Sheep

The sheep have now left Pheasant Field having eaten more or less everything they could eat. It has been a great experience for us, and hopefully the sheep liked it too. We miss them already. A very big thank you to everyone involved in the project and for all the kind remarks from those of you who came to take a look. We hoping to bring the sheep back in the autumn.

The electric fence has been taken down and all that remains is a gate somewhat surrealistically standing in an empty field. We’ll move it when there a bit less mud.

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The Sheep are back.

The sheep are back in Pheasant Field and looking very happy. See posts below for details. They will be here over Christmas and we will be joining them to ensure all goes well. So it’s a merry Christmas from us and the sheep.

Sheep Arrived!

It is a pleasure (and a relief!) to announce that we now have approximately 140 sheep grazing on Pheasant Field. The sheep will now be on the meadow in two phases. They will be removed on Friday 12^th or Saturday 13^th and are planned to return for another week on Monday the 22^nd.

It is nearly 15 years since sheep were last on this meadow, they are an important part of our meadow restoration project, and we are very grateful to the local farmer whose sheep they are. Our thanks also go to the South Downs National Park for their very practical help, and to the Hassocks Amenity Association for their support and encouragement. Thanks also to the many dog walkers we have spoken to for their understanding and support.

Please see the map in the post below for the layout of our electric fence. The public footpaths in the meadow are open, as is the informal path from Butchers Wood. Access to Lag Wood is unchanged.

Electric Fence For Sheep

We will be erecting a temporary electric fence in Pheasant Field in order to allow sheep to graze the meadow. The fence is planned for this weekend but this may extend into next week. Access to Lag Wood and Pheasant Field will not change but walkers will not be able to use some of the informal paths on the north and west sides of the meadow.

The public footpaths in the meadow will remain open, a gate in the electric fence will be installed at the end of the footpath running across the centre of the meadow. The map shows the layout of the fence.

The sheep should be arriving next week and will be in Pheasant field for ten days or so. While sheep are in the meadow please keep all dogs on leads, and don’t allow them, or anyone, to touch the electric fence. Please make sure you close the temporary gate after you if you are walking on the footpath through the centre of the meadow.

The use of sheep for winter grazing is an important part of meadow conservation and we are very grateful for your cooperation. This is a big step for us and we hope everyone will join us in wishing this to be a great success.

We realise we posted an article over a year ago proclaiming the imminent arrival of sheep. But this time we think we have everything we need to actually do it! We’re keeping our fingers crossed.