Episode 7 Landward

If you want to stay connected with the Scottish countryside,

the best way is to get out there and enjoy it.

Or you could stick with us for the next 30 minutes,

because it's Landward time.

Hello and a very warm welcome to Landward.

Later in the programme,

I'll be heading up into the hills behind Loch Tay

to visit one of the tastiest picnic spots in the country.

But first, here's what else is coming up in the programme.

Chelsea Bennett discovers why a country walk

could be the worst mistake of your life.

Do you think actually there is just a general lack of awareness?

I've been shocked how little information is actually out there.

We meet a dairy herd producing more than just milk.

I've resisted the temptation to make it bigger,

and I've decided to go and do other things.

And Jean Johannson joins farming's answer to Formula 1.

When it left the factory, it would have done a roundabout 2,300rpm.

We'll be doing double that and hopefully a little bit more today.

But first, Ewan is in Caithness to visit a farming family

battling not only the elements,

but predators attacking their very livelihood.

It's a distressing story.

Spring in the north of Scotland

and the fields are filling with new life.

But these lambs are vulnerable.

They're a target for ravens.

Ravens, definitely.

Their eyes taken out, the tongue's missing.

So that's all usual signs,

but that's a lamb that's been out here a couple of days

and it's not a little lamb, by any means, it's a big lamb.

The lambing season can be hard enough for Scotland's sheep farmers,

but when long hours in the lambing shed are followed up

by long hours tracking predators,

then farmers can reach breaking point.

BLEATING

Farmers like John and Selena Swanson.

-Selena.

-Hi. How are you doing? Pleased to meet you.

-John.

-Hello.

-This is your sheep here?

-Yeah, a few of them.

With the help of their children,

they work this farm near Thurso,

raising over 100 cattle and 350 breeding ewes.

Springtime brings lambing and a battle against ravens attacking

and killing their flock.

So is this pretty full-on at this time of year?

-It's a kind of obvious question, but...

-Yeah. We do.

-We've got shifts.

-So do you look forward to it, or do you dread it?

It's a bit of both, really.

You look forward to the lambing, but...

You don't look forward to going out to the field.

Ravens is a nightmare for us.

Their... The population here is just getting up and up.

So how are they taking them?

One goes and distracts the ewe and the other goes in to get the lambs.

We've tried everything.

We've had bangers out, scarecrows...

-Kid out on the bike.

-Kid out on the motorbike.

-"Go chase those ravens"?

-Just go chase them.

It's difficult to underestimate the economic impact

of the loss of lambs for the Swansons.

But there's an emotional toll too.

I'm crying inside, cos I'm dreading what's next.

I hate it. It's not what you do it for.

Are you not tempted to give up sheep?

Yeah. Some days I don't want to step a foot outside of the door,

because I'm just dreading what's going to happen.

But I know we have to keep going. We've got no other choice.

Like all wild birds, ravens are protected,

so it's an offence to kill them.

However, the law recognises that in certain situations

where a protected species is having a serious impact,

as it clearly is in this case,

then SNH can issue a licence to help tackle the problem.

Raven attacks are a national issue

and this year, Scottish Natural Heritage are trialling

a new approach to licensing in Caithness.

Rather than focusing on individual farms,

the licence is for control in a much wider area,

to allow a coordinated effort on raven hot spots.

The licence permits a set number of ravens to be shot.

-This is the map.

-This is the map.

-So this isn't just your farm?

No, this is the five farms in the vicinity

that had applied for a licence last year.

So they've taken that five farms together now

and they've given us a number of 50 ravens.

That's 50 birds across a five farm area.

But as John knows only too well,

the ravens can be a cunning adversary.

Yeah, we found some lambs in here that had damage on them.

There was one at the bottom of the field that had a tongue missing,

so I'm just out having a look around.

That's not ravens there with the lambs, is it?

Yeah, well, that's what I was wondering, if it was.

I can't quite get, cos they're being quite bold there.

They're just walking straight up to it.

Yeah. They're not scared. They're not scared.

They'll have a walkabout, they'll have a feel of the area

and see what's happening.

-So is the idea to separate the lamb?

-Separate the lamb and the ewe, yeah.

It's quite chilling, actually, seeing it happen.

Yeah, here you go.

-These are clever animals.

-They're not stupid.

In this case, fortunately, the raven backs off.

But there is little respite for the Swansons.

When the darkness comes in, you can settle off.

You know, they're no' bothering your lambs at that time of night.

But then you've got to be up first thing in the morning

-then to get them.

-So what are you hoping for in the future?

What would you like to happen?

Going out just now and taking a few birds here and there,

I don't think it's going to reduce the population of them enough.

So something towards population reduction.

How that is, I'm no' entirely sure how we go about it yet,

but if we keep in contact with SNH,

hopefully we'll come to some solution.

If it's going to work to get it controlled

and get us to stay in farming, that's what we have to do.

We can't go out of farming. No choice.

If damage to the flock increases, the Swansons can ask SNH

to vary the number of ravens they can control.

But the results of the trial won't be available for some time.

Conflict with nature will always happen.

And this SNH trial is all about balancing the needs of people

and wildlife in a sustainable way.

And hopefully the farmers of Caithness

and this intelligent and fascinating bird

can reach some sort of compromise.

And now, I'm here in the Borders for what sounds like a very tall tale.

Have you heard the one about the dairy cows that grow tomatoes?

No, neither have I.

But I have been assured by the producers of this fine programme

that I've not been sent on a fool's errand

as I head towards Standhill Farm near Wick.

Standhill is typical of many farms in the Borders.

It's a dairy farm that has been in the same family

for the last three generations.

-Jamie, how are you?

-Dougie, great to see you.

-How are you getting on?

-I'm grand, thank you.

-This is a fair size of a shed in here.

-It is.

It houses a lot of girls in skin-tight leather.

Jim Shanks milks around 180 cows here.

But that doesn't quite cover all the bills.

So it's not a huge herd, by any means.

It's not a huge herd. I've resisted the temptation to make it bigger.

And rather than put all my eggs in the one basket,

I've decided to go and do other things.

So tell me about that diversification.

Why did you decide to do it?

Well, in 2009, 2010, I did a scholarship

and I looked at renewable energy.

I travelled to Sweden, Denmark and Germany and the States

and it just gave me some fantastic ideas to bring back to my farm

and implement on my farm.

-Well, show me the idea, will you? Let's do it.

-This way.

And here it is. My goodness! This is huge.

I've never seen anything like this.

-What's in there?

-Tomatoes.

-Let's have a look, shall we?

-OK.

Jim's state-of-the-art greenhouse covers four acres

and houses thousands of tomato plants in grow bags.

It's commonplace in England, but not in Scotland.

We're just replicating in Scotland what happens in continental Europe

-and in England.

-So, why tomatoes?

Well, there used to be 200 glasshouses

growing tomatoes in Scotland,

so there was a demand for Scottish tomatoes.

People would say, "Yeah, we'll buy Scottish tomatoes

-"if you can grow them."

-Uh-huh.

So there's that sort of romantic, emotional connection

between Scottish people and Scottish tomatoes.

So tell me, what's the connection between dairy and tomatoes, then?

Because it must cost an absolute fortune

-to put heat in here, for example.

-It is, the connection...

the connection is the cow muck. Erm...

What we have got is an anaerobic digester and two woodchip boilers.

We take the cow slurry and we use that to create heat,

electricity and carbon dioxide.

And that's the connection.

The electricity powers the pumps and the fans in here.

The heat is backed up with woodchip boilers to provide the heat in here

and the carbon dioxide is fed into the glasshouses.

It's so important getting good carbon dioxide

into glasshouse crops.

In Sweden and Denmark,

every time that there was an anaerobic digester,

there was a large glasshouse next to it.

So I just simply copied what those people were doing.

70% of Jim's tomatoes are sold across Scotland

as Scotty Brand tomatoes.

Now, Michael Jarvis here, you're part of the Scotty Brand group.

-Hi, Dougie.

-How did this connection and partnership come about?

Well, we supply a lot of seasonal produce from potatoes

through to strawberries.

We're about to start with asparagus as well.

We'd been searching for a tomato partner for quite some time,

and then we heard that Jim was building this glasshouse

down in the Borders, and we were just amazed by what we found,

by the level of investment and dedication.

Just the fact that it's a really modern greenhouse

means that it's very, very energy efficient,

so, you know, these are the greenest red tomatoes you're going to taste.

The Annamay cocktail and Sweetelle baby plum tomatoes

will be on the shelves this year.

But there's a lot of picking to do before that.

So, what's the technique, then?

Well, the technique is, like, obviously, when you're picking,

-you just do that.

-Just pop them off.

Lift it up a wee bit and it pops off.

-Do you do a wee twist there?

-Aye.

-Look at that.

I normally get about five in each hand.

It's my first day, give us a chance.

-And just throw them in?

-Throw them in, aye.

-Great.

-Lovely.

-15 kilos and then it goes off to a pallet.

-Great. Well, listen, I'll let you get on.

-Nae problem.

-I'm going to go and taste some.

-Aye.

Nice to speak to you. All the best.

So let's have a taste, shall we?

Oh, my goodness.

Oh, that's amazing. Incredibly sweet. Wonderful texture.

Who would've thought that dairy cows were in some way responsible

for creating this? Amazing.

A Visit Scotland survey of tourists

revealed the most appealing aspect of holidaying in Scotland

are the breathtaking scenery and landscapes.

We Scots already know that,

but what many residents and visitors don't know

is the danger lurking in our landscape -

ticks.

This is the time of year when their numbers explode.

Kelsey Bennett finds out why this ticking time bomb

should matter to you.

It used to be the curse of gamekeepers and foresters,

but now anyone heading into the great outdoors this summer

needs to watch out.

Because lurking in our countryside is a small beast

having a huge impact,

and I'm on a mission to find out how we can avoid becoming the next meal

for the dreaded tick.

In recent years, the number of ticks has increased dramatically.

Their bite can carry the risk of Lyme disease

and the number of reported cases has risen tenfold

in the last ten years.

It's a condition that can be devastating.

I'm in Lumphanan in Aberdeenshire to meet 16-year-old Calum Culbert,

whose life dramatically changed when he was bitten by a tick last year.

-Hi, Calum.

-Hello.

-Nice to meet you.

-Nice to meet you.

-How are you doing?

-I'm all right, thank you.

'Calum had been on a camping trip at Loch Muick near Braemar

'when he was bitten.'

I came back with 18 ticks.

Oof.

18 ticks? So, were you aware that you were bitten?

-I...

-I mean, can you see them?

Yes, I was quite aware of most of them.

Some of them were, well, in places I couldn't get -

on my back and shoulders.

I had to get a hand removing them all.

And what kind of symptoms have you had since then?

I've had many symptoms of general fatigue,

sort of, general unwellness...

My eyesight's gone.

I've had many neurological problems.

I've had brain fog.

-I've had panic attacks, sort of, induced by it.

-Yeah.

So, since your diagnosis,

have you noticed that you've been unable to do

the things that you used to be able to do?

Yeah, mainly sports, really.

I used to do lots of sports like basketball.

Academically, I've, sort of,

been told by my school that I can't do any exams.

I've been removed from all my subjects,

so I can't sit the exams this year.

'Calum wasn't able to remove the ticks immediately -

'that's the first step in preventing Lyme disease.

'However, if you have an infected bite,

'the second step is prompt treatment with antibiotics.

'Calum's mother Fiona now campaigns to raise awareness

'of just how serious Lyme disease can be.'

I think people know about Lyme,

but they don't really, necessarily, know about the full impact.

I have been shocked at how little information is actually out there.

I'm noticing that you've got a lot of leaflets here.

What are you doing with these?

Basically, I've been going out and promoting in the local community,

approaching countryside rangers...

You know, they're asking me to provide leaflets.

Growing concern around the spread of the disease has led to work to

identify the places where the risk of tick bites is highest.

Hi, Lucy. How are you?

Hi. Nice to meet you. I'm good.

'On South Deeside in Aberdeenshire,

'Professor Lucy Gilbert from the James Hutton Institute

'is carrying out a site survey.'

-What are we doing today?

-Well, today we're doing tick surveys...

-Mm-hmm.

-..using the blanket-drag technique,

-where we drag a blanket to collect the ticks.

-Excellent.

Brilliant. Shall we go?

Sure.

So, this is the sort of habitat where we might expect to find ticