0:00:17 > 0:00:20Hello, and a very warm welcome to Landward,
0:00:20 > 0:00:23which this week comes from the stunning Dawyck Botanic Garden
0:00:23 > 0:00:25in the Borders.
0:00:26 > 0:00:28It's one of the world's finest arboreta,
0:00:28 > 0:00:31with colourful displays of exotic and native plants
0:00:31 > 0:00:34throughout the year.
0:00:34 > 0:00:38But we're not just here to marvel at all the trees and the flowers.
0:00:38 > 0:00:40We're here to find out about a Victorian hydro scheme that
0:00:40 > 0:00:44once powered this estate and has now been brought back to life.
0:00:44 > 0:00:46More on that later but first,
0:00:46 > 0:00:49here's what else is coming up on the programme.
0:00:49 > 0:00:51Euan investigates conflict on the high seas.
0:00:53 > 0:00:56Nick's got a seasonal treat for the people of Drymen.
0:00:56 > 0:00:57Hmm. I prefer that one.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00- That, sir, is the Scottish one. - Excellent.
0:01:00 > 0:01:04And we meet a Commonwealth hopeful, ready to take on her rivals.
0:01:04 > 0:01:06I've been practising loads and, hopefully,
0:01:06 > 0:01:08I'll be able to catch them.
0:01:13 > 0:01:18But first to Aberdeenshire. Seals are one of our most-loved creatures,
0:01:18 > 0:01:22sometimes called "the Labrador of the sea".
0:01:22 > 0:01:26But they're not always popular with salmon farmers and fishermen.
0:01:26 > 0:01:28In the first of two reports this week,
0:01:28 > 0:01:32Euan is finding out how the current seal population is faring.
0:01:37 > 0:01:41This is the stunning Ythan Estuary at Newburgh in Aberdeenshire.
0:01:43 > 0:01:45It's one of the best places in the north of Scotland
0:01:45 > 0:01:48for watching wildlife -
0:01:48 > 0:01:54eider ducks, terns and hundreds upon hundreds of seals.
0:01:58 > 0:02:02Low tide is the best time to see the seals hauled out on the beach
0:02:02 > 0:02:04and it's only now you get a feeling
0:02:04 > 0:02:07of just how many seals there actually are.
0:02:13 > 0:02:16Callun Duck is a senior scientist
0:02:16 > 0:02:19from the Sea Mammal Research Unit at St Andrews University.
0:02:19 > 0:02:22I'm meeting him here at the Ythan to find out about
0:02:22 > 0:02:25the state of seal populations around our coast.
0:02:27 > 0:02:30- Hi.- Euan, hi. - Quite impressive, isn't it?
0:02:30 > 0:02:33Yes, it's the biggest haul-out site on the east coast of Scotland
0:02:33 > 0:02:35for grey seals.
0:02:35 > 0:02:38How are the seals doing, generally, around the coast?
0:02:38 > 0:02:41Very different for the two species. We start with common seals.
0:02:41 > 0:02:43Although they're called common or harbour seals,
0:02:43 > 0:02:46they're neither common nor found in harbours,
0:02:46 > 0:02:49so a bit of a duff name.
0:02:49 > 0:02:52On the east coast, in the Northern Isles, Shetland and Orkney,
0:02:52 > 0:02:55numbers have gone down very dramatically since 2000.
0:02:55 > 0:02:58What about the grey seals? How are they doing?
0:02:58 > 0:03:01Grey seals are much more steady. They're static on the west coast.
0:03:01 > 0:03:03Their numbers are not going up very much in the west,
0:03:03 > 0:03:05but they're slowly increasing in Orkney.
0:03:05 > 0:03:09Some of the other colonies in the east coast are in the Firth of Forth
0:03:09 > 0:03:12and more down in the southeast of England,
0:03:12 > 0:03:15so round the Wash, those colonies are increasing very rapidly,
0:03:15 > 0:03:19but the ones in Scotland are increasing slowly compared to
0:03:19 > 0:03:20what they were ten years ago.
0:03:20 > 0:03:22So what are these guys eating?
0:03:22 > 0:03:25You'd have thought any sea trout or salmon going up this river
0:03:25 > 0:03:27wouldn't have a hope of getting past.
0:03:27 > 0:03:30If they were all eating salmon or sea trout, they wouldn't.
0:03:30 > 0:03:33They would clean up every fish that was coming in. But they don't.
0:03:33 > 0:03:37A lot of the fish in the scats of the seals here are flatfish,
0:03:37 > 0:03:41and the Ythan is well known for being a big flounder site.
0:03:41 > 0:03:44I don't know how many flounders are left here
0:03:44 > 0:03:46but that's what the seals are targeting.
0:03:46 > 0:03:49Why would they take flatfish rather than salmon
0:03:49 > 0:03:51and sea trout going right past their door?
