What should I do with sheep fleeces?

[quanglewangle]

I have been offered some sheep fleeces in a week or two when a neighbour's sheep are sheared. It seems they have no real value at the moment.

What is best way to use them? Mulch? Compost? Hippy waistcoat?

[greenishfing]

I think you should do the same as the the Goods in the Good Life and spin it, weave it, dye it with nettles and make it into fluorescent green clothes!

Seriously though......anything but that!

[Snoop Puss]

https://businesswales.gov.wales/farm...ve%20to%20peat.

[quanglewangle]

I think you should do the same as the the Goods in the Good Life and spin it, weave it, dye it with nettles and make it into fluorescent green clothes!

With a handle like greenishfing I assume you dress like that all the time

[quanglewangle]

Thanks Snoop Puss Some useful suggestions there.

[Jungle Jane]

Would the smell of the wool attract foxes,would they want to dig away at it until they found sheep? A layer over the potato plants would be good so the sun doesn’t dry the soil so much as long as foxes don’t play around in it?

[ameno]

They make a fairly good mulch. It supresses weeds, retains moisture, and the slugs don't really like crossing them.
Composting them is an option, as they are high in nitrogen, but hair of any sort takes quite a long time to rot down.
You could also consider burying some in the bottom of a planting hole or trench. It will retain moisture (good for crops which need lots of water) and will slowly release nitrogen as they rot down (hair is almost entirely protein, which itself is very high in nitrogen, but as it takes a long time to rot it's very slow release).

[quanglewangle]

Would the smell of the wool attract foxes,would they want to dig away at it until they found sheep?

We have badgers. Foxes keep well away. In fox v badger match my money would be on the badger every time.

Of course, the badgers may well dig up fleeces just for the entertainment value.

[Snoop Puss]

We have badgers. Foxes keep well away. In fox v badger match my money would be on the badger every time.

Of course, the badgers may well dig up fleeces just for the entertainment value.

Badgers are formidable animals. Maybe they could knit blankets using their impressive claws!

[Penellype]

I put a whole fleece at the bottom of a hotbed filled with fresh horse manure. By the time I emptied the hotbed a year later the fleece had rotted down completely. You could also bury it to rot down - wool was traditionally one of the ingredients in a "bean trench" where a trench was dug and all the waste vegetable matter plus wool, paper etc was thrown in over the winter. The trench was then covered over with soil and beans grown on top.