Donna and Mike Evans purchased South Harbour Farm in 2002 with no livestock, and relied on income from road construction work during the summer seasons to pay expenses. Over the next few years they restocked the farm, purchasing cull stock from a number of West Falkland farms. South Harbour is predominately dry sheep ground and they struggled to successfully breed Merino sheep for fine wool in that area. Spring Point farm became available for purchase in 2009 and with the superior grazing available at Spring Point, Donna and Mike now have their ewe flock and replacements based there, while South Harbour is run as a dry flock unit which suits the quality of grazing available in that area of the Falklands.
In an effort to fast track the introduction of new genetics, they replaced natural mating with a natural heat cervical AI (Artificial Insemination) program. This has been ongoing since 2010, resulting in dramatic improvements in micron and lambing percentages. Over the last couple of years, they have begun the change-over from the traditional midsummer shearing of the ewes to pre-lamb shearing which will hopefully result in stronger fibre strength, along with improved stock survival rates.
In accordance with their lifestyle goals, Donna and Mike have raised 3 grown up sons and a teenage daughter who have all enjoyed the freedoms that come with a rural upbringing and all have a good sound understanding of farming and environmental issues. They currently have about 10 percent of their farmland set aside for habitat restoration and have begun introducing native plants back into these areas, with tussac and blue grass being the easiest to establish in the short term. These areas are coastal by nature which also has the added benefit of denying sheep access to tidal reefs which appear at low water, resulting in the majority of sheep losses.
Donna and Mike take entries to the annual Ram and Fleece Show and the RBA show and have had prizes for all categories of stock and fleeces. They also find it an interesting bench marking exercise to see where their product fits alongside their fellow farmers.
They enjoy the rural lifestyle and along with their sheep, have a few head of cattle, horses, reindeer and domestic fowl.