Pioneering link between agricultural colleges

The pioneering link-up has been forged between Carmarthenshire’s Gelli Aur Agricultural College, at Llandeilo, and the National Botanic Garden of Wales, which lies four miles away at Llanarthne, in a move aimed at creating a range of fresh opportunities for both centres.

As far as the college goes it has second to none dairy farming teaching facilities with its two separately managed herds, 400-cows and fully modernised housing and milking parlours.

It is also able to pass on the wisdom of its considerable grassland and cropping management experience, as well as machinery and equipment maintenance and stock rearing skills.

Hands-on work with sheep and beef cattle, largely due to a lack of space has, however, been fairly restricted, as has any full blown experience of pedigree breeding.

But not any more. Surrounding the botanical gardens are some 121 ha (300 acres) of agricultural land which form part of the original Middleton Hall estate.

Ever since the garden was set up – now more than a decade ago – the land has been farmed organically with a balance between productive and habitat grassland and forage cropping under a Tir Gofal agri-environmental scheme.

Nature reserve focus

It has also gained nature reserve focus farm status and until fairly recently has basically provided grazing for organic cattle from Pwllpeiran Experimental Husbandry Farm, in Ceredigion – but has not actually owned any livestock.

Recent times have also seen major funding shortages casting serious doubts over the garden’s survival – leading to a major management re-think over its future direction.

The close proximity of two prestigious centres of excellence led to the possibility of a working partnership delivering mutual benefits and improved commerciality for the overall Middleton complex.

As a result, Gelli Aur has provided the funding for the garden to purchase its own pedigree livestock – 20 Welsh Black cows and their calves, along with individual flocks of 55 Lleyn and 72 Llanwenog ewes.

All three groups are now based at the garden’s Pantwgan Farm and will be retaining full pedigree status, providing valuable educational experience for students, as well as being an added attraction for garden visitors as they take advantage of the circular farm and nature walks that have been established around the estate within easy walking distance of the garden’s attractions.

It also provides the opportunity to help narrow the urban-rural divide and raise general awareness with the general public of farming’s way of life.

There are hopes that in time an information centre will also be selling home produced beef and lamb to garden visitors.

Tim Bevan, farm manager at the garden, says he is delighted with the arrangement and feels it right and proper that the farm land should reflect the mainstream breeds of Wales, producing both breeding and finished stock.

Breed society guidance

The Welsh Blacks – which were purchased under the guidance of breed society chief executive, Andrew James – are mainly spring calving.

The Llanwenog ewes and two tups were purchased at the autumn breed society sale at Llanybydder and include a selection of ages from a number of the breed’s top flocks.

Some 20 Lleyn ewes were bought privately from Alan and Helen Bennett’s organic Plas Ucha flock at Meifod, in Montgomeryshire, with an additional 25 ewe lambs being bought from local breeders, Teifion and Joanna Rees.

The plan is to build up the overall flock to around the 150-ewe mark, lambing in February and March.

According to Lyn Richards, the college’s now retired, long-term senior lecturer who helped set up the partnership, the link-up with the botanical garden provides a comparative system of organic indoor lambing with Gelli Aur’s extensive outdoor arrangements and over the years could only enhance overall student experience in beef and sheep systems.

“It certainly provides the college with a host of additional learning facilities which we have previously been unable to offer on a fully practical level.

“One of our aims is also to see students competing at shows – possibly even the Royal Welsh – with stock that they have had a part in breeding.”

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