LLEYN ON SALISBURY PLAIN

Farming is in Jim Dufosee's genes. Although he is first generation on his present farm, he is the fifth generation of his family to farm on the Longleat estate. Jim started his own tenancy with 187 acres in 1989 and has managed over the years to expand to around 2500 acres on and around Salisbury Plain, near Warminster. His base is Tascroft Farm, a 300-acre unit on the Estate, complemented by 700 improved acres owned by the Ministry of Defence high on Salisbury Plain; he also has access to 1,500 acres of rough grazing. The land is mostly chalk, though there are 100 acres of clay and 200 of greensand, and it extends up to 700 ft above sea level. The MoD land is "rough grazing with no water and no fencing - we have to provide our own." He is limited as to what he can do in this area and is also dictated to occasionally by English Nature, as it has a relationship with the MoD. However, it is good land to have access to, especially as cattle can stay out all-year-round.

Jim has always been a beef, sheep and arable man but has his own distinct style for his stock: production of pedigree breeding stock with high health status in an organic system, complemented by performance recording to maximise production from grass.

Half the Longleat land is suitable for crops. This is also true of the MoD land, although there are strict rules on how much can be grown in one area - so as not to hinder access for army training. Jim grows triticale, barley, oats, stubble turnips and forage rape. In the past, 40-50 tonnes of home-grown cereals have been used, but this has been reduced to 12-14 tonnes because of running a different cattle breed, fewer sheep and feeding more arable silage instead of grain.

Jim has also come round to the idea of growing crops organically, although it took a little time to stop worrying about the level of weeds. "If you're an organic grower, you need a comfy armchair so you can go home and forget about it, because you can't do anything about it," he says. "Now I actually find more satisfaction in being organic - getting a better price while not spending money on sprays is a good feeling."

Jim is insistent that the stock needs to suit the farm and system. For example, the South Devon cattle he used to have were docile and could thrive on the uplands but the progeny didn't finish quickly enough when they are bought to the lowland. This experience led him to convert to North Devons. The Red Ruby Devons have demonstrated good temperament and give fine, well marbled, succulent beef on a low input system. These cattle have been shown to be a perfect match for the local environment.

Jim's Dorset ewes were on the farm in 1980, well before the Lleyn arrived. Lamb prices in the early 1990s were poor and Jim was looking for a way to improve margins. Through his persistence, he found a market for out-of-season lamb with Waitrose. "Waitrose decided to give a few of us a trial in the mid 90s to supply Dorchester and Gillingham locally and 4 flagship stores in London." The Waitrose buyers were delighted with sales and expanded the contracts so that the scheme now includes a steady 40 suppliers. Jim has now been supplying Waitrose with Dorset lamb for over 15 years and has become famous for his appearances in their quirky advertising campaigns. Jim thinks that this Waitrose outlet for the Dorsets is the best option for him because it is a guaranteed purchase, which is hard to get from an organic buyer. "The problem of organic farming is not the price, it's the buyer," he says. "If you can get the buyer, you can get the price."

Jim made the decision to go organic back in 1999, although the process eventually took 5 years to complete. Not all the land was converted at the same time, so Jim decided to introduce another breed and run one conventionally and one organically. He considered several breeds with his Signet advisor before settling on the Lleyn, which were relatively unfamiliar at that time, certainly to farmers in Wiltshire. However, the breed had caught Jim's eye. He says: "We were replacing a cross-bred flock, so wanted a pedigree ewe that would perform like a half-bred. The Lleyn do that perfectly and certainly lend themselves to an organic situation." They appeared to be "an ideal ewe, quiet in nature, prolific, having great maternal instincts, milky, without eating you out of house and home". So it has proved and Jim believes that "they are ideal for the areas of Salisbury Plain that they graze".

Foundation stock were bought from Derek and Olivia Bond (Flock 266) and John and Carol Burrows (Flock 213). The latter stock were performance recorded and this marked the beginning of Jim's involvement with performance recording the Lleyn with Signet, something he is totally committed to. In more recent times, Jim has joined the Sire Reference Group as a way of increasing the rate of genetic improvement of his Lleyn and is currently Chairman of the Group .

Until a few years ago, the Lleyn flock numbered about 350 but he lost a member of staff at the same time as he developed chronic back problems so the flock was cut back to 140 ewes and 30 ewe lambs. This reduced flock currently lambs in March/April at the same time as half of the North Devons calve while his pedigree Dorsets lamb in the autumn at the same time as the rest of the North Devons calve. For a lot of people, lambing time is busy enough as it is. But Jim chooses to calve at the same time, too. "If you're up in the night, you may as well be up," he says. "It's much better if you've got something to do and if you're lambing and calving, there's always something to do."

Now that Jim is back to 100%, the intention is to increase the Lleyn again to 350 ewes as soon as possible, with 100 lambing in Jan/Feb and the rest in April. The Lleyn have scanned at 185% in the past but Jim would like to push this closer to 190%. Whatever time of year they are lambing, everything gives birth indoors for ease of management, especially when it comes to performance recording. "It's as much for me as for the sheep. Both breeds can manage outside but this shepherd prefers them inside ."

Lleyn lambs not retained for breeding are finished off clover while Dorsets are grown on grass and then taken inside at 32-34kg to be sold finished at 40kg. Lambs from the Lleyn flock, along with all the beef, are sold as organic. Jim sells ewe lambs at the Society Sale at Exeter and from home. Rams are also sold at the Society and NSA Sales at Exeter but 70% are sold from home on the basis of their Signet recorded performance. This system will be retained when numbers are increased again.

Jim spends time and effort in the show ring. He is a prolific cup winner for his Blackhill breeding stock (both cattle and sheep) and spends considerable time each year ensuring his stock stay in the eye of potential buyers. His attitude is "There is a place for showing. Performance recording is important but you do need to remember that the stock still need to look right."

Jim is married to Jacqui who is heavily involved in the office side of the business. His elder son, Sam, is currently doing a degree in modern history at UWE, while the younger son, Joe, is studying agriculture at Kingston Maurwood. He is really interested in farming and already has his own Dorset Horns. It looks like the sixth generation is getting set for the future.

John Adams December 2010