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GreatBritish1
  • 6/19/2025
Landward episode 12 2025
Transcript
00:00The grass is lush and green. Perfect summer pasture for this load. Welcome to Lambert.
00:30Hello from the Howe of Afford in Aberdeenshire, an area of rolling farmland synonymous with the Aberdeen Angus breed.
00:37In a moment I'll be meeting a family keeping that connection alive by producing some show-stopping cattle.
00:44But first, here's what else is coming up.
00:47Anne meets the cream of dairy cows.
00:50Do I have to dine it in one?
00:52Please.
00:53Rosie gets some flowers.
00:56Ten thousand beds!
00:57And what happens when a career in farming is over?
01:01Twelve! Twelve thousand! I'll feed it now!
01:03Cammie goes to a ripe.
01:11First up, for any livestock farmer, the pinnacle of achievement is winning the breed champion at the Royal Highland Show.
01:18But what's the secret of finding that success?
01:21The Taunley herd of Aberdeen Angus are well known throughout the country for getting top sale prices and winning prizes.
01:32And maybe it's no coincidence that just two miles from here is where the native black cattle originated 200 years ago.
01:45Nowadays, Mark Wattie is the third generation of his family working with the breed.
01:50I've had the Angus for over 30 years.
01:55My grand and dad started the herd in 1993.
02:00We've just been building up since then.
02:02And you've been pretty successful too, right?
02:03Yeah, we've done very well.
02:05The last few years, we won the Royal Highland Show last year with a heifer.
02:09Who do we have here?
02:10This is Taunley Fiona.
02:11Not only did Fiona win her class, she went on to take the overall Aberdeen Angus champion prize, the best animal of her breed.
02:22How big a deal was that for you, all the work you put in, and also emotionally as well?
02:27Yeah, it was massive for me.
02:29I knew she was a good one right from the start, you know?
02:31She was a lovely animal.
02:32I've aimed to do it since I was a little boy, winning the Aberdeen Angus breed championship at the Highland, and we've finally done it.
02:38You've worked hard, you're flying at the moment, what's the secret of that success?
02:43My granda always said, buy an average cow with a good heifer calf at foot, and we've always worked on that philosophy.
02:50People just want these pretty big cows, and we're wee like, just this wee, maybe run to the cow, but look at the cow on it.
02:57Growing up, I've always been obsessed with looking at genetics and pedigrees, and you kind of get them to click together,
03:03and that's what can make you something that wins the Highland Show.
03:08But Mark won't have the chance to repeat his win at their Highland Show this year.
03:15And that's because his dad is the judge.
03:19Princess the yearling heifer is going to show me what Neil Wattie's looking for.
03:23As a pedigree animal, they have to have a really good head, and she's a great example of the breed.
03:32She's big, fluffy, 10 to 2 lugs, I would say.
03:35Nice face, nice length of face, and she's a very good wide muzzle, and that's very important.
03:40And I just, you know, she's just got a wee bit of spark about her.
03:43So a bonny face is good.
03:44Bonny face it is.
03:45Good faces, and everything is good.
03:47And then from the face, from the head, the length of the animal is very important, the width of the animal is very important.
03:53A good long body with quite a wide back, all from the shoulder right to the end.
03:58And if you look at her, you know, she's got quite a, you can see that, she's got a good width of back and a level wide top.
04:05You know, because that's where all the good cuts of meat come from.
04:08The one thing about it as well, of course, it's not just about how they look and how they stand and behave themselves.
04:12Yes, I know.
04:13The princesses, now and again, but the walking bit's important as well.
04:17Yeah, it is.
04:18You know, because when you're judging, you have your initial look, and then you have a close-up examination,
04:23and then the last bit is to see them walking away from you, and it's very important.
04:27She walks right.
04:29So being the head judge is like, I mean, it's a brilliant honour, but a lot of pressure on you.
04:33Oh, the audience can be quite critical at times, which I probably have been myself in the past.