0:03:51 > 0:03:54The seals are lazy predators. They're not like lions or cheetahs.
0:03:54 > 0:03:57Although they're big, fast swimming animals,
0:03:57 > 0:04:00they don't like working hard if they don't need to.
0:04:00 > 0:04:02They're lazy, a bit like humans,
0:04:02 > 0:04:05so they'll take whatever food is easily accessed.
0:04:05 > 0:04:07What about nets? Will they take them from nets?
0:04:07 > 0:04:11Yes, because the fish are already caught. That's a ready meal.
0:04:11 > 0:04:15So they will take, and fishermen do have an issue with nets,
0:04:15 > 0:04:19and we're working with quite a few to see if we there are ways other
0:04:19 > 0:04:23than shooting seals to dissuade them from coming into the nets.
0:04:23 > 0:04:25So, what are the options?
0:04:25 > 0:04:27The option that we're trying at the minute
0:04:27 > 0:04:30are acoustic deterrent devices, - seal scarers -
0:04:30 > 0:04:32that they use at fish farms.
0:04:32 > 0:04:34They keep seals away from the nets.
0:04:34 > 0:04:38Some of my colleagues have been using these up in the Moray Firth,
0:04:38 > 0:04:43and also now working in the east coast at other netting stations,
0:04:43 > 0:04:46and they do keep seals away from nets.
0:04:46 > 0:04:50But these sonar scarers are only in the trial phase.
0:04:50 > 0:04:53Later in the programme, I'll talk to fishermen
0:04:53 > 0:04:57who are part of the trial but want to keep the option to kill.
0:04:57 > 0:04:59And I meet the international animal rights group
0:04:59 > 0:05:01that they're battling with.
0:05:04 > 0:05:07While Euan gets in amongst the action,
0:05:07 > 0:05:10I'm getting an altogether more relaxing experience.
0:05:10 > 0:05:14At a time when the whole country is more concerned than ever with
0:05:14 > 0:05:18energy issues, I'm off to explore the history and future of one
0:05:18 > 0:05:23of Scotland's oldest private hydroelectricity schemes.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26The Dawyck garden lies just southwest of Peebles
0:05:26 > 0:05:29and I've chosen the right time of year to come.
0:05:29 > 0:05:33There are stunning displays of azaleas, rhododendrons,
0:05:33 > 0:05:37Himalayan poppies and many other exotic specimens.
0:05:41 > 0:05:43It's famous for its trees.
0:05:43 > 0:05:46The 65-acre site has a magnificent collection
0:05:46 > 0:05:48built up over the centuries.
0:05:49 > 0:05:54Like, for example, that European fir, planted in 1680.
0:05:54 > 0:05:58That's 334 years ago. Extraordinary.
0:06:02 > 0:06:04The house at Dawyck is privately owned
0:06:04 > 0:06:07but the gardens were gifted to the Royal Botanic Gardens
0:06:07 > 0:06:10in Edinburgh in 1978 by the Balfour family,
0:06:10 > 0:06:12who still own the surrounding estate.
0:06:15 > 0:06:18Dawyck was bought by the Balfours in 1897.
0:06:18 > 0:06:22It was wealthy widow Janet who used her husband's shipping fortune
0:06:22 > 0:06:24to buy the estate.
0:06:24 > 0:06:27And her spending didn't stop there.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32At the turn of the 20th century,
0:06:32 > 0:06:36it was Janet Balfour who installed a hydro scheme to harness
0:06:36 > 0:06:39the power of the this, the Scrape Burn,
0:06:39 > 0:06:42a tributary of the Tweed, and Dawyck became one of the first
0:06:42 > 0:06:46estates in Scotland to have its own electricity supply.
0:06:48 > 0:06:51We're heading to the site of the old dynamo house.
0:06:51 > 0:06:55'The old system was replaced by mains electricity in the 1950s,
0:06:55 > 0:06:58'but Janet's great-grandson Robert Balfour
0:06:58 > 0:07:02'is taking me to the spot where the old turbines were housed.'
0:07:02 > 0:07:04- This is the actual site of it.- Yeah.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07- You can see the indentation in the ground.- Hmm.
0:07:07 > 0:07:12And the only photograph that we've got anywhere of it is this one...
0:07:12 > 0:07:16- which was a very substantial building in those days.- Wow.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19And that was just to house two generators.
0:07:19 > 0:07:22So, how successful was it at producing electricity?
0:07:22 > 0:07:25- In those days, obviously remarkable.- Yeah.
0:07:25 > 0:07:28But the lights flickered, sometimes you had to
0:07:28 > 0:07:31read between the flickering, it failed from time to time.
0:07:31 > 0:07:33What do you think her thinking was,
0:07:33 > 0:07:36putting in the hydro scheme here at the estate?
0:07:36 > 0:07:39I think, probably, it was for practical reasons.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42She was a real forerunner in the days.
