Jane Shackleton, Co. Cavan

Jane Shackleton has been farming full-time for just five years, but is the third generation of women farming on the shores of Mullagh Lake, on the Cavan-Meath border.

At Lakeview Organic Farm, Shackleton tends to 70 hectares of farmland, raising organic Angus and Belted Galloway cattle. These short and stocky breeds are known for their hardiness to cold climes and have been specifically chosen to suit Jane’s farm.

The farm has over 40 hectares of woodland, planted 22 years ago featuring ash, oak, birch, larch, beech, Norway spruce and Scots pine. In areas where the tree canopy allows more light for grass to grow, the woodland is grazed by Jane’s cattle – a farming practice known as agro-forestry. 

“When the weather gets wet the cattle can come in here or in drought as well, the grass can still grow. It gives them access to a lot more diversity than just grassland, they have ivy, they have the leaves on the trees, and they can forage and eat whatever they want”, explains Jane.

As well as the woodland, the farm has a diverse mixture of grasslands including traditional hay meadows.

Jane is currently studying a PhD with University College Dublin and Devenish where her focus is multispecies swards. In layman terms, this means adding a range of grass species and herbs to pastures that provide nutrients for both the soil and for the animals.