What is a Herbal Ley??

When I first read the words ‘Herbal Ley’ I immediately had a picture of wild flowers and herbs, I thought, at first, it would be a difficult thing to establish as there was really little written about herbal leys.

But, I wanted paddocks that had wild flowers and enough food to sustain our animals with out buying expensive feed.

Who wouldn’t?

Then I kept seeing: plant a herbal ley in my search for heirloom vegetables, but do you think I could actually find anything on exactly what a herbal ley was….

Well, yes and no to that question:)

Yes, I could find a lot of references to a herbal ley , but nothing from a to z if you like.

So, I have assembled all the information I could find, as it just makes sense to me to let nature provide the food for the animals.

So, here we go all you patient readers and fellow gardeners:

What is a Herbal Ley?

A herbal ley is defined by some experts as a thickly planted almost a wild, jungle like area. Which has a wide variety of beneficial plants, that include:

• Plant’s that fix nitrogen
• Plants that are drought tolerant
• Plants that are tolerant of low moisture levels
• Plants that have a high mineral content

With a herbal ley in each paddock, you have the ability to provide a huge variety of plants in one area, which will raise healthy animals and enrich your soils at the same time.

And in this variety you can select plants that will provide all the vitamin and mineral your stock needs and so much more.

A Little History

Herbal leys are not new, they go back to the 1940’s and 1950’s. Sir George Stapleton and Lady Eve Haughley were two famous advocates of the natural approach to raising stock on herbal leys. They, both had individual success of running large scale dairy farms on herbal leys in the United Kingdom.

Another mastermind who extensively used herbal leys was Newman Turner, who described his use of herbal leys, 50 or so years ago as ‘ his manure merchant, my food manufacturer and my vet all in one’

And if that isn’t enough to convince you, may be a little back ground on Newman Turner’s and his living proof at the time, that herbal leys work.

Newman Turner recorded his story and success in a book called
‘Fertility Pastures:Herbal Leys As The Basis of Soil Fertility. (1955)’
It is a worthwhile read for those of us, who want to replicate what Newman started all those years ago.

Newman, was an organic dairy farmer, who’s ideas of using herbs and plants to raise stock made him the laughing stock of the farming community.

That community laughed even louder, when Newman brought a run down and almost derelict farm called ‘Goose Green Farm’ at the end of World War two.

But, with a herbal ley mix in every paddock, Newman, had the last laugh and the longest. In just two years, the land responded to the herbal leys and blossomed, so did his dairy cows.

In this short period of time Newman had completely turned a useless piece of land around and was sustaining record crops and prize winning dairy cows and his milk production was unmatched.

Benefits of A Herbal Ley

Turner’s herbal ley mix became famous and he, himself reported than when the herbal ley had been in situ for at least four years, it had developed an extensive deep rooted system that the cows would fight over!!

Turner’s successful mix included: Timothy, orchard grass, meadow fescue and perennial rye grass and had a mixture of herbs including: chicory, yarrow, plantain, sheep’s burnet and sheep’s parsley.

The herbs were included, due to their deep root systems and thus their ability to draw up to the surface the minerals that were needed to maintain healthy soil.

So, Turner used a herbal ley for both feeding his animals and for doing his soil management. He restored the mineral balance to a neglected area by using different types of root depth and he didn’t use ANY lime or chemical fertilisers.

By utilising the different depths of the roots systems in different plants, Turner was able to improve his land beyond the local farmer’s imagination.

His herbal leys, prevented soil erosion, kept water from evaporating and this keeping the soil moist at a deep level for longer, attracted beneficial insects and bees. (Which is exactly what is needed today with water being in short supply)

And all Turner was doing was providing what Mother Nature intended, and to top it all, after three years, the whole herbal ley was mown down and then dug over by disc harrow or hand. It was done this way as Turner believed a plough would turn the soil too deep and disrupt the soil eco-system in the tops soil too much.

What to Plant for Your Herbal Ley.

Herbs to consider:

Alfalfa: High protein feed

Burnet: Seems to be added to may herbal ley mixes but I could not find much for its benefits for animals

Caraway: Remedy for colic, loss of appetite, digestive disorders and a wormer.

Calendula: Otherwise known as ‘Marigold’ and it has a calming effect

Chicory: Several varieties available, the common one used a fodder is a great wormer

Chives: Helps attract bees and used in curing fungal infections

Dandelion:High in Iron, calcium and Vitamin D

Dill: Similar to Caraway

Echinacea: Helps boost immune system and helps fight infections

Fennel: Helps get rid of fleas

Fenugreek: Wonderful for ‘milking’ mothers, it helps enrich the quality of the milk.

Garlic: This is a great natural ‘drench’ or wormer. It’s also good for the digestive system.

Hyssop: As Garlic, a great wormer and helps with urinary problems

Lemon Balm: Anti Bacterial, anti viral and repels mosquitos

Marjoram: Good anti viral

Mustard: Helps enrich the soil bacteria and fungi, makes a great green manure.

Nasturtium: Helps appetite and high in iron, lots of mineral salts

Nettles: WOW!! These are rich in so many nutrients and to think we call them a weed!! they provide: Iron, calcium, vitamin A & C, lots of mineral salts.

Pennyroyal: A lot of herbal leys contain this but, Caution can cause abortions in pregnant animals and humans

Rosemary: Helps with appetite as it assists digestion.

Sage: Great for cleaning the blood and removing toxins

Sheep’s Parsley: High in iron

Sorrel: High in Iron

Thyme: Another natural wormer and it also acts like an anti- biotic, due to its high anti fungal properties.

Yarrow: Eliminates toxins and increases the activity of other herbs

Grasses To Consider:

Perennial Rye
White and Red clovers
Tall Fescue
Meadow Fescue
Kidney Vetch
Lucerne
Italian Rye
Cocksfoot
Rough stalked meadow grass
Timothy
Phalaris
Hybrid Rye
Brown Fog

Then there are the beets you can include: turnips etc

Who would want to spend money on expensive feed and chemicals, just think how much you would save..a small investment in organic seed, that will last three years before you have to reseed, from the seed you saved from the herbal ley. That’s if you are wise and use heirloom varieties, if not, a small investment will last another three years.

The animals know whats good for them and what cures them, how do you think people knew what to eat and what not to?? They studied the behaviour of the animals around them. Clever HU

Seek out organic herbal ley mixes or make your own up. Thats the beauty of a herbal ley, experiment.

I hope this helps you as it has me and my animals.

Related posts:

1. What Do Minerals and Trace Elements Do? Part 2 In part one of What Do Minerals and Trace Elements...