0:07:42 > 0:07:44It was one of the first private schemes
0:07:44 > 0:07:46ever put into any house in Scotland.
0:07:49 > 0:07:53In their day, the old generators were at the cutting edge of technology.
0:07:53 > 0:07:55That spirit lives on.
0:07:55 > 0:07:59The estate has just installed a new hydroelectric generator which,
0:07:59 > 0:08:01combined with a biomass boiler,
0:08:01 > 0:08:05makes it the first carbon-neutral botanic garden in the country.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10This is what's known as the dynamo pond,
0:08:10 > 0:08:14so this was the original water supply for the hydroelectric system.
0:08:14 > 0:08:17'Garden curator Graham Stewart is showing me part
0:08:17 > 0:08:22'of the old Victorian system that's been repurposed for the new scheme.'
0:08:22 > 0:08:24The burn was originally dammed to provide
0:08:24 > 0:08:27the head of water for the historical scheme,
0:08:27 > 0:08:31and it also now gives the head of water for the new scheme as well.
0:08:31 > 0:08:33The turbine can generate up to 11 kilowatts.
0:08:33 > 0:08:36Do you sell any of that back to the Grid, potentially?
0:08:36 > 0:08:37We do. It's generating all the time,
0:08:37 > 0:08:40so while the garden and the visitor centre's open,
0:08:40 > 0:08:42we're supporting our own usage of electric
0:08:42 > 0:08:45but we're also, outwith opening times, we're putting
0:08:45 > 0:08:48back into the Grid, so there's the revenue from it as well.
0:08:48 > 0:08:50The fact there was a hydro scheme here before,
0:08:50 > 0:08:53did that inspire you to putting the new one in?
0:08:53 > 0:08:56It was part of that, and it was also, from an environmental point
0:08:56 > 0:09:00of view, the garden thinks very much about its impact on the environment.
0:09:00 > 0:09:03There as a considerable investment in the garden's
0:09:03 > 0:09:06infrastructure in 2008, so we opened a new visitors' centre then,
0:09:06 > 0:09:08and it was very much a cutting-edge building.
0:09:08 > 0:09:11It's a biomass boiler, it's a sedum roof,
0:09:11 > 0:09:15so I was looking for a way to build on what we'd already achieved,
0:09:15 > 0:09:18so the hydroelectric seemed like a good way forward.
0:09:19 > 0:09:22But with large, well-established trees all around,
0:09:22 > 0:09:24it offered a few challenges.
0:09:26 > 0:09:29This Douglas fir is a fairly substantial tree, isn't it?
0:09:29 > 0:09:32Yes, it's a massive tree.
0:09:32 > 0:09:35And it was one of the problems we encountered with laying
0:09:35 > 0:09:38- the pipes for the hydro.- Uh-huh.
0:09:38 > 0:09:42So much so that here, the pipes go under the ground -
0:09:42 > 0:09:45they're almost a metre under the ground - so in order to avoid
0:09:45 > 0:09:48the roots, we had to dig by hand to get the pipes under.
0:09:48 > 0:09:52- So huge roots for a tree that size, yeah?- Massive roots.
0:09:52 > 0:09:56The spread on the roots is going to be at least what the canopy is,
0:09:56 > 0:09:59so we were only going to ever face a problem...
0:09:59 > 0:10:01- Right.- ..for the pipes. - Hand dug?- Hand dug.
0:10:01 > 0:10:03- Seriously hard work?- Very hard work!
0:10:03 > 0:10:06You wouldn't notice, though, that's the amazing thing.
0:10:06 > 0:10:10- You would not notice at all now. It looks incredible.- That's right.
0:10:10 > 0:10:11That's the power of nature.
0:10:11 > 0:10:15- It healed itself up and now you'd be hard pushed to tell.- Hmm.
0:10:19 > 0:10:22This garden is spectacular and well worth a visit.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25It plays an important role in protecting rare species
0:10:25 > 0:10:27and now that the hydro has been restored,
0:10:27 > 0:10:30it's doing its bit to protect the wider environment as well.
0:10:36 > 0:10:38As we saw two weeks ago
0:10:38 > 0:10:41when we met the first of our Commonwealth Games hopefuls, the
0:10:41 > 0:10:45Scottish countryside is the perfect training ground for athletes.
0:10:45 > 0:10:48A few miles east of Dawyck lies the village of Gordon.
0:10:51 > 0:10:55The roads and countryside around it are the ideal setting
0:10:55 > 0:10:59for potential Scotland medallist Sammi Kinghorn to train in.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02- You OK? Do you need to stretch? You all right?- I'm well stretched.
0:11:02 > 0:11:06After taking up the sport only three years ago,
0:11:06 > 0:11:09the 18-year-old para-athlete is already one of Europe's leading
0:11:09 > 0:11:11wheelchair racers,
0:11:11 > 0:11:15and will be competing in Glasgow in the 1,500m event.
