear mainly for maintenance over the winter, avoiding brambles and gorse, and reducing the risk of cowping in the spring. Romneys grow fantastic wool, but they don’t have to be sheared twice a year, this is a management decision that we make. 

Fat lambs are sold deadweight, whilst stud lambs are weighed again. We continue to have rams for sale throughout the Autumn, so get in touch with us for more information.

The breeding lambs are drenched and given a multivitamin. We take a faecal egg count and fluke the stock based on the results. Due to the wet weather, we aim to reduce the worm burden they may take into the winter. We drench the ewes pre-tupping for fluke.

We do still sell rams into October, although earlier is better! Find out more by getting in touch with us.

It's time to start the cycle again! The rams are turned out for a month, with the aim of the ewes getting pregnant in the first cycle. One ram can serve up to 100 ewes (and he's still looking for more!), and we don't flush our ewes or use a teaser. The rams aren't given any additional feed throughout the year.

We start feeding the ewes silage (bales) and kale in a mob stock system; this helps the rest of the farm recover over the next four months before spring.

Rams are taken away from the ewes after 28 days.