Largest Oxford Down sale reaches £690

Oxford Down enthusiasts were out in force for the recent on-farm dispersal of James Hook’s Barley Park flock, the largest sale of the breed in more than 20 years.

Topping the sale was a £690 bid for a shearling ram by AI sire Applewick Altogether, which sold to JA Porter, buying for his Sundown flock at Dam Green Farm, Norwich, Norfolk.

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Next at £630 was a three-shear stock ram setting a new breed record for its age. Barley Park Promethious, a Horsley Flynn son went to Wales for the Monkstone flock run by JW and MFS Brown from Tenby, Pembrokeshire. 

A shearling ram by Monkstone Kiefer sold at £410 to Miss N Farmer for use on her Woodside flock, Aldermaston, Reading, while another £410 bid secured the top-priced ram lamb, a son of Horsley Plato, which went north to CR Lamb and Sons’ Fleetham flock,  Seahouses, Northumberland.

Topping the female section was a £510 shearling ewe by Horsley Plato selling to JR Williams,  Capel Seion, Aberystwyth, for the Greenlands flock. Two shearling ewes made £400, firstly another Plato daughter sold to Mr Williams and then the other by Monkstone Kiefer went to Mrs R Steele’s Weeton flock at, Weeton, Hull.

Flock ewes peaked at £310 for a two-shear by Sulgrave Claude and was purchased by TB Cole, Rockcrest Farm, Co Down.

Averages: 39 ewes, £160.77; 10 shearling ewes, £340; 12 ewe lambs, £202.50; six stock rams, £261.66; 11 shearling rams, £224.54; 10 ram lambs, £138.