0:11:17 > 0:11:20There are only six weeks to competition
0:11:20 > 0:11:23and with her coach, Ian Mirfin, Sammi is making
0:11:23 > 0:11:26the most of the peaceful rural environment in her training.
0:11:29 > 0:11:33It's quiet and there's not really anyone. It's quite hilly, as well.
0:11:33 > 0:11:37You get downhill and uphill, which is good for fast arms, going downhill,
0:11:37 > 0:11:40and uphill just for strength building.
0:11:40 > 0:11:42At the weekend, me and my dad will go out on the main road
0:11:42 > 0:11:45and we'll do a bigger circuit for longer.
0:11:45 > 0:11:47I've never had a car drive too close to me, or anything like that,
0:11:47 > 0:11:50because everyone knows me and they'll know when I'm out.
0:11:50 > 0:11:53I always get toots of the horn or waves, and stuff.
0:11:53 > 0:11:54Someone'll wave at me and make me
0:11:54 > 0:11:57want to push a little bit harder and it's just nice to know people...
0:11:57 > 0:11:59They know me.
0:11:59 > 0:12:03Sammi's journey to becoming the top European athlete in her class began
0:12:03 > 0:12:08only a few months after breaking her back in an accident in 2010.
0:12:10 > 0:12:13I went to the spinal unit in Glasgow and spent six months there doing
0:12:13 > 0:12:18rehabilitation, and I went to a thing called the Spinal Unit Games.
0:12:18 > 0:12:22It's just like a big competition kind of thing
0:12:22 > 0:12:26where all the spinal units across Scotland, England, Wales and Ireland
0:12:26 > 0:12:30all come together, and that's basically where I found athletics.
0:12:30 > 0:12:33I think I did athletics on the second day and that was it.
0:12:33 > 0:12:36I was in love with it and I didn't want to do anything else.
0:12:36 > 0:12:37There's no event in the Games
0:12:37 > 0:12:40for Sammi's particular disability classification,
0:12:40 > 0:12:44so, in order to compete, she's taking on a category
0:12:44 > 0:12:47for people with more upper body strength and power.
0:12:47 > 0:12:51I am classified as a T53, which means I have no core stability,
0:12:51 > 0:12:53so I'm not able to lift in my chair,
0:12:53 > 0:12:57so it's just arm power completely down through my wheels.
0:12:57 > 0:13:00But because it's a home Games and I really want to do it,
0:13:00 > 0:13:03I'm going up a level to compete as a 54,
0:13:03 > 0:13:07which basically means that they have more movement than I do.
0:13:07 > 0:13:08It's a little bit harder
0:13:08 > 0:13:10and they're a little bit quicker off the start,
0:13:10 > 0:13:12but I've just been practising loads
0:13:12 > 0:13:14and hopefully I'll be able to catch them.
0:13:15 > 0:13:17Sammi's coach has no doubt she's strong enough,
0:13:17 > 0:13:20physically and mentally, to compete at that level.
0:13:22 > 0:13:23She'll do everything she can
0:13:23 > 0:13:26to finish as high up in the race as she can.
0:13:27 > 0:13:29She's the most determined athlete I've ever met.
0:13:29 > 0:13:31You can see what she's like,
0:13:31 > 0:13:34and, just for example, having a chat with her dad this morning
0:13:34 > 0:13:36before Sammi came through,
0:13:36 > 0:13:40after the weekend and having been away racing, we'd said,
0:13:40 > 0:13:41"Just an easy push on Monday morning,
0:13:41 > 0:13:44"just go out for half an hour, take it easy."
0:13:44 > 0:13:46He said, "Oh, the push was fine, but you know Sammi,
0:13:46 > 0:13:47"you know what happens.
0:13:47 > 0:13:50He told me the time she'd done the push in and how far she'd gone.
0:13:50 > 0:13:53Basically, it was an eyeballs-out push that she did,
0:13:53 > 0:13:55but she doesn't know the meaning of the word "easy".
0:13:59 > 0:14:02As she prepares for the Games, Sammi has found the countryside
0:14:02 > 0:14:05round her home in the Borders a constant inspiration.
0:14:06 > 0:14:10This is, basically, you know, my favourite place to come,
0:14:10 > 0:14:12if I'm sad or if I need time on my own just to think.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15It's just...
0:14:15 > 0:14:16Just so quiet.
0:14:16 > 0:14:18It kind of brings you back to earth
0:14:18 > 0:14:21and shows you what a lovely place I live
0:14:21 > 0:14:24and just to be thankful for how lucky I am to live here
0:14:24 > 0:14:26and to have all the opportunities I've got.
0:14:30 > 0:14:34And we wish Sammi luck when she races in Glasgow at the end of July.
0:14:43 > 0:14:44The local agricultural show
0:14:44 > 0:14:48is the highlight of the summer calendar for many rural communities.
