August and September are busy months on the farm as we gather sheep from the hills to sort them for stock and sale.
Early autumn sheep gathering
Having started the farming year in November, this is the time when we start to see the results off the year's hard work. Lambs are grown, ewes are fit after a good summer on the hills, and market days are in the diary. Each heft is gathered in turn and we then split off any any ewes and lambs that we decide not to keep on the farm. These sheep will be taken to market. It's a delicate balance on most farms but especially on the hill farms we as it's important not to be overstocked for the coming winter. The ground - and therefore the available food in the form of grass - can only sustain a limited number.
It's also the time of year where the farm makes its money - having not had any income since the previous year.
Finished, store & breeding sales
In producing organic lamb and mutton, nearly all of our tup (male) lambs are sold "finished", ready for the organic pasture-fed meat market which goes to show how nourishing the wild hill pastures of the Pentlands are. The remaining, smaller lambs, are sold "store" to lowland farm where they'll do some more growing.
Our ewe lambs will be sold either privately or at auction as breeding females.
Old ewes
Later in the season, we sell the "old ewes" of about 5 years to lowland farms. There they'll have a relatively easy old age! Within the UK, we operate a tiered breeding system. This starts with upland breeds such as Scottish Blackface to introduce hardiness and good mothering abilities. Once the upland sheep are sold to lower farms, they will be crossed with other, more productive, breeds for increased yields of wool and meat. This system has been honed over hundreds of years and is still the backbone of the British sheep industry today.
Tups
The next job is to buy some new tups - male sheep - for breeding. Although we operate a predominately closed flock, we do occasionally source male breeding stock from beyond Eastside. Recently we’ve opted for "performance recorded" animals for an increased chance of improving the flock's characteristics (such as mothering abilities and "live weight gain") through tup scoring.
More about Tups