04:38So you're setting yourself up for criticism, but hey, it's all part of it.
04:43I just have to go with what I like.
04:47It's good to be asked, and it's a good honour for our hair.
04:50And Princess, she's not going, is she?
04:52No, no, obviously not, but she'll go out to some of the summer shows locally in Aberdeenshire.
04:57And then she's due to be sold.
04:59There's a special sale of females in November.
05:02Well, we'll catch up with you at the Highland Show, and when all the pressures are on you, all the best.
05:08And she is absolutely beautiful.
05:10Thanks very much, Sam.
05:16Here in Afford, it's a wee bit blowy, and light rain is forecast in about 31 minutes.
05:22But we didn't always have the forecast at our fingertips.
05:25Weather presenter Chris Blanchett is heading to where it all began.
05:29Tucked away in the rolling hills of Dumfries and Galloway sits one of our most overlooked scientific outposts.
05:38For me, this is hallowed ground.
05:40In this quiet corner of the Scottish countryside is where a big idea was born.
05:45Instead of superstition of folklore, maybe we could use mass to predict the weather.
05:51The idea wasn't just groundbreaking, it was revolutionary.
05:53This is Eskdell Muir Observatory, and the Met Office started collecting information here at the start of the 20th century.
06:04Pete Harvey is the current site manager.
06:06And why did they choose to build the observatory here?
06:11It's a very interesting story, Chris, actually, because with the electrification of the tramway in London,
06:17the artificial electricity was starting to interfere with the readings from Kew Observatory.
06:24So, with a government grant in hand of £10,000, scientists and the stakeholders sat down with a railway map of the time
06:34and traced a coin, believed to be a sixpence, and basically the only place they could find that didn't overlap the coin with a railway, a city, any kind of major industry, was here.
06:50This is a spot.
06:51This is the spot.
06:52And it was the place mathematician and physicist, Lewis Fry Richardson, came to as superintendent in 1913.
07:01It was here, in these wonderful, serene surroundings, that he developed his numerical weather prediction
07:09and gave himself the legend of being the father of modern weather forecasting.
07:13It was his slide rule calculations and mathematical methods which form the basis of the computer-generated models we use today.
07:24And the observations recorded here at Eskdelmuir continue to be relied on.
07:29And it's still really important today.
07:31It is very important today, yes.
07:33Because we are remote, because we are away from any kind of development, major roads, heavy industry,
07:40that it provides that pure atmosphere for the work that we do here.
07:46The observatory doesn't just look at weather.
07:48There are also geologists base here who monitor the invisible forces of nature,
07:53anything from the Earth's magnetic field to tremors on the other side of the planet.
07:58Hi, Rob. Great to meet you.
07:59Hi. Nice to meet you as well.
08:01This looks interesting.
08:02Yeah.
08:02Do you want to come in?
08:02We'll take a look, yeah?
08:03Sure.
08:05Rob Lyon works here for the British Geological Survey,
08:08who co-managed the facility with the Met Office.
08:13It's like a bunker, Rob.
08:14Yeah, it is a little bit.
08:15It's nice and toasty warm, though.
08:17Yeah, it keeps the temperature controlled for the equipment
08:19so that everything stays at the same temperatures throughout the year.
08:25Wow, look at this.
08:27We are in the underground at Eskdelmuir where we keep our magnetometers.
08:31What is a magnetometer?
08:32So, fundamentally, a magnetometer is a way of measuring the Earth's magnetic field
08:36and they can measure it both the strength of the field
08:39and also the direction of the field
08:40and we use that data to help inform our research
08:44into space weather in the Earth's magnetic field.
08:47Any time you have a piece of software that does navigation,
08:50like in your phone,
08:51it will be using a little bit of that data
08:53churned through the world magnetic model
08:56to help determine what direction you're pointing in.
08:59And what other equipment have you got here?
09:02We have seismometers from the BGS
09:04that measure basically earthquakes and tremors in the ground.
