Visit to The Ciliau with Hay Farm Cluster
Traditional Hereford cattle provide the income and conservation grazing at Ciliau
Thursday 16 October 2025
The Ciliau is a 200 acre Welsh hill farm, which has been farmed in the traditional way for hundreds of years. The Ciliau also has one of the most ancient and best-preserved houses in Wales, thanks, in no small part, to the very sensitive approach of the current owner, Roger Capps. Roger welcomed WVW members into the house and we warmed ourselves in front of the enormous open fire while we heard a bit about the history of the house.
The beautiful 16th century farmhouse at Ciliau
After coffee, cookies and flapjack (kindly provided by Heloise & Louise) we walked the Ciliau lands, visting the ancient woodland, some of some of the farm’s 30 small meadows, meeting incredible veteran trees and the unspoilt Rhos pasture, (known as fen meadows in England). Although too late in the year to see some of the rarities of the Rhos pasture (Petty Whin, Dyer’s Greenweed, Whorled Caraway and Marsh Valerian are all recorded here, along with Snipe, Curlew and Marsh fritillary butterfly) we enjoyed the Purple moor grass, sedges and rushes of this beautiful, wet, wild, tussocky grassland. It provided a glimpse into what much of the lowlands would look like without intensive drainage and fertiliser. It was very interesting to hear how important the abundant grasses and sedges of the Rhos pasture are this year for winter grazing, after the summer of drought which has left many meadows with too little grass to overwinter animals on. Changes to land drainage to re-enable soil water storage on many upland farms could recreate many wilder and rare habitats, and provide insurance against droughts, through their provision of winter forage.
Ecologist Ray Woods describing the Rhos pasture at Ciliau
We were lucky to have Ray Woods with us for the walk. Ray is an experienced ecologist who has known the Ciliau for many years and gave us a fascinating insight into the site with a particular focus on the fungi.
We all greatly enjoyed walking the pastures and meadows, surrounded by ancient oaks. We finished the walk by the Wye in a beautiful and diverse meadow with extensive river frontage, which greatly adds to its ecological interest. Ciliau is part of a project creating a wildlife corridor from the banks of the River Wye to Garth.
This visit was the first collaboration between Wye Valley Wilding and the Hay Farm Cluster. We had attendees from both groups which lead to many interesting discussions around grazing, wilding in general, sustainable farming approaches and the potential for direct sales to support nature recovery and rewilding. We look forward to more Wye Valley Wilding and the Hay Farm Cluster events in future.
