Tasmanian regenerative farmer Mathew Routley shares hospitality and insights into holistic farming, as well as cultural and natural history at his property on Tasmania’s east coast.
As Tasmanian businessman turned regenerative farmer Mathew Routley drives through the lush paddocks on Riversdale, his 1000-acre (405-hectare) farm midway between Launceston and Hobart on Tasmania’s east coast, it’s hard to imagine that when he bought the property in 2017, it was a dustbowl.
Mathew explains that after two centuries running sheep on the property at the confluence of the Swan and Wye Rivers with Bluemans Creek, the land had degraded through soil compaction and generations of pesticide and fertiliser use that reduced pasture diversity. These days, after almost a decade of natural sequence farming — a landscape regeneration method that relies on retaining water by controlling and enhancing natural water flows and allowing weeds to improve soil quality and add diversity to livestock fodder — the land is recovering and his Hereford herd with a core of 120 breeding cows is thriving. Every animal and plant — except perhaps gorse, which Mathew has eradicated without the use of chemicals — has a place on the farm.
Native wildlife is encouraged via fenced corridors between the river and a 200-acre (81-hectare) parcel of remnant black peppermint forest that’s protected by a conservation covenant at the back of the farm. Mathew has recently rewilded a pair of emus, from Bicheno sanctuary East Coast Nature world, which he hopes will breed on the farm. Emus were native in the region until the 1850s when they were hunted out. Even weeds, such as thistles and cape weed, have a home on his land. “They provide shade for groundcovers and the deep tap roots improve the biomatter in the soil so new species of grass can come into play to repair the landscape,”
Mathew explains. “Rotational grazing also helps. I divided the property into 19 paddocks and move the cattle through them to avoid grazing the land too hard. It also provides dietary diversity as each paddock offers something different in terms of pasture and nutritional supplements.” More diverse pastures mean the cattle are receiving more vitamins and minerals, are healthier and deliver better-tasting meat. The cattle are slaughtered and butchered locally and sold through subscription boxes.
Mathew has also fenced off the rivers to prevent livestock damaging the banks and polluting the pristine waterways, which are important spawning grounds for black brim, yellow-eyed mullet and trevally. The rivers flow into Moulting Lagoon, known to the Traditional Owners as Minna Reatta, and are an important breeding ground for black swans and Australian shelducks, as well as a pit stop for migratory birds from all over the world. “The Indigenous people relied on swan eggs as a protein source during the hard times of winter,” Mathew says. “They also established trading rights with neighbouring locals, so people have relied on this healthy environment for thousands of years and it’s important to ensure it stays that way.”
Shellfish including oysters, mussels, scallops and abalone growing in adjacent Great Oyster Bay have also been important food sources for millennia and, along with fish fresh from the river and beef from the backyard, are incorporated into local produce menus Mathew offers guests at the Swan River Sanctuary, an off -grid lodge where he welcomes visitors to the farm.
With the help of a mate and a local builder, Mathew built the lodge, a Scandinavian barn-style three-bedroom dwelling, during the shutdowns of COVID in early 2020. The double-storey building is perched above the Swan River with spectacular views across the river to Moulting Lagoon. The house is clad in yellow gum with macrocarpa internal walls. Huge picture windows frame the views and an abalone shell feature wall complements a big riverstone-surrounded fi replace in the open-plan living, dining and kitchen area.
Although it was originally his home, Mathew now lives in Bicheno and has turned the lodge into guest accommodation. There’s a wood-fi red sauna near the river with a deck and ladder access for refreshing dips between steam soaks. Fishing rods are provided as are kayaks for exploring upriver. Mathew also offers guided motorboat safaris, where he shares his extensive knowledge of the local cultural and natural history.
As a seventh-generation Tasmanian, Mathew has deep roots in the state. He studied accountancy and in the late 1990s and early 2000s, moved to London, where he worked for the BBC. The name Routley is synonymous with the rag trade in Tasmania and he returned to run the family business and later a retail chain called Yeltour (Routley spelt backwards), which he sold about 10 years ago. Along the way, he’s also owned a pub in Hobart and a chain of burger joints. In 2012, he headed overseas again, this time to Zanzibar the “spice island” off the coast of Tanzania in East Africa, where he lived with his family and ran his businesses remotely. This afforded him the opportunity to see up close how African wildlife safari companies operate in cohort with herds of grazing animals on the grasslands.
“In a way, that experience inspired me to try the same thing at Riversdale,” he says. “Holistic management of the land is about grazing animals for short periods followed by longer periods that allow recovery.” The land on which the farm and sanctuary stand was part of a grant to Scottish builder John Amos, who arrived with his brother, Adam, in 1821 on the same ship as one of the region’s earliest European settlers, George Meredith.
The Amos brothers left their mark on the Great Swanport district, building numerous Georgian residences that are still standing today. They include the Riversdale house and mill, which featured in Australian Country issue 28.1. “I feel very grateful to be the custodian of John’s land,” Mathew says. “Sharing it and its European and Aboriginal history with visitors seems a logical next step. While you never know what’s around the corner, I’m keen to see the farm reach its full potential. I’d also like to become more involved with men’s wellbeing, and Swan River Sanctuary may have a role in that.”