09:09Eskdelmuir also provides information
09:11on the effects of extraterrestrial forces on the Earth,
09:15looking out for magnetic storms,
09:17the results of solar activity.
09:19We pick up the storm when it arrives at the Earth
09:23and that is when we start to see the aurora borealis.
09:27And you monitor the event, but also look to the impacts caused by it as well.
09:32Yeah, we can look at the strength of the magnetic field change here
09:37from our equipment
09:38and that has impacts on a lot of our technology.
09:42So, things like the power grid, navigation,
09:46these are all things that rely on systems
09:48that can be affected by geomagnetic storms.
09:50So, by looking at the effects that we see
09:53and by looking at the strength of the field changes,
09:57we can help predict in the future
09:59what different storms can do to different technologies.
10:03So, while Eskdelmuir's place in history is secure,
10:06judging by the work of Rob and Pete,
10:08it's got a long future ahead of it too.
10:10This unassuming part of the Scottish countryside
10:15is a remote spot with a global reach
10:17from those early pioneering weather forecasts
10:20to tracking solar storms,
10:22all in an effort to monitor
10:23and better understand the world around us.
10:26It's lovely to see wildflowers at the moment,
10:37but the UK cutflowers market
10:39is dominated by foreign imports.
10:43Rosie's in Conros now,
10:44meeting a farmer who's diversified
10:46into homegrown blooms.
10:53At Wester Upper Urquhart Farm,
10:56there's a lot going on.
10:58It's a dairy farm.
10:59They also keep sheep
11:00and grow crops.
11:03This is the newest one,
11:05peonies.
11:08But today, the clock's ticking.
11:12It's all hands on deck
11:14to get this crop harvested.
11:20Because the race is on
11:22to gather thousands of them,
11:24all ready to cut right now.
11:27These bursting blooms
11:28don't wait for anyone.
11:30Alex, how are you doing?
11:32Hi there, lovely to meet you.
11:34Good to meet you too.
11:35Not even for the farmer
11:36behind this idea,
11:38Alex Nelson.
11:40It's all looking incredibly busy.
11:42We are really busy.
11:43The flowers have come on
11:44to a really good stage
11:45and we're picking a lot of flowers today.
11:47We've got a big team.
11:47Well, the good news is
11:48I am here to assist.
11:50Brilliant.
11:51How can I help?
11:51Here you go.
11:52You'll need a pair of these.
11:54Shall we get going?
11:55Let's get cracking.
11:56Supermarkets will take
11:57most of these flowers
11:58and they demand
11:59particular specifications.
12:03What we're looking for
12:05is a softness to the bud.
12:06So here's one that's ready.
12:08It's got a nice softness,
12:10a bit of bounce,
12:11a bit of sponge.
12:12If it's too hard
12:13and it's got that feeling
12:14like there's a stone inside it,
12:16then they'll never open in the vase.
12:18And if it's too soft,
12:19then it won't last long enough
12:20in cold store to get to the shops.
12:23We're picking a 50 centimetre speck
12:25so it needs to be really nice and long,
12:27which is about generally
12:29the length of your arm.
12:32So what do you think about this one then?
12:33Shall I have a go at that one?
12:34Yeah, this is going to be a good one.
12:35Yep, it's got a good movement in it.
12:37Okay, so all the way...
12:38Down to 50.
12:39Right there?
12:40Yeah.
12:40Brilliant.
12:41There we go.
12:42Lovely.
12:42Nice.
12:43Perfect.
12:47Robust enough to withstand
12:49our Scottish climate,
12:51each flower has to be carefully handpicked
12:53at exactly the right time.
12:57Most people don't realise
12:58what all goes into the flowers
12:59that are at the supermarket door.
13:00Because they come at different stages,
13:02so like there's one that's maybe
13:04another three or four days away,
13:06this one's maybe in a couple of days,
13:08so you can't pick them all at once
13:09because these definitely won't open in the vase.
