We talk a lot about how our sheep are partners in the farm’s regeneration. This is what we’re talking about: when the sheep first arrived, this copse was impenetrable. They started pushing in through it, and bedding down at the edges at night. We thought, at first, that we should get in there and clear it out for them. But they did that themselves! Chewing away at the tangle, eating the saplings…there’s so much more air getting in through there now, room for the birds to fly among the branches. Eventually, the smallest trees will die off, as the sheep continue to chew them, and we’ll clear them out, giving the larger trees more room to grow. And the sheep will continue to have a nice sheltered spot to sleep.
And when we rest that area, grass will come up – though it won’t last long, once the sheep are back again (nom nom). And so it goes: our woodlands are looking so much better since the sheep moved in.
Trees and sheep, it doesn’t have to be either/or. Done right, they can both benefit from the other.
Some of our hardworking gals, with the ‘mesa’ behind, where they’re helping to clear the bracken. 
Shade, umbrella, snack, sleeping area, these woods are multi-functional! 
An impenetrable mass, before the sheep arrived. Now there’s room for them, AND a lot more bird life.
The Hirsel 