South Suffolk Sheep

by Brian Croot

Sheep in the vineyard

Rams of Redbank, Mel Gibbston and Jimmy Baahns

New Zealand's own South Suffolk sheep with newborn lambs

Bonny black lambs and mom

May 13th may not seem like a red letter day to many but it was for the Rams of Redbank, Mel and Jimmy.  This day was the beginning of another season on the sheep farming calendar, mating day, the day the rams went out.

This important event had been delayed this year because Richard insisted that harvesting grapes had to take priority, and when we consider the present state of sheep farming we couldn't argue. But with all the grapes picked, and delivered to the winery our attention turned to the sheep. Mike, Nathan and Brian mustered the blackface beauties, the Suffolk ewes, trucked them to Alex Paddocks vineyard and released them into the lush feed growing between the rows.

Richard loves to see the ewes at work for him, grazing in the vineyards after the grapes are picked. They mow the grass and leave behind those trails of organic manure. No more tractor mowing or steaming with their carbon footprints, no more weed-eating with its sweated labour. Richard dreams of the day when he can have sheep grazing the vineyards all year round, sell the tractor and mower and steamer and weed-eaters. His orders are, breed some sheep that don't eat grape leaves or bunches. We think it would be simpler if he was to breed vines whose leaves and grapes were unpalatable to sheep.

So then our two handsome Suffolk rams were brought from Lindsay's paddock where they had been sires to his ewes too, and nature was left to take its course. We can now look forward to bonny, bouncing, black lambs in early October when the Central Otago spring will be in full swing.  

The final task for the season was to deliver the wool clip to the local woolbuyer. We have to sympathise with all sheep farmers when we realised our total proceeds barely covered the cost of freighting it there, let alone the cost of shearing. But we don't think Richard would let us have cows grazing in the vineyards, so we just have to concede that wine is king.

Editor's note:

This breed has been long favoured by the Proprietor's family. Indeed his father, Major Dermot Neill, was a South Suffolk breeder of note. At least at our place.
The Major once entered his best ram at the Mosgiel Agricultural and Pastoral Show. In the event , there were no other contenders in his class. Strangely the Ram came second. To himself.

A minor embarrassment, and perhaps we shouldn’t have brought it up here.

Our own flock  have not been without their ups and downs. See the blog of 3 May 2007 about the Mongrel Sheep Incursion and, more recently, Jimmy Baahns possibly painful penis incident. (24 June 2008)