13:12Each row will have multiple harvests
13:15over seven to ten days.
13:18Alex first decided to get into cut flowers
13:21during lockdown in 2020,
13:23and it slotted perfectly into the farm calendar.
13:26The peonies sort of started out with me looking for something that was just mine within the family business,
13:34that was sort of my idea, and I followed it through.
13:37And how many years has it taken you to get to this stage?
13:41The first year we put in the first plot of them and you can't pick them until your second year of growth.
13:47And this is our fourth harvest,
13:49so we're starting to really have a lot of stems to cut.
13:51And they're so time sensitive that when they come,
13:54when they're ready, we've just got to crack on
13:56and try and get as much off the field as possible.
13:57Once picked, they're loaded into potato boxes
14:03and sent to be sorted.
14:07First of all, we're checking that we've picked the right length.
14:14And we're also checking under here for any rot, which this year there's very little.
14:17We're then taking off usually about three sets of leaves.
14:21So you've got still some nice foliage on the plant, five stems to a bunch.
14:25The packer will cut the ends and they'll put them into water.
14:27And as soon as you place them into water, the flower activates and it starts to open the bud
14:31and then give somebody in their home seven to ten days of lovely peonies in a vase.
14:36And once the peonies do bloom, they are truly magnificent.
14:42This is an early variety of ours and I've allowed these to bloom in water.
14:46They're looking just lovely. This is them at just their peak, beautiful.
14:50And it's also fantastic in showing people peonies
14:53and also showing them that they're grown in Scotland and that we can do it really well.
15:01Earlier on, I found out what it means to take top prize for beef cattle at the Royal Highland Show.
15:08But for dairy farmers, the creme de la creme for their milk is the champion rosette.
15:13Anne's in South Lanarkshire now, meeting last year's winners.
15:17Anne's in South Lanarkshire now, meeting last year's winners.
15:20Just outside of Straven is Netherlethem Farm.
15:23It may be a small dairy farm where a herd of 40 cows are milked in a robotic milking system,
15:30but it's certainly punching well above its weight.
15:36Not only are these girls absolutely gorgeous, they could win a rosette
15:40for that alone. But the milk that they produce has been judged to be the cream of the crop.
15:49At the 2024 Highland Show, this dairy beat around 60 other producers to take home the title of
15:56Scottish milk champion. But what exactly does rosette-winning milk taste like?
16:03Farmer Alec Fleming can let me try. Thank you very much.
16:09There you go. Try that. Do I have to down it in one?
16:12Please. Hope you enjoy.
16:18Oh wow, that's lovely. That's really creamy. I can see why they're prize winners.
16:23Oh hopefully. Shall we go and meet them? Yes, let's do.
16:26Alex puts his success down to the breed. These are Jersey cows and he says their milk is something
16:37special. But what sets it apart? The Jerseys were approximately 6% butterfat, which is about 25%
16:46more than like a Holstein or an Ayrshire possibly. They have 20% more protein, 20% more calcium.
16:54So that's all gone towards your winning formula then, I guess. What was the feedback that you
16:59got from the judges? He said he didn't realise there was as much difference in milks. But after
17:05having sampled all the milks actually in the competition, he'd suggested there was a great
17:10variance and the difference was very noticeable in our milk. Well, it's a very prestigious prize and
17:17we love an underdog. You're coming up against some big companies, big milk brands. Yes, and that
17:23varied from other producers like yourself up to large scale dairies. And they're very chilled out.
17:31Do you think that adds to the sort of milk that they produce, the taste, flavour? I would like to
17:35think that they treat them very well in here. They're happy and content and on the robotic milking
17:40system they do what they want when they want. You may see some of them eating, you'll see some of them
17:45lying down, some of them will be chewing their cud. But yes, I'd like to think that happy cows are producing
17:51good quality. Tasty milk, yes. And who doesn't want milk and ice cream produced by a happy workforce?
