Rosewood Farm

15/06/2026

A field full of
Poppies is a rare sight in Britain today whereas 100 years ago they were a common w**d in arable crops. They are now mostly controlled in cereal crops via the use of selective broadleaf herbicides.

The seeds remain dormant in the soil for decades so although we haven’t cultivated this field for 13 years the seeds have been waiting in the soil for their opportunity to emerge. Poppies require the soil surface to be disturbed in order to germinate and compete so our ploughing to establish a new ley has provided them with the chance to grow.

Were we not managing the land organically it would still not be possible to spray broadleaf herbicides on this crop as it would also kill the beneficial clovers and herbs that we are trying to grow along with the grasses to feed both the soil and our cattle.

Herbicides, including non-selective ones like glyphosate, are an easy way to control w**ds that compete & reduce yields of arable crops but they have their disadvantages too. By killing the flowering plants they reduce the availability of leaf, pollen and nectar which feed the young of many insects including many bees & butterflies, and these insects in turn provide food for many species of farmland birds, which resulted in population declines for many species since pesticide use became commonplace in the 1960s & ‘70s.

Sustained herbicide use eventually leads to selection for stronger, more persistent w**ds, speeding up the natural process of plant evolution to resist herbicides.

In organic farming we have to create the right conditions to favour our crops over the w**ds/wildflowers, these include using cultivations, cutting, grazing, hand w**ding and longer crop rotations than in conventional farming.

The persistence of the poppy in the landscape is a sign of nature’s resilience against modern, chemical pesticides. As the ley becomes established we will cut & graze it to create the right conditions for the crop, but in the meantime the birds & insects that depend upon flowers for food will benefit, while we can enjoy the view.

09/06/2026

for chicks!
At 10 days old, chicks🐥 start to establish a pecking order, sometimes taking it out on each other. 🩹🤕
We've added something shiny they like to peck at plus some greenery for extra stimulation.

Yes, its an old cafetiere plunger ☕️ 😀

Hopefully this keeps them occupied until this phase has passed

07/06/2026

There’s something a little bit special about walking into a bookshop and finding the title you’ve been determined to buy only when you find it on the shelf, rather than having to order in, which itself shares about as much appeal as buying online. So the new store didn’t disappoint, with exquisitely constructed floor to ceiling bookshelves in a beautiful building and, most importantly, a well stocked natural history section. Just by the Minster & across the road from Museum Gardens. Perfect. 📚☕️😎

15/05/2026

We’re fully on board with this, our butterflies need as much good, pesticide free habitat as possible to survive.

Butterflies and moths need pesticide-free, thriving and well-supported farms so they can flourish 🌱🦋

In the UK, some crops are sprayed with glyphosate, a pesticide also known as Roundup, shortly before harvest, a process known as pre-harvest desiccation. The Government allows this despite knowing the risk from this pesticide to both insects and human health.

But there is another way. With support from the Government, farmers can transition to nature-friendly alternatives.

We are supporting the Soil Association and Riverford's call on the UK Government to ban this practice, and you can add your name too!

Join the call to by adding your name today 👉 https://act.soilassociation.org/cut-the-chemicals

📷: Marbled White - Will Langdon

09/05/2026

08/05/2026

Wildflowers are the focus of our latest blog - we like them but what is the point of them? Why are we growing them? How do they impact upon food production? Hopefully this will, at least partly explain why wildflowers are important for our food, as wellas providing food for our birds and for our beef!

www.rosewood.farm/blogs/rosewood-farm-blog/securing-our-food

29/04/2026

The in our smallest hay meadow, the graveyard of church are just one of the many wildflowers in this special place on the edge of the Ings.

28/04/2026

Tuesdays are parcel sending days ready for the courier to deliver to all of our lovely customers tomorrow.
The meat comes in these special boxes that keep it frozen, so we deliver to almost anywhere in the UK.

19/04/2026

Today's job is meat packing! Look at these delicious short ribs! 😋
Get them before we eat them ourselves 🤣

https://www.rosewood.farm/products/beef-short-ribs

12/03/2026

An £250,000 appeal has been launched to save the York nature reserve described by Sir David Attenborough as a ‘cathedral of nature conservation’.

Not that we really need to promote it right now, as beef is flying out of the online shop at the moment, but our current animals spent last summer grazing in the woods & fen meadows at Askham Bog. Grazing here helps to reverse the domination of reeds & Himalayan Balsam and it also produces some fantastic tasting beef.

“It’s vital that we make Askham Bog boggier."

However as good as grazing is for the habitat, without remaining wet the bog will be lost. Although it's lasted for 15,000 years, today the reserve is surrounded by farmland, a golf course and wide scale land drainage which, if you remember learning about osmosis at school, means the peat is literally being sucked dry so now the bog needs a little help to remain boggy!

Anything you can contribute will make a real difference in improving the bog!

www.yorkmix.com/appeal-launched-to-save-yorks-oldest-nature-reserve