November, 2021

Castle Dewey Dexters

Dexter Cattle in a field

This website is all about Tregew Farm but there is a back story linked to Castle Dewey Farm where we live, on Bodmin Moor. The cattle in this picture are our Dexters some of whom are related to Anna Brunyee’s herd.

Shortly we will be partnering with a young local farmer who will be mob grazing part of the land with Belted Galloways. Like Dexters, Belted Galloways are especially well suited to moorland life. They are relatively small, hardy and require no additional feeding other than grass and forage.

Mob grazing, for those unfamiliar with the term, is imitative of the natural way that herbivores graze – moving in groups for their mutual protection from predators, the cattle intensely graze an area of ground and then move on, not returning to that area for several months and so allowing the natural diversity of herbal and insect life to flourish and proliferate.

Dexter Cattle in a field

When the cattle return to the site the grass is long and luxurious and will be bearing seed. What isn’t eaten is trodden into the soil so increasing biomass , sequestering carbon and establishing a seed bank.