Archive

Declan Scullion inherited his father's 15 acre farm in Glenravel in the Glens of Antrim in Northern Ireland a few years ago.   It was a traditional hill farm but Declan and his wife Sabrina decided to put their energies into agritourism.   They've renamed the farm Willow and Lore and Kathleen Carragher caught up with Declan on a busy weekend when they were hosting the Tenth...

Edinburgh's Lauriston agro-ecology farm, was set up by a co-operative five years ago and now claims to be Scotland's largest community supported agricultural enterprise.   It has a hundred members in its veg box scheme and provides over 200 allotments.   All the food produced stays within ten miles of the farm.    On a volunteering morning,  Kathleen Carragher caught up with one of the co-op's team.   A...

When a local community group began the restoration of an old corn mill, in County Fermanagh, it created interest in a number of old millstones long abandoned on several local farms.  Most of them were cracked or split and sometimes half submerged in bogs and streams. Local historian, Barney Devine, was intrigued by the millstones and has uncovered a forgotten industry in rural East Fermanagh. ...

An environmental group in Northern Ireland plans to demonstrate the benefits of nature friendly agriculture on a 90-acre hillside farm it has recently acquired in County Fermanagh.   The Ulster Wildlife Trust says Fedian Nature Reserve is a rare example of farmland largely free of chemical or fertiliser inputs.   Kathleen Carragher met the Trust's Environmental Farming Scheme Advisor, Giles Knight, to find out more about Fedian's...

Truffle cultivation is not something usually associated with Scotland but milder, wetter summers are providing exciting opportunities, according to Professor Paul Thomas. His company, Mycorrhizal Systems Ltd, has five sites under cultivation in Scotland and he has been harvesting the much prized and very expensive black truffles at another secret orchard site, near Edinburgh, for several years...

The Bramley apple growers of County Armagh, in Northern Ireland, are very proud of their geographical protected status or PGI as it is known.  So how has this year's growing season been for them and their ongoing battle with apple scab?   McIvors Cider and Bramley orchards cover a hundred acres.   Kathleen Carragher met owner, Greg MacNeice. A report for BBC Radio 4's Farming Today Broadcast September 2025   [audio...

An innovative experiment has been using drones to disperse native tree seeds across rocky moorland in the Scottish Highlands.  The project, funded by the University of Edinburgh and supported by the Scottish rewilding charity, Big Picture, seeded three hectares on a hillside landholding, on the Moidart peninsula, west of Fort William.  One year on and landowner, Ed Townley, says a sampling survey has revealed encouraging...

The Ardnamurchan and Morvern area, in the west coast Highlands of Scotland, is remote, with scattered villages and an ageing population. Several years ago, NHS Highland closed the area's only care home which prompted the setting up of a local charity, Urram, to help provide a range of health and social support services. Kathleen Carragher caught up with chairman, James Hilder and transport manager, Tracey...

When James Colston took on the management of Arisaig Farms in the west Highlands of Scotland, over 30 years ago, he never imagined he'd become obsessed by the wonderful world of a small endangered butterfly species, the Chequered Skipper. Its survival is just one benefit of decades of work, encouraging and protecting tree growth on the 10,000 acre hill farm.   The key to James's approach is...

Sarah Boden runs a farm on Eigg, in the Hebrides.  While currently planning major changes, she's determined to continue the environmental friendly initiatives she has introduced, as she told our reporter, Kathleen Carragher.   A report for BBC Radio 4's Farming Today Broadcast March 2025   [audio mp3="https://www.yamal.co.uk/cms/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Eigg-FT-fEATURE.mp3"][/audio]   Reporter:  Kathleen Carragher Producer:  John Deering...