Where it all began-
In 1965, Harry Ridley was the farm manager at Chilbolton Down Farm. His remit from the owner, Sir Richard Boughey, was a simple one; he was to find ways to increase the fertility of the land without heavy investment.
Harry’s answer for this was a focus on grassland management, which began with his implementation of a seven-year rotation.
‘The golden hooves’ of the sheep were integral to this rotation system. Being on free‐draining soil, the sheep could be kept outside all year round, maximising the benefits to the soil and minimising extra feed costs.
The 3000‐ewe flock was managed by breaking it down into smaller, manageable mob sizes that worked their way around the rotation.
Today,
Rappa continues to work with the farming community to make it easy to focus on grassland management. Rappa is leading the way in helping farmers with livestock management. As the farming community face the challenges of regenerative farming, Rappa is delivering solutions through its range of mobile yards and electric fences, giving farmers a cost effective, portable, British designed and manufactured solution.
Harry’s grass management was centred around his implementation of a seven-year rotation using his patented Rappa winding machine. In today’s world of modern farming techniques, the benefits of using a Rappa grazing system to graze rotationally are clear when compared to using a continuous grazing system.