0:14:51 > 0:14:54With prize-winning livestock, crafts, horses,
0:14:54 > 0:14:58good gossip and a beer tent, they're always a good day out.
0:14:58 > 0:15:01That's why Nick and Sarah have taken the Landward food van along
0:15:01 > 0:15:05to one of the first of the season - Drymen Show - to join in the fun.
0:15:07 > 0:15:08Open for business!
0:15:13 > 0:15:16We're going to be cooking a wonderful Scottish product
0:15:16 > 0:15:19- that's at its very best right now, and it is...- Asparagus.
0:15:19 > 0:15:22And that's obviously fantastic in terms of food miles,
0:15:22 > 0:15:24because it's locally grown in Scotland,
0:15:24 > 0:15:27but we are going to have to compare it against some imported asparagus
0:15:27 > 0:15:30from Peru, then we're going to go out there and test it
0:15:30 > 0:15:32on the lovely people at Drymen Show.
0:15:32 > 0:15:34- We are indeed, and we're going to cook it very simply.- OK.
0:15:34 > 0:15:36We're going to cook it in boiling salted water
0:15:36 > 0:15:38and serve it with a little bit of hollandaise
0:15:38 > 0:15:40that you and I are both going to make.
0:15:40 > 0:15:42- I love to help, you know that.- I do.
0:15:42 > 0:15:45- But first let's talk to a man who knows more about asparagus.- Lead on.
0:15:46 > 0:15:51'Asparagus is normally cultivated in the drier East Coast of Scotland.
0:15:51 > 0:15:53'But grower Robert Ritchie from Renfrewshire
0:15:53 > 0:15:56'is attempting something new -
0:15:56 > 0:15:58'growing it on the West Coast.'
0:15:58 > 0:16:00So, you're the asparagus grower?
0:16:00 > 0:16:02Yes, we started in May last year
0:16:02 > 0:16:04and put in 30,000 asparagus crowns.
0:16:04 > 0:16:06And you're doing this on the West Coast of Scotland?
0:16:06 > 0:16:08Nobody's done this before.
0:16:08 > 0:16:09It rains a lot in the West of Scotland,
0:16:09 > 0:16:12so we're fighting against the climate all the time, but we've
0:16:12 > 0:16:14got it in a south-facing slope and it's done really well.
0:16:14 > 0:16:17How do you think the taste of locally grown asparagus
0:16:17 > 0:16:19compares with imported asparagus?
0:16:19 > 0:16:22I mean, the food miles thing, you're miles ahead on that.
0:16:22 > 0:16:23But what about taste?
0:16:23 > 0:16:25Taste - it's definitely a lot crisper,
0:16:25 > 0:16:28a lot fresher taste you get from it, and the big thing about us
0:16:28 > 0:16:31is we can harvest it in the afternoon,
0:16:31 > 0:16:32so it can be on the plate in the restaurant
0:16:32 > 0:16:35in less than 24 hours from the time it was harvested.
0:16:35 > 0:16:38Do you think the public can tell the difference
0:16:38 > 0:16:40between your asparagus and imported asparagus?
0:16:40 > 0:16:42No doubt at all. Ours is the best.
0:16:42 > 0:16:44Fantastic, we will put that to the test!
0:16:44 > 0:16:47- Hang around and we'll have a taste later.- OK, thank you.
0:16:47 > 0:16:48Get the pan on.
0:16:50 > 0:16:54So, Sarah, we are going to make some hollandaise.
0:16:54 > 0:16:55Fantastic - what can I do?
0:16:55 > 0:16:58Three egg yolks, could you add a little smidge of mustard in there,
0:16:58 > 0:17:00- and a pinch of salt? - Is that smidge enough?
0:17:00 > 0:17:03That's a smidge. And a little bit of lemon juice.
0:17:03 > 0:17:07What I've got in here is some ordinary melted butter.
0:17:07 > 0:17:10If you could pour the butter in slowly as I whizz it.
0:17:10 > 0:17:13- So I've got the hot, boiling butter. - You've got the hot stuff.
0:17:13 > 0:17:15Pour a little bit in, just a splash. There we go.
0:17:15 > 0:17:17- Whoa, that'll do.- Happy?
0:17:17 > 0:17:19- Yeah. Oops, sorry about that. - Stand back.
0:17:19 > 0:17:22There she goes, little bit more, thank you.
0:17:22 > 0:17:24- Beautiful.- Teamwork, teamwork.
0:17:25 > 0:17:27- You can do it with a hand blender... - More?- Yeah, thank you.
0:17:27 > 0:17:29..or a jug blender.
0:17:29 > 0:17:31Keep going. Yeah, beautiful.
0:17:31 > 0:17:33There we have...
0:17:33 > 0:17:36- A nice hollandaise sauce. - Lovely, thick hollandaise.
0:17:36 > 0:17:37And is that too thick?
