Law Farming covers more than 2,200 ha on the Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Essex borders, based at Thrift Farm, Royston. The land is partly owned or rented with the remainder in contract farming agreements.
The arable crops which are grown are wheat, barley, oats, rye, sugar beet, forage rape, peas/beans, mustard and stubble turnips (over winter catch crop for sheep grazing). They cover 1600 ha. Grassland makes up the remainder of the area grazed by sheep/cattle.
As the farm has grown, we decided to move to block cropping to simplify our storage and field operations. Many of our crops are grown for seed or are processed or milled locally.
Mindful of improving soil fertility, compost, digestate from food waste and sewage cake as well as manure from the livestock is spread at key times of the year.
Next to Thrift Farm lies Therfield Heath, a large tract of species-rich chalk grassland. It is a local nature reserve, an SSSI and a UN World Protected Area. A flock of Dorset ewes is kept specifically to graze the heath.
Since 1997 we have actively embraced Countryside Stewardship Schemes and carefully graze grassland slopes, we restore hedgerows and sow pollinator and farmland bird crops.
Our soils are predominantly light, free-draining, chalky loams with some outlying clay knolls and areas of sand running through the lower-lying land.
Most crops are grown to supply local markets. Our milling rye, oats, soft milling wheat and all of the winter barley are sold to Jordans Ryvita. The crops produced for Jordans Ryvita are grown under their protocols including the LEAF Marque Standard. The standards stipulate that a minimum of 10% of productive land is sown to provide habitats for mammals, invertebrates, insects and ground-nesting birds.
Peas and brassicas including Hobson forage rape and Spring Mustard are grown for seed along with four varieties of rye and a small area of winter wheat. Sugar beet is grown successfully across all the farms and is delivered to the British Sugar factory at Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk.
We have adopted precision farming techniques, including RTK & GPS automatic steering systems and variable rate application of nutrients. As Law Farming has grown, our policy has been to move to block cropping to simplify storage and field operations.
The farm supports around 1,400 ewes which are lambed through January and February. The early lambing ewes’ cycles are synchronised with sponges and the ewes are then injected with PMSG to lamb in a four-week window.
If weather and indoor space permit, the ewes and lambs are turned out at four weeks old. The lambs are then creep fed until they reach the desired weight.
From late May to November, when the ewes are dry, they graze some areas of the adjoining Therfield Heath which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest. At other times of the year, they graze permanent grass around the farms. Texel, Suffolk and Charolais rams are used to produce a mixed balance of finished lamb carcasses.
Flock health
As the average annual rainfall is only 600mm, we have few problems with the health of the flocks’ feet. Lambs need to be finished quickly in the summer before pasture dries out and drought sets in. Routine worming has been replaced by dung sampling in an effort to reduce the risk of resistance to the active ingredients in the products used.
Store lamb production
Each autumn, depending on the availability of feed and number of our own lambs remaining on the farm, up to 3,000 store lambs are brought onto the farm and finished on catch crops of stubble turnips sown after winter cereals and before spring cereals and sugar beet. The majority of lambs are sold between February and April. The remaining lambs are fed concentrates ad lib.
Marketing
We supply a local butcher’s shop with lamb throughout the year. The remainder goes to abattoirs in East Anglia and the South West or to live markets.
Following an absence of over 15 years, a 60-strong suckler herd has once again become part of our enterprises here at Law Farming.
With large areas of low-quality grass entered in Countryside Stewardship Schemes on our own and surrounding neighbours’ farms, we selected the Salers breed of cattle for their hardy nature and ability to survive on poor forage with little supplement feeding.
Salers originate in Cantal in the Massif Central region of France. They are a large breed, with females often weighing over 700 kg and standing up to 1.40m tall. They have a thick mahogany red or black coat.
Originally bred for work as well as meat and milk production, this was considered a dual-purpose cow, although now better known for its fertility, ease of calving, its maternal instincts and ability to provide large quantities of milk for their calves.
We plan to produce store cattle ready for market fed only on grass and stubble turnips. This slower process of producing calves with a diverse diet of spices-rich grasses and fodder crops should provide for a high quality and lean composition carcass.
Conservation and habitat creation have been core policies at Law Farming for the past 30 years.
We have planted more than 30 km of hedges and allocated areas for wild bird food, wildflower and grass margins. We have built ponds and beetle banks. We have left fields fallow and undersown spring cereals and stubbles overwintered for ground-nesting birds.
Parkland, hedges and ditches have been maintained and archaeological features fenced off.
Since 1997 our arable and grassland has been in government schemes administered by Natural England.
Therfield Heath (SSSI) is a fine example of undisturbed chalk grassland in East Anglia which supports rare grasses and flowers, butterflies and insects. It adjoins Thrift Farm and the farm benefits from grazing rights (stints) on the Heath.
Grazing continues throughout the part of the year the sheep do not have lambs at foot.
The rare plants and insects are dependent on short grass which is a result of regular sheep grazing. They would disappear if management by sheep was discontinued and more undesirable species would take over.
Since 2002 we have carried out extensive work to restore existing woodlands. Partaking in Woodland Grant Schemes has enabled essential management to be carried out, namely thinning, coppicing and replanting.
In addition, we have planted some 26 ha of new woodland under the Farm Woodland Premium Scheme. Blocks of new woodland are sited adjacent to existing woodlands on marginal areas and infield corners.
In Autumn 2013, we purchased 12 ha of mature woodland adjoining Thrift Farm and Therfield Heath (SSSI). Work began early 2015 to restore Fordham’s Wood and Jubilee Wood. This started with the creation of permissive public access paths and the installation of interpretation boards.
Farm visits
Throughout the year, Law Farming is delighted to host a wide variety of groups interested in our farms and environmental work. We use the Black Barn for introductory talks and refreshments. Therfield Heath, the Thrift woodlands and various other habitats are within walking distance.
School visits
Law Farming hosts numerous school groups with insightful visits that can bring a curriculum to life. We believe it is important to give children an introduction to how and where their food is grown.
Our visits give pupils the opportunity to learn about the lifecycles and seasons that determine crop and food production. We also hope students gain an understanding of the importance of farming in the maintenance of the landscape and environment. During a visit, pupils can look at soil profiles, take farm walks, identify trees and invertebrates, view machinery and take a close-up look at the sheep farming year.
We are a certified CEVAS (Countryside Education Visits Accreditation Scheme) farm and receive year-round visits from many local schools from Reception, KS1 and KS2. If you are a teacher and would like to find out more about school farm visits, please go to Leaf Education.
- On-farm pre-visit meeting advised
- Visit programmes pre-planned (set or as required)
For further information or to arrange a visit, please email Frances Law or call us 07977 474 124.
The Black Barn stands at the entrance to Thrift Farm. In 2009 the former cart shed was converted into a meeting and conference room as part of the Countryside Stewardship Scheme.
The venue can seat up to 45 people with doors opening onto an enclosed garden. It has WiFi and projection facilities as well as a kitchen and toilet facilities.
If you are interested in hiring the Black Barn for an event, please email or call Robert Law on 07976 390 706.
We welcome CAMC members to Thrift Farm. It is an easily accessible, dog-friendly, one-acre site which has far-reaching views over Cambridgeshire in one direction and into the wooded and undulating landscape of Hertfordshire in another. There is a network of public footpaths across the farm.
Thrift Farm is near Royston, and within easy access to the A1M and M11 motorways, is only 30 mins drive from Cambridge, and there is a direct train line from Cambridge and London Kings Cross.
Email us at thriftfarmcl@lawfarming.com or call 07977 474124 to make a booking or for more information. Advance booking is preferred.