Justine and Arnaud produce and process organic milk from their sheep and goats of hardy breeds. Animal welfare is central. Our two farmers wish to provide shade and fodder for their animals by planting a 320m single-row hedge.
In total, 960 plants will be planted (hornbeams, small-leaved lime trees, ash trees, willows, hawthorns, elder trees).
La Ferme de l’Espérance
Justine and Arnaud are carrying out an organic dairy production and processing project at La Ferme de l’Espérance. With their 30 sheep and 10 goats of uncommon breeds: Lacaune, Thone and Marthod, Zwartbles sheep, and Lorraine goats. A small flock of Ardennes Red sheep raised with their mothers produces quality lamb meat, making use of less productive pastures.
The pursuit of animal welfare is a core value. Justine manages animal health using plant extracts, essential oils, and fodder hedges. The diversified cheese production is mainly sold at the farm shop. Two cheeses from the farm have won awards at the Best Farm Cheeses Competition!
Trees and Animal Welfare at the Heart of La Ferme de l’Espérance
Justine and Arnaud have already planted 1,300 hedge plants. With PlantC, in 2022, 54 fruit trees and 8 agroforestry trees were added.
The orchard is doing very well, despite the loss of 4 individuals. The orchard is well maintained (training pruning), and the mulching with sheep’s wool and the application of manure are well executed (this helps retain soil moisture and limit herbaceous competition).
This encouraging result leads them to “re-green” the area…
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Trees and animal welfare at Justine’s: Episode 2Get inspired
2024 Goal: 320m of fodder hedge
The species that make up the hedge were chosen for their tolerance to drought and the pH of the sandy-loam soil, which tends to be acidic.
Here is the planter’s list: Hornbeams, small-leaved lime trees, hazelnut trees, hawthorns, willows, and elder trees will form the hedge for the enjoyment of the goats and sheep of La Ferme de l’Espérance.
The work took place on February 6, 2025, in slightly drier conditions. Indeed, for over a year now, we have had, shall we say, abundant rainfall conditions:
Visit to the plantation in 2025
On May 15, 2025, we were able to observe the establishment of the hedge shrubs, following their planting in February 2025.
We can only note that the hedge fits ideally into this Gaumais landscape. The establishment rate is very satisfactory, approaching 95%. We observed that Justine and Arnaud have started applying sheep’s wool as a repellent (indeed, the strong smell repels game, which is fond of young hedge plants) and for mulching.
We had the pleasure of visiting the plot with the companies contributing to the project’s funding, including Eurid. Justine and Arnaud had prepared a walking tour to discover the plantation, the herds, and thus the entire philosophy behind La Ferme de l’Espérance’s planting projects since 2021. What a pleasure to see the sheep and goats already grazing under the orchard planted in 2021 via PlantC.
The day ended with a cheese tasting of cheeses made by Justine and a visit to the goat shed, the milking parlor, and the laboratory. In short, a great time was had!
Hedge
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Planting / installation period2024
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Number of trees960
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Meters of hedge320 m
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Carbon33.36 T of carbon sequestered over 30 years
List of selected species
| Hornbeam | |
|---|---|
| Small-leaved Lime | |
| Willow | |
| Ash tree | |
| Hawthorn | |
| Elderberry | |
| Hazel |