0:17:37 > 0:17:41No! You can never have hollandaise too thick.
0:17:41 > 0:17:45- It's like thick, hot mayonnaise. - Can I have a wee taste off the...?
0:17:45 > 0:17:47You can have a little taste, yeah.
0:17:49 > 0:17:52- That's very good. That's very nice. - It's crying out for asparagus.
0:17:52 > 0:17:55It's crying out for asparagus, so let's get on with the asparagus.
0:17:55 > 0:17:57Right, the Peruvian asparagus first.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00Peruvian asparagus, boiling salted water.
0:18:00 > 0:18:02- Four.- Four minutes.
0:18:02 > 0:18:04Four minutes, out it goes, in the hollandaise.
0:18:04 > 0:18:07Actually, you should bite the head off first
0:18:07 > 0:18:09then dip the stalk in the hollandaise.
0:18:09 > 0:18:11Are there alternative ways to cook them? Steam them?
0:18:11 > 0:18:14You can steam them, chargrill them, bake them,
0:18:14 > 0:18:17you can barbecue them - it's a very versatile vegetable, asparagus.
0:18:17 > 0:18:19Four minutes for the Peruvian asparagus,
0:18:19 > 0:18:21out it comes onto a tray.
0:18:21 > 0:18:22Fantastic.
0:18:22 > 0:18:26Can you cook ahead if you're having people around,
0:18:26 > 0:18:27- can you cook ahead?- No, no, no.
0:18:27 > 0:18:30- You can't keep asparagus? - You can't keep it, no.
0:18:30 > 0:18:32We need to do the other asparagus now.
0:18:32 > 0:18:34Salted water, in it goes.
0:18:34 > 0:18:36- Another four?- Three minutes.
0:18:36 > 0:18:39- Three?- It's fresher, it's slightly thinner,
0:18:39 > 0:18:40it's going to take less cooking time.
0:18:44 > 0:18:46- OK.- The timer's done.
0:18:46 > 0:18:49That's the asparagus done, the Scottish asparagus.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52I think people are going to love this.
0:18:52 > 0:18:54Asparagus is synonymous with the summertime.
0:18:54 > 0:18:58And it's a gift, you know, it's a very short season.
0:18:59 > 0:19:02- May till...?- It's April until June.
0:19:02 > 0:19:04- Late April until June. - So not long at all.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07We're off to test Asparagus on the good people of Drymen Show.
0:19:07 > 0:19:08Yes, let's do it.
0:19:17 > 0:19:21- You prefer this one?- Yes. - That is Scottish asparagus.
0:19:21 > 0:19:24May I ask which you prefer?
0:19:24 > 0:19:25That's sweeter.
0:19:25 > 0:19:28I'll hold your burger. I'll hold your burger.
0:19:28 > 0:19:29Taste.
0:19:29 > 0:19:30- BABY GROANS - Mm-hmm.
0:19:30 > 0:19:32You'll get it later.
0:19:33 > 0:19:36- That one is actually grown in Peru.- Is it?
0:19:36 > 0:19:38OK.
0:19:38 > 0:19:40- BABY CRIES - Delicious.- Sorry! Sorry!
0:19:44 > 0:19:46I prefer that one.
0:19:46 > 0:19:48- That, sir, is the Scottish one. - Excellent.
0:19:48 > 0:19:50OK, do you want the good news or the bad news?
0:19:50 > 0:19:52Let's get the good news, surely.
0:19:52 > 0:19:56Good news - most people prefer the Scottish variety, your asparagus.
0:19:56 > 0:19:58The bad news is two people preferred the Peruvian ones.
0:19:58 > 0:20:00- Obviously no taste buds. - Obviously no taste buds.
0:20:00 > 0:20:02Come on, let's see how Nick got on.
0:20:05 > 0:20:07I had seven people polled -
0:20:07 > 0:20:10five people definitely preferred the Scottish,
0:20:10 > 0:20:13one didn't know and one, bizarrely, preferred the Peruvian.
0:20:13 > 0:20:15Well, the people I spoke to,
0:20:15 > 0:20:17most preferred the Scottish, which is fantastic.
0:20:17 > 0:20:21What I'm loving about Robert's product is it is local, seasonal,
0:20:21 > 0:20:23and people recognise it on the plate. It's fantastic.
0:20:23 > 0:20:26It really is fantastic that people's taste buds can tell
0:20:26 > 0:20:29the difference between something that's grown 20 miles away
0:20:29 > 0:20:31and something grown thousands of miles away.
0:20:31 > 0:20:33That's it for this week at the food van.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36Next week we're going to be finding out how much people
0:20:36 > 0:20:39are willing to pay for a Scottish burger.
0:20:39 > 0:20:41In the meantime, do you fancy a beer?
0:20:41 > 0:20:43- Beer!- I need one.
