Trewoof Wartha

Jim, Roz, Alex and Justine Nixon

Trewoof Wartha is a small farm of approximately 45 acres, between
St. Buryan and Lamorna in West Penwith. We moved to the farm in June 1996. There is documented evidence that a farm has been on this site since the early 1600’s, although the present house is probably only 150 years old.

Most of our fields already had names, like: Road Field, Barn Field, Stream Field, Mother’s Field, Pole Field, Large Over the Hill, Small Over the Hill and Cold Harbour. In the past, barley grew here with great success; there is a band of clay running through our valley. Consequently the soil is very rich. When we came here we had no equipment or machinery. Our first purchase was a 1957 Fordson Power Major.

We started with eleven Whitefaced sheep and an old ram called Beefburger from Dartmoor. We bought in two Jacobs sheep called Emily and Louise for me to be able to use their wool in my work and a psychotic Charolais ram called Charlie for our terminal tup. Over the years the sheep numbers grew to 79.

During the first few years we regularly lost young lambs to foxes, sometimes 10 in one year, so we bought a pair of Llamas, Dusty and Comet to protect them. Since their arrival in 2000 we have only lost one or two lambs to foxes.

Our Guernsey nanny goats, Honeybun and Goldie, and billy goat Bhindi arrived in 1998. Our nannies provide all our milk and in the summer when there is a surplus we make butter and cream cheese.

Due to the present economic climate within the farming industry we have gradually been reducing our numbers. Jim has had to take more work as a commercial diver over the last few years, sometimes spending several days away from the farm. Consequently we recently let out 30 acres of our land to an organic farmer.

We are surrounded by a rich diversity of fauna and flora which we try not to disturb. The maxim of “farming as if one were to live forever” is of paramount importance to us.
Roz Nixon