Martin and Christine, on the same farm since day one.
Martin handles the field work — cutting, baling, repairs to whatever has decided to break that week. Christine runs the office, the deliveries diary and most of the customer calls. Twenty-plus years on the same patch means they know every field, every gateway and every drift in the prevailing wind.
It’s a small operation by design. We’d rather grow hay we’re proud of than chase a scale that means we can’t answer the phone ourselves.
Chalk Lane, Sidlesham — tucked between the Downs and the harbour.
The farm sits on the Manhood Peninsula, a few miles south of Chichester. To one side, the South Downs National Park; to the other, the salt marsh of Pagham and Chichester Harbour. The land is light, well-drained loam over chalk, with a southerly aspect that warms up early and dries down well after a wet spell.
It’s ideal hay country, and we don’t take it for granted. The fields are managed for soil health and species diversity as much as for yield — we believe the two go together long-term.
2003
Incorporated 2 June 2003 as Downs View Nurseries Ltd. Companies House #04783609.
20+
Over two decades of hay-making on the same ground — through dry summers, wet ones, and everything in between.
One job
We grow grass and we make hay from it. We don’t buy in, we don’t blend, and we don’t do anything we’re not good at.
Family-run
Same family, same farm — since June 2003.
Locally grown
Sussex pastures, Sussex bales — never bought in.
One operation
From sward to bale to load — all under one roof.
Customer-first
Same number you call gets the same person you get to know.
Want to come and see the farm?
Visitors welcome by appointment. Ring ahead so we’re on site.