Very little goes to waste on the farm
Three Bridges Farm comprises 370 acres (150 hectares) of arable, pasture and orchard land.
Arable crops of wheat, oats, barley, field beans and grass ley are grown in rotation over approximately 250 acres. Cereal crops are harvested in July, August and September, and are used for sale and to produce cattle feed for the farm.
We are fortunate at Sheppy’s that our orchards, especially our ageing standard orchards, are a haven for wildlife. In Addition, field margins and biennial hedge cutting contribute to habitat creation.
Very little goes to waste on the farm. Here pommace (dry apple pulp after pressing) goes for cattle feed, pruned apple wood is used for logs by family and staff, wood chippings are used for surfacing and even our biodegradable packaging waste is used as cattle bedding.
Our new WET system for waste water management has created a small, but already valuable wetland habitat whilst managing production effluent naturally. Hive bees graze the flowering willows before moving on to apple blossom in the late sping, and the site is rich with insect life, birds and amphibians.