0:20:48 > 0:20:52Earlier in the programme, we heard about the current state of Scotland's
0:20:52 > 0:20:56seal populations and how they like a quick and easy meal from salmon nets.
0:20:58 > 0:21:01Now I'm further up the coast in a tiny village,
0:21:01 > 0:21:04where a big battle is being played out.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10This is Gardenstown, known locally as Gamrie,
0:21:10 > 0:21:15and this picturesque north-east port dates back to 1720.
0:21:15 > 0:21:19But this humble seaside village has become the focus of international
0:21:19 > 0:21:25attention as animal rights activists and salmon netsmen clash over seals.
0:21:25 > 0:21:27- Good afternoon.- Good afternoon, sir.
0:21:27 > 0:21:29- Can I come on board? - Yes, welcome aboard.
0:21:29 > 0:21:32- Watch your feet coming down. - Picked a day for it.
0:21:32 > 0:21:35'I'm meeting David Pullar of Usan Fisheries,
0:21:35 > 0:21:39'which also trades as The Scottish Wild Salmon Company.
0:21:39 > 0:21:41'They have the rights to net salmon on this,
0:21:41 > 0:21:44'as well as other parts of the coast.
0:21:44 > 0:21:47'I asked David what problems they're facing.'
0:21:47 > 0:21:50Well, we have quite a major problem here.
0:21:50 > 0:21:55The seals just get into the net, steal the fish,
0:21:55 > 0:21:57mutilate them, destroy them -
0:21:57 > 0:22:00basically, what I would say, it's exactly the same
0:22:00 > 0:22:04as a farmer having a problem with a fox taking the likes of lambs
0:22:04 > 0:22:07or chickens, they'll go into the field,
0:22:07 > 0:22:10and once they get the taste for it they're there day after day.
0:22:13 > 0:22:17We're heading out to sea to look at some of their coastal nets.
0:22:19 > 0:22:21So how does that work?
0:22:21 > 0:22:23Is that like the ones you would see on a beach,
0:22:23 > 0:22:26- the salmon come along, hit the net... - Exactly the same.
0:22:26 > 0:22:29They're arrow shaped, like floating traps with a leader
0:22:29 > 0:22:33that goes from the shore to the trap, and as the fish come along
0:22:33 > 0:22:37they get guided along the leader and into the trap.
0:22:39 > 0:22:43'A few minutes later, we're at the nets. So, do we have a fish?'
0:22:44 > 0:22:46Is there anything there at all?
0:22:50 > 0:22:52How often would you get none?
0:22:52 > 0:22:57Oh, we'll get none more often than we get lots.
0:22:57 > 0:22:58Nothing there.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05It's very early in the season and so far we haven't seen a salmon,
0:23:05 > 0:23:07or a seal, for that matter.
0:23:07 > 0:23:11But in the height of the netting season things are very different.
0:23:11 > 0:23:15Usan, like other fisheries interests, apply for a licence
0:23:15 > 0:23:19from the Scottish Government to shoot seals that are targeting their nets.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23What kind of hoops to you have to jump through to get a licence?
0:23:23 > 0:23:27Well, we have to applied to Marine Scotland annually.
0:23:27 > 0:23:30You have to prove that the seals are doing damage,
0:23:30 > 0:23:33so we have to photograph all the time
0:23:33 > 0:23:38that there's fish with heads taken off, tails, gashes in them.
0:23:38 > 0:23:42So we put all that evidence to Marine Scotland in Aberdeen.
0:23:42 > 0:23:44But there must be a concern
0:23:44 > 0:23:47about safely shooting the seals, cos this boat's moving around
0:23:47 > 0:23:49all the time, and you're shooting a seal...
0:23:49 > 0:23:52No, we don't shoot off the boat.
0:23:52 > 0:23:56It states on the licence we can only shoot from a stable platform.
0:23:56 > 0:24:00We will go ashore, we'll put the person with the rifle
0:24:00 > 0:24:03ashore if we see a seal damaging the fish,
0:24:03 > 0:24:06and then he'll take the shot from there.
0:24:07 > 0:24:11'But Usan Fisheries says shooting seals is a last resort.
0:24:11 > 0:24:15'They've implemented a number of measures to keep the seals away
0:24:15 > 0:24:20'from the fish, including stronger and more sophisticated nets.
0:24:20 > 0:24:22'They're also involved in the scientific trial
0:24:22 > 0:24:24'we heard about earlier on in the programme,
0:24:24 > 0:24:28'testing the effectiveness of acoustic deterrent devices.'
0:24:28 > 0:24:31That's the acoustic deterrent device.
0:24:31 > 0:24:34The whole project is run by the Seal Mammal Research Unit.
0:24:35 > 0:24:40'The device works by emitting a sound that the seals find uncomfortable.'
0:24:41 > 0:24:43RAPID CLICKING
0:24:43 > 0:24:46So is this the idea, ultimately you won't have to shoot seals?
0:24:46 > 0:24:50Well, we only shoot them as a very last resort.
0:24:50 > 0:24:55We want to catch salmon, we don't want to shoot seals. Quite simple.
0:24:56 > 0:25:00Last year, Usan shot over 30 seals here at Gardenstown
0:25:00 > 0:25:02under the terms of its licence.
0:25:02 > 0:25:05So far this year, they've shot only one.
0:25:05 > 0:25:07But there's a reason for that.
0:25:07 > 0:25:11The marine animal welfare conservation society Sea Shepherd
0:25:11 > 0:25:15famously used direct action tactics to take on the might
0:25:15 > 0:25:18of the Japanese whaling fleet in the southern ocean.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23They've moved some of their resources to Gardenstown
0:25:23 > 0:25:26as part of their Scottish Seal Defence Campaign.
0:25:27 > 0:25:28We tried to reason with them
0:25:28 > 0:25:33and said that we only ever have to shoot a seal as a last resort,
0:25:33 > 0:25:36and they said they want absolutely no seals shot,
0:25:36 > 0:25:41so they couldn't care less about us protecting our livelihood
0:25:41 > 0:25:44or fish welfare in the net, the damage they do to the fish.
0:25:44 > 0:25:49They had no consideration of that, as long as no seals were shot.
0:25:53 > 0:25:55There are two sides to every story,
0:25:55 > 0:25:59and I'm back at the harbour to meet Rob Reid from Sea Shepherd.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03We were called in by local residents
0:26:03 > 0:26:06who were concerned about the shooting of their local seals,
0:26:06 > 0:26:08and Usan Salmon Fisheries -
0:26:08 > 0:26:10which is the Scottish Wild Salmon Company -
0:26:10 > 0:26:12shoot more seals than any other company.
0:26:12 > 0:26:17So, in effect, we've started our Scottish Seal Defence Campaign
0:26:17 > 0:26:19right here with one of the worst offenders.
0:26:19 > 0:26:21But you say worst offenders - they're acting under licence
0:26:21 > 0:26:24from the Scottish Government, they're 100% legal.
0:26:24 > 0:26:26We believe they're shooting seals
0:26:26 > 0:26:27when the seals aren't around their nets.
0:26:27 > 0:26:31It's basically more of a seal eradication programme,
0:26:31 > 0:26:35to make sure that seals don't interfere with their salmon nets.
0:26:35 > 0:26:38But the company say they've only shot one seal this year.
0:26:38 > 0:26:42They've only shot one seal this year because we are here.
0:26:42 > 0:26:46By this time last year, they shot 18 seals here.
0:26:46 > 0:26:48We're not actually interested
0:26:48 > 0:26:51in interfering with their salmon fishing.
0:26:51 > 0:26:54We are here to intervene against the shooting of seals,
0:26:54 > 0:26:56so if the rifle goes out on their boats,
0:26:56 > 0:26:58then Sea Shepherd UK will follow.
0:26:58 > 0:26:59So how long will you stay?
0:26:59 > 0:27:04We will stay as long as seals are at risk of being shot.
0:27:04 > 0:27:08We have had two major negotiation meetings,
0:27:08 > 0:27:11and our stance is very, very clear.
0:27:11 > 0:27:14We want the Scottish Wild Salmon Company to declare themselves
0:27:14 > 0:27:16a seal friendly company.
0:27:16 > 0:27:18So, if they stop shooting seals,
0:27:18 > 0:27:21then Sea Shepherd UK will stop following them.
0:27:25 > 0:27:27This is a complex issue,
0:27:27 > 0:27:32and my initial personal feelings were that the shooting of seals is wrong.
0:27:32 > 0:27:33I still think it's wrong.
0:27:33 > 0:27:37But I also accept the fact that fishermen don't want to shoot seals,
0:27:37 > 0:27:40but do have the absolute right to protect their livelihood.
0:27:40 > 0:27:42There has to be a better way,
0:27:42 > 0:27:45and scientists, Government and fishermen
0:27:45 > 0:27:47need to get together and sort it out.
0:27:50 > 0:27:54On next week's programme, what price Nick's burgers?
0:27:54 > 0:27:56I'm not sure, can I have another one, please?
0:27:56 > 0:27:59I look at the multimillion pound make-over
0:27:59 > 0:28:01as Gleneagles prepares to host the Ryder Cup...
0:28:04 > 0:28:08..and our third Commonwealth competitor is aiming for gold.
0:28:08 > 0:28:11So, please join us for that and much more at the same time
0:28:11 > 0:28:15next week, Friday night, 7:30pm on BBC Two Scotland.
0:28:15 > 0:28:17In the meantime, from all the Landward team
0:28:17 > 0:28:20here at Dawyck Botanic Garden, thank you so much for your company.
0:28:20 > 0:28:21Bye for now.