18:03To be this successful surely means Alec, along with his wife Mary-Anne,
18:07must have been perfecting this winning formula for years, right?
18:11No, they only bought the farm in 2018 and opened to the public a few years later.
18:23I suppose that the key day was our silver ready anniversary, would you believe? We opened our
18:29coffee van on the 6th of March 2021. So what you're saying is this was your
18:34anniversary present. Happy anniversary. Well, I think that was my husband saying you were working
18:39for the rest of your life.
18:46As well as getting added value from selling the milk on site, the van brings in the local
18:51community to see what the Flemings are doing, something Mary-Anne gets a kick out of.
18:59We are so lucky to have the location. We have a bit of a motto here to enjoy the simple things in life and
19:04I think for me, I've had so much fun and enjoyment, just enjoying being part of this community,
19:09bringing up three kids in it and just enjoying the countryside. So actually opening our doors to
19:15allow other people to enjoy it. And that's the bit that gives me fun and enjoyment actually,
19:20just the ability to serve public and see people's happy faces, enjoying your produce and your products.
19:26So it's not just happy cows here at the farm, but happy people too. Enjoying milk that's been judged
19:36the best in show. I think winning it was like if it was that certification, what we were doing was
19:42was good. And people tell you milk's good, but just winning the award was like the cherry on top of
19:47the cake, I think. Orders, to be fair. Earlier this year, Cammy made the huge decision to buy a farm
19:57and we've been following his progress throughout the season. Cammy's committed to a future in farming,
20:04but he's a few miles along the road from me in Aberdeenshire now, meeting one farmer who's calling it a day.
20:10Derek Barrack's heading out to his fields for the last time. He's lived and worked here at Mill
20:20of Kingoodie for over 65 years. He took it on from his father, but with none of his own family
20:28following in his footsteps, he's decided it's time to retire. He's already sold the farm, but with a lifetime
20:37of tools and machinery to clear out, he's called in the auctioneers for a rope. You don't see so many
20:44of these on-farm public auctions these days, but as Derek says himself, he's an old-fashioned guy.
20:52Came here when I was three. I was born in 55 and we came here in 1958. And were you always destined to
20:58take on the farm? No, no, when I left school I expected to come home here to work on the farm,
21:04but father he said, no, no, no, no, no, go and save your time at something first. So I started my time
21:11as a blacksmith. For over 30 years, Derek worked for a local farm machinery company,
21:19but he did that alongside working on the farm. I mean, after my job from 85 or whatever,
21:27it was home here and working evenings, working weekends. Farming was in my blood. Same idea as a
21:34a collie pop born into the world. He likes to round up the sheep. I was born into farming.
21:40Aye, aye. Bread for it. Yes!
21:43This is a big event today. What's making you retire from farming?
21:46I decided to myself, if I can reach 70 and still be here and working, that's when I'll retire. So
21:53I'm 70 in July. So I think I'll make it. You might get there. I think so. I think so,
21:59hope so. Aye, aye. Within my sale, I know it's come to an end and I've just accepted it.
22:07End of an era. Traditionally, a route will draw buyers from far and wide. And this is a big one.
22:17Over 400 lots. So there's no shortage of interest. Running the sale today is auctioneer Gavin Paterson.
22:26There's a fair crowd here. Are you feeling the pressure to get a good turn?
22:30Eh, maybe no pressure, but this farm's family's been in here since 1958. So this is part of their
22:36retirement. So there's a wee bit of onus on you. You help them. They're a decent family. You want to give
22:41them a bit of a good send off. Yeah. There's an emotional attachment to a sale like this. Oh,
22:45definitely. Definitely. The family, even though they're planning for it, this is the day.
22:50It just has changed. So it is a big day for them. It's good. Yeah. Yeah. Well, listen, good luck with it.
22:57Morning all. We are going to try and make a start. First lot today for the drill. 20 or 10,
23:04surely. Come on, boys. Fiver fully working on there. Fiver. Two pout, two bed. And four, six,
23:10eight. From the smallest hand tool to a combine harvester. Derry five. Derry five. Dirty five.
