One Dexter has taken an important step forward. We’ve now secured grazing land near Penrith, on the edge of the Lake District and beneath the familiar outline of Blencathra, known locally as Saddleback, where the beginnings of our Dexter cattle herd can start to take shape.
After a lot of searching and conversations, it is good to finally have somewhere to begin.
A starting point for One Dexter
The 20-acre plot of land gives us the opportunity to start small and build carefully.
On the lower slopes of Blencathra, the land sits between 200m and 300m above sea level. Therefore, the next step — buying cattle — will involve careful selection of the hardiest, thriftiest animals we can find to form the foundation of the future herd.
Building the herd carefully
Securing land means the search for the first One Dexter cattle can now become much more serious.
Not only am I looking for hardy, functional pedigree Dexters but also animals with calm temperaments and strong maternal traits. Very importantly, they also need to suit a very low-input, 100% forage-based system.
Those characteristics are important because the long-term aim is not simply to buy cattle that look good. After all, these cattle will never be going to the show ring. Rather, the aim is to build a herd that is genuinely suited to the way One Dexter intends to farm.
The herd will begin with only a small number of cattle. From there, the intention is to breed selectively and expand at a sensible pace.
We are still interested in land near Penrith
Although securing this grazing is a major step forward, it does not mean the search for land has finished.
I am still very interested in hearing about suitable grazing opportunities closer to Penrith as One Dexter grows.
In particular, I would be interested in rough grazing, species-rich grassland, wood pasture or any other land that could benefit from thoughtful cattle grazing. Larger blocks of land with the potential for a longer-term arrangement would also be of interest.
So, if you own land around Penrith or the surrounding area and think Dexter cattle could be a good fit, please feel free to get in touch.
What happens next?
Having land secured means One Dexter is no longer just a plan on paper.
In fact, we’ve already got our eye on a couple of top-notch pedigree heifers. We’ll introduce them when they arrive. But first, there is still plenty to organise, from fencing to water infrastructure and the less glamorous administrative jobs that come with keeping cattle, such as sorting out insurance and county parish holding numbers.
The important thing is that we now have somewhere to start.