The Rural Voice, 2001-08, Page 246
Sheep as part of the mix
For Chris and Gabriele Boettcher, their 200 -ewe
high-performance flock is an integral part
of their whole farming operation
4
Some people might call Chris
and Gabriele Boettcher sheep
producers, but as biodynamic
farmers they see sheep as inseparable
from the rest of their production.
As Chris explained to about 40
people taking part in a tour of the
Boettchers' Brussels -area farm
recently, he can't separate his returns
from his high-performance sheep,
operation from the rest of the 350 -
acres of crops and pasture as some
experts would who look at each
portion of a farm as a different
enterprise want to.
"Sheep help our crops. The crops
help our sheep," he says. "The whole
farm works as one entity. I don't
have to allocate as much forage and
grain specifically for sheep."
For instance, he says, last year he
sowed red clover into his winter
wheat and spelt and with the plentiful
rain, the clover took off after the crop
was harvested. He put sheep into the
fields to graze from early September
until the end of October and their
gain amounted to about $ I00 per
acre.
"Where do you allocate that MO
an acre, to the livestock part or the
crops?" he wondered.
Grazing is a big part of the
Boettcher operation. Chris purchased
a solar -powered, high-voltage netting
system from England that can be
easily moved for rotational grazing.
He calls it his "electric shepherd".
Though expensive, at 90 cents a
foot, it keeps the Iambs in and the
predators out. "It's almost as
expensive as regular outside fence
but it's so flexible." It's very quick to
put up or take down, he says.
Grazing (top) provides the major nutrition for the
Boettcher flock. Manure from the flock's winter housing
is composted (above left where Chris explains the
process) then used to fertilize crops (below, where Chris
talks to visitors on a recent farm tour).
20 THE RURAL VOICE