Fleecewood Farm occupies some 32 Ha (80acres) of rolling hill country. Over the last 12 years I have cleared scrub and planted a wide selection of amenity and timber trees to enhance the natural environment, create natural shelter and provide a ready supply of tree fodder for the animals. As the trees have grown, the bird life has increased markedly, especially the New Zealand native birds.
Farm visits by appointment. Contact anne@woolcraft.co.nz
The Fleecewood flock currently comprises 60 breeding ewes, 30 replacement ewe hoggets, 40 wethers and 5 rams. The flock has been developed over the last 11 years by the selective breeding of English Leicesters and New Zealand Halfbreds to produce a range of naturally coloured (black, greys, browns and a few white) crossbred fleeces exhibiting the characteristics valued by spinners, weavers and other woolcrafters.
Fleecewood Leicester - are the culmination of my breeding programme, producing fleeces 125 - 150mm (5 - 6 inches) long, that are highly lustrous, have a wavy crimp, and a silky smooth handle. Excellent for jumpers(sweaters), hats, scarves, gloves, and socks.
English Leicester - are the result of early English sheep breeding, and are now considered a rare breed. Produce open, coarser fleeces 150 - 200mm (6 - 8 inches) long, with a high lustre and wavy crimp. Can have somewhat harsh handle, but others are softer. Excellent for outer garments, hard wearing socks, rugs, wall hangings and tapestry.
New Zealand Halfbred - are a Merino-longwool cross. The only true halfbred currently on the farm is the ram. He is a Merino-Lincoln cross, but in the past Halfbred rams have been Merino-English Leicester. Produce a fine, soft, low lustre wool, with a fine even crimp. Staples are 75 - 100mm (3 - 4 inches) long.
Fine Crossbred - produces soft, low lustre fleeces which exhibit characteristics closer to the Halfbred end of their genetics. Recommended for jumpers (sweaters), hats, and scarves. Suitable for next to skin wear in most people.
Medium and Coarse Crossbred - comprise English Leicester cross, Romney and Romney cross. Produces medium to coarse open fleeces, with low to medium lustre, that are 100 - 150mm (4 - 6 inches) long.
I aim to produce quality handcraft fleeces in an animal friendly
way. Growing top quality wool using organic methods is not a feasible option at Fleecewood,
but flock management aims to minimise the use of chemical
inputs, while maintaining a high standard of animal welfare.
Optimising animal health and mimimising stress are paramount in producing high
quality fleeces. Some ways I do this include:
Providing appropriate levels of nutrition throughout the year, planned to produce consistent wool growth so there is no weakness in the staple, and maximising lamb numbers and health. For instance, ewes are fed high levels of green feed in late pregnancy and during lactation, which helps prevent sleepy sickness and milk fever, but are limited to maintenance feed levels during early to mid pregnancy to minimise lambing problems due to fat ewes and large lambs.
Allowing the sheep free access to clean water, shade and shelter from inclement weather to minimise stress.
Control of internal parasites, primarily through the use of rotational grazing, adequate feed so animals are not eating too close to the ground, use of tree fodder, culling of susceptible animals, and judicial use of anthelmintic drenches, used in rotation to minimise the risk of developing resistant parasites.
Control of lice and keds by a post shearing backline application of synthetic pryethrin. There is a legal requirement in New Zealand to treat sheep annually, and the post shearing timing is not only the most effective, but also minimises the possibility of residual contamination of the wool.
Minimising the risk of flystrike by vigilant animal husbandry, including close attention to animal health and crutching, use of fly traps, and use of exposed (windy) paddocks during times of high risk. If an animal is struck, it is treated individually, and is usually culled.
Control of clostridial diseases, including tetanus, pulpy kidney and blood poisoning. These are most likely to occur in lambs. Control is achieved by an annual pre-lamb vaccination of ewes, and later vaccination of lambs. If a lamb does not have access to colostrum from a vaccinated ewe, it is given a tetanus-pulpy kidney antibody injection at birth.
Minimising vegetable matter (vm) contamination in fleeces, by keeping offending plants under control (thistles are grubbed by hand, gorse is grubbed or spot sprayed), or fenced off (otherwise desirable trees and shrubs). Feeding tree fodder instead of hay in winter stops hay getting into fleeces, which is particularly important when fleeces are long. Any vm contamination that does occur is removed during skirting.
Pre-lamb shearing of the flock in July, about 4 - 6 weeks before lambing. This gives the best fleeces, relieves the ewe of the wool burden and minimises the risk of heavily pregant ewes becoming cast. The ewe is more likely to seek shelter in bad weather, which is beneficial for the lamb who will follow its mother. The lamb also has easy access to the udder.
If you want to know more please email me with specific questions.
anne@woolcraft.co.nz