Regenerative Farming Plett

Boschrivier Farm near Plettenberg Bay - Regenerative Farming in practice using the best of horses, Dexter cattle, pigs, chickens and bees to help restore the soil to a viable, sustainable, nourishing status.

Using organic, free-range principles as a basis, regenerative farming emphasises building biomass and indigenous diversity.

Improving biodiversity and soil this way can help mitigate climate change by sequestering carbon in the soil thus reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Dexter Cattle Stud

Dexter cattle are a small Irish breed of cattle known for their amicable nature. They are also dual–purpose for both beef and milk production.

The beef is of excellent quality and flavour and has good marbling in the meat. The milk is also of very good quality and and is known to have high butterfat and protein levels.

The breed is early maturing and are noted for their longevity up to 25yrs of age. The breed is also known to adapt to varying climatic conditions and recently a herd was discovered and captured in the Addo national park!

Dexter cows are extremely maternal and seldom have calving issues making them an ideal breed for homesteaders.

The Dexters are small and hardy, they are known as grazers and browsers and assist us in ridding pastures of alien vegetation. Our young herd is currently assisting us in creating pastures and ridding us of invasive alien vegetation.

Regenerative Agriculture

Our regenerative farming practices allow us to restore nutrients to the soil and increase soil productivity thus aiding in protecting the climate, water sources and biodiversity.

Our dexter cattle intensively graze areas by using a strip grazing method whereby the manure deposits are left as a means of compost and their cloven hooves aerate the soil and disperse the manure. The cattle are moved on to the next paddock and our chickens move in further depositing manure and thus enriching the soil. This pattern is repeated every 3 to 6 months so the pasture has enough time to recuperate.

Where the invasive alien vegetation has been browsed and foraged by both pigs and cattle, we seed with indigenous grazing grasses and plant indigenous trees for increased biodiversity. This provides shade and attracts a wider assortment of indigenous birds and insects.

Our bee hives are healthy, pollinating local crops and indigenous flora. We harvest honey annually leaving enough to keep the hive strong and healthy during winter.