FARM FOR SALE

This page will be regularly updated

To learn what happened the day after we created this page click here.

Farm for Sale. Like many businesses we are looking at ways to get through the recession, and have had the property valued. One of the valuations was for £650,000, but we are asking just £525,000 (see below), We would be interested to hear from you if you would like to come and have a look. Either contact us directly or through John Francis Estate agents. (Follow links to Carmarthen and scroll down to Glyn-Coch. Estate agents picture gallery click here)

As you are looking at our website, I assume that you will have seen it before and know a little about us, and what we have been doing here. If not, look at the rest of this page, and then follow links from our home page to learn more.

The farm is 27 acres. 10 acres is in grass, and currently supports a flock of about 20 rare Norfolk Horn ewes and their lambs. Surplus grass is turned into small bale hay and sold to local horse owners. Previously the land has been part of a dairy farm, and 100 years ago the area was known for growing wheat. The soil is a productive clay loam overlying shale and most is gently sloped

The remaining 17 acres is in a farm woodland scheme. The trees are mixed, mainly native hardwoods, planted in 1998, and have been growing very well. Some of the poplars are already approaching 50 ft tall, though oaks are more like 10ft. The trees are planted in a shelter belt around the perimeter of the holding, and so, are accessible via the grass paddocks and the mown path which forms our circular woodland walk.

The woodland has glades running through it, and three small ponds, and is haven for wildlife with several rare plants, over 230 species of moths and 60 species of birds, together with many other plants and animals. We were short listed for the 2005 Woods for Wales competition run by the Forestry Commission, and ended up in fourth place. We run a light trap for the Rothamsted Insect Survey (the longest running scientific survey of moths in the UK) and have identified over 230 species here. We are regularly in the top 20 sites in the UK for moth diversity.

The buildings are all grouped round a traditional farmyard and comprise a three bedroom house, a couple of stone barns, a 1935 Nissen hut and a 1970 dairy unit including milking bail, cubicle house and silage barn.

There are signs that the site may have been occupied two millennia ago. The County Archeologists has identified a 'Roman Road' here and the botanical diversity of the adjoining hedge would go some way to support this. The oldest existing building may have been built as early as 1600 and appears to have had several phases of use. First, possibly as a water powered corn mill, then as a cow shed, and now it is used as our pottery. The building we use as a shop was probably built in 1800.

Information about the house seems a little more confusing. Some of the walls suggest that it is older then the shop, but it is shown on maps as a roofless building later then that. (This may have been a technical wheeze to reduce tax liabilities.) In the late 19th century it appears to have been a substantial square shaped house with an adjoining barn. However by 1900 the 'back half of the house had become disused, and was finally demolished soon after the First World War. A single story outhouse replaced it, and this became incorporated into the house in the early 1970s. During the period 1995 to 2000 several ceilings were replaced and some re-plastering done. When we moved in in 2000 we completely replaced all the wiring, converted a tiny bedroom into a toilet and shower room, and double glazed most of the windows. We have also re-floored the kitchen and replaced the kitchen units. When doing this we discovered a beautiful traditional fireplace above the Rayburn, and if we stay here, the next bit of kitchen improvement will be to expose this once more!

The sheep graze 1 acre paddocks The old silage barn has been converted to lose boxes which provide comfortable lambing pens, and are suitable for horses.

One of the paddocks is used as a 5 pitch certificated site in summer. (We have bookings through 'till August). Pottery activities contribute to our income

Our shop is in this traditional stone barn. The woodland is an important attraction for tourists and school parties

The 12 year old trees are doing well, and prunings provide both firewood and fencing stakes.

In 10 years of taking pictures to promote the business I have very few pictures of the house, but I hope that these give you an idea. The taller part has two reception rooms downstairs and two bedrooms and the toilet/ shower room upstais. The middle section has a large double bedroom, and library (probably otherwise an en-suite toilet/shower room) upstairs, a large kitchen, a utility room, bathroom, and a single bedroom/office downstairs. The little extension is a farm office. To the extreme left of the picture is a conservatory which is the next restoration project, but does have the advantage of a 30 amp power supply!

