Hobby farm charm

Dreaming of a good life keeping a few chickens, pigs, sheep or goats? Ruth Wood explains the basics of setting up a smallholding in France

- Ruth Wood

Smallholdings – ouf ! What a big topic they are, especially if you’re setting one up in a foreign country. We can’t possibly give you chapter and verse on animal husbandry in four pages. But if you are one of the many Brits who longs to move to France and keep a few animals, here are some key points to get you started.

FINDING THE LAND

Rural land is comparatively cheap in France, making it the perfect place to set up a smallholding. If you are hoping to grow fruit and vegetables too, you’ll obviously want to study the soil – is it yielding loam or unforgiving clay? – and ask the locals about the growing season and year-round climate, as it’s not as simple as warmer weather the further south you go.

The biggest mistake people make is underestimating how much space they’ll need, says Sven Wrenn, a Frenchman who studied and worked in agriculture in the UK before moving back to France. He and his wife Katie run Elévage Jolivet, a smallholding and holiday destination in Creuse that offers smallholding courses and farm holidays.

“We massively miscalculated the land we’d need when we moved from Hampshire where it rains all year round, to here in the Limousin where it’s much drier,” he admitted. “It’s better to start with a bit too much room than not enough and have to sell stock that you’ve become emotionally attached to.”

Livestock and chickens hate to be alone and are happiest in groups of at least three, and ideally five or more. Regularly rotating them around different parcels of land also protects biodiversity and the soil, while preventing disease build-up. So when looking for a potential smallholding in France, make sure you will have space to support a flock, however small.