23:19Every piece of Derek's farming life is about to go under the hammer. Tire patches and the puncture sealant
23:25there. Pound bed only. One bed. It must be bittersweet for Derek. And his brother Alan,
23:32who worked alongside him. One bed only. Two. Four. Four bed. Four pound. Four bed. Four pound.
23:41Up in the woodshed, the team record the bids and buyers. 15 bed. 15. 15. You damn, sir.
23:48No laptops though. It's all very traditional. Two pound. Two bed. Two pound. 106.
23:55In a matter of hours, over 250 lots in the shed are sold.
24:02So we're on to the second part of the seal now. Things have moved outside into the field.
24:09We start off with the smaller items again, working our way up to the big exciting stuff.
24:13All done now. Three thousand. Three thousand bed. Three thousand.
24:17What have we got, young man? McHale Bailey. Good working order. Three thousand nine hundred.
24:21All done now. Three nine. Three nine. Four eleven.
24:26Roupes were always more than just a seal. They were a chance to get together,
24:30and Derek and his wife Linda are enjoying catching up with old pals.
24:34Four thousand five hundred and four thousand five hundred.
24:39It's been a long old sale, but now we're on to the big ticket items. Let's see how they go.
24:45Twelve thousand surely. Ten bed. Ten thousand bed. Ten thousand. Ten thousand bed.
24:51I probably should buy a tractor, but I just don't know enough about them to compete with these guys.
24:55Fourteen thousand eight hundred. Fourteen thousand eight hundred. All done there. Fourteen thousand
25:00eight hundred. Mr Ingram. As you see, good general machine again.
25:05We're now on to the last lot of the day. Derek's looking for 20 grand for his combine harvester.
25:11Five thousand bed. Five hundred. Six. Five. Seven thousand.
25:17But the bids trickle in. Ten thousand five hundred. Ten thousand five hundred.
25:22Yeah, happy with that. I can imagine. And the price only creeps up.
25:26Twelve thousand five hundred then. Twelve thousand five hundred. Twelve thousand five hundred.
25:33And that's it. The end of the rope.
25:38Not as much as he wanted for some of his stuff.
25:40Well, we reckon the care should have been there.
25:42Swings and round events.
25:44But it's no surprise Derek has a very down-to-earth attitude to the outcome.
25:48So, Derek, sale complete. How are you feeling?
25:52Eh, mixed emotions. Aye, aye, but I was expecting nothing as it was, so.
25:57Eight thousand eight hundred.
25:59As for prices on machinery, some was more than I thought.
26:02Nine thousand.
26:03Some was less.
26:04Nine thousand.
26:05Thank you, sir.
26:06Disappointed with my tractors and combine.
26:09Yeah.
26:09The values of them, like, but, well, well, hey-ho.
26:13When I go into somebody else's rope, I like something cheap enough.
26:16Yeah, if it's like.
26:19For you, what's the next adventure?
26:21Moving stuff down to the new house.
26:24And you're not going far?
26:25No, just a stone throw.
26:28I wouldn't need a removal of one, just a barra.
26:36The end of an era for Derek and the end of the programme for us.
26:40If you go to the BBC iPlayer and search for Landward, you'll see lots of previous episodes.
26:46But in our next programme, we're all about the Royal Highland Show.
26:52It's Scotland's biggest outdoor event with well over 200,000 people showcasing the best of rural
27:00Scotland. There'll be sheep, cattle, horses, even goats battling it out to land those prized
27:07rosettes. A celebration of food, farming, forestry, fleeces, and loads, loads more.
27:16It really is a fantastic occasion. Cannot wait to go there. From all the teams around the country,
27:22and especially from me here in the Howe of Aford and Aberdeenshire, thank you so much for your company.
27:28Bye for now.
27:29Bye.
27:30Bye.
27:31Bye.