Because of the recession it makes good business sense to review our options and, as currently set up we make most of our income from crafts, we need to consider finding a smaller property. Personally I must recognise that I am approaching retirement age, and that although on the good days I work as fast as ever, on the bad days I am slower, and minor injuries take much longer to heal. All except one of our children have their own families and careers to think of, so we have a tiny labour force of just one.

After 10 years I am beginning to open up bits of wildlife habitat, and create access that has been a dream for so long. The camp site is really taking off, with old friends beginning to return year after year, and we have nearly cracked the rare breed sheep game. And surrounded by our own woodland, we live in our own little island kingdom, sheltered from the climatic and man-made storms, that ordinary mortals suffer. While here we can see 400 years of history, and if we look up to the top of the hill to the little Llangynin Church we can see evidence of the way the early Christians took over pagan sites almost 2000 years ago. Our neighbours live below Llangynin church in Grove Farm which has its own sheltered lake and which may well have been a sacred grove.

Tonight, as I check the ewes, I will probably hear otters in our pond and winter flocks of blackbirds, fieldfares and redwings settling down for the night, not to mention the Robins, Wrens, Tits, Finches, and Corvids Perhaps the starlings will put on a mass flying display for me, and who knows what more. Later when I take the dogs for their late evening walk I will hear tawny owls, barn owls, and redwings. I may even encounter a badger, fox otter or Roe deer. Tomorrow there will be the song birds practicing their spring songs, the occasional hammering of our greater spotted woodpeckers, the excitement of seeing what has flown into the moth trap and later the thrilling flight of the Buzzards and maybe even a red Kite.

And this is only early February. I will be sorry to leave, but very glad to have been here.

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The day after we created this page

The post man brought us a nice letter to say that we had just been short-listed for a national Farm Award, (Beautiful Farms) sponsored by the Farm Business Magazine and New Holland Agriculture. We are invited to attend a function on the House of Lords Terrace on 10th March to find out who had won. To see what swung the judges see our entry.

....we went and....

We got a Commended Certificate

and were the highest placed farm from Wales. (I bet farmers from The Beacons , The Gower, Pembs Coast, and Snowdonia, are jealous!) To see the official report go to the Farm Business Magazine website. We were also gratified by the fact that we entered the 'small farms' class which was for units up to 10 times the size of Glyn-Coch, and other farms represented at the award ceremony were 100 times our size. The ceremony was great fun - we had a lovely day - and were amazed to find that other competitors were from Minehead, and their farm is only about a mile or two from a couple of the first farms I worked on. Not only that , but their children went to school with my nieces! Just shows, if you farm near the Bristol Channel you cannot fail, but to be forever concerned about wildlife!

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Local Estate Agents

They would see this site as a small rural property with a good 3 bed house, 2 stone barns with some potential, 1970s steel barns with lose boxes, part prepared manege area with 10 acres of good grazing divided into even sized paddocks, 17 acres of woodland and a small campsite all ring fenced.

The property is within 1 mile of the A40/M4 corridor and within 7 miles of the coast 2 National Parks an area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and three Irish ferry ports can be reached within one hour as can Swansea (and Neath/Port Talbot), Haverfordwest and Milford Haven. Carmarthen is only 15 minutes away and Llanelli about 40 minutes. Local shops and primary schools in St Clears about 1 mile away, and secondary schools in Whitland (7 miles) and Carmarthen (10miles)

Beyond that you should think about the more nebulous things like the craft tradition of the site, the wildlife, the beauty etc. described on our other web pages and on downloads from elsewhere on this page

At present Glyn-Coch is on sale with John Francis whose estimate of value seemed nearer what we expected, and, of course, my Grand Father worked for them, before I was born!

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