Limited uptake for livestock heather beds in Gwynedd

WINTER use of cut heather and gorse has long been extolled but many farmers remain to be convinced.

A five-farm study by PONT, the Welsh agri-conservation initiative, concluded the materials could cut annual straw costs by an average of £1,433.

Bedding-up time was also reduced significantly.

As a result a follow-up project on the Uwch Gwyrfai Common,

Gwynedd, is offering free gorse and heather to local graziers.

But since the two-year project began this summer, uptake has been non-existent.

Few doubt the value of heather as livestock bedding – but collecting it remains a challenge.

“The area here is remote and getting to it is not easy,” said Dion Roberts, leader of the Uwch Gwyrfai heathland project.

“And as cut material is left in the open, some people are wary of using it once it’s wet.

“However it can be very good bedding and makes a good fertiliser when spread on the land.”

On Uwch Gwyrfai, graziers are cutting away linked patches of gorse and heather on the 2,500-acre common, which runs up the slopes of Mynydd Mawr.

As well as encouraging biodiversity, the aim is to encourage grazing on cleared areas of land.

Soil fertility should also improve as bracken mulch is removed.

Historically, commoners cut gorse for fuel for the house and chopped the green tips for livestock feed in the winter.

Bracken was cut for livestock bedding or burnt for ash that was used to make glass, soap and fertiliser.

●