ADOPTASHEEP FAQ

Trees are an important part of animal husbandry. They provide shade which reduces stress on animals. Stressed animals don't grow as fast as relaxed animals. Trees also increase soil carbon in grasslands which means richer soil and better pasture. So our ideal is called a "grassy woodland" with about 3 trees per acre, much like the way it was when the white pioneers arrived here, according to the explorers' journals. But we're a long way from that. We are allowing regrowth in some paddocks, fencing off areas where trees are regrowing or putting surrounds around individual trees. We have alienated a 50metre 'wildlife corridor' linking heavily wooded areas "out the back 700" (the 750 acres over the ridge behind the house) with the wooded area on "The Lease" (another heavily wooded area) and the woodlands down by the river. This will be planted heavily with tall trees, understory trees and shrubs, to encourage small mammals and birds. Details about the way we farm for species diversity can be found on our blog "Diary of a Carbon Farmer" (http://envirofarming.blogspot.com). We have a definite philosophy of agriculture that is based on the belief that farming techniques are best when they mimic mother nature.