Farming & Countryside
A delicate balance is maintained on the Mulgrave Estate between ensuring that our countryside management meets the needs of modern agricultural production and retaining Mulgrave’s unique historical character and landscape. This is achieved by utilising a partnership approach with the tenant farmers on the Estate.
There are around fifty holdings on the Mulgrave Estate which produce beef, sheep, arable and dairy products. This produce is available locally in butcher’s shops and delicatessens and nationally as several farms on the Estate supply high quality beef through marketing groups such as Dovecote Park.
Farming remains the most significant activity in terms of land area, with the majority of land let on traditional tenancies. In many cases, the same family has farmed the land for generations.
Through careful management, the Estate can boast a healthy population of many species that are considered rare or endangered – including Skylarks, Curlew, Lapwing and Barn Owls.
The Estate has entered several Countryside Stewardship (CS) schemes across the Home Farm. This has resulted in over 230 acres of winter bird food; pollen mixes and arable options being planted to provide food and nectar for farmland birds and invertebrates. In conjunction with Natural England and Rural Payments Agency we have improved the infrastructure across the Home Farm too with reinstating 100km of stock fencing, installing 276 gates, 104 water troughs and repaired 4,500m of drystone wall. The Higher Tier CS woodland scheme includes the Humphry Repton landscape around Mulgrave Castle, a Registered Park & Garden and area of high visual importance.
Approximately 2,300 acres are
Farmed in hand by the Normanby family
Approximately 2,300 acres are farmed in hand by the Normanby family, combining efficient food production with the conservation of habitat and wildlife. There is a strong tradition of good hedgerow and tree management across the Estate, with regular new planting, restoration and hedge-management taking place.
Working with the North York Moors National Park Authority, nearly 6,000 meters of new hedgerow at Kettleness has been planted since 2017, which has enhanced the valued landscape and wildlife corridor on the coastal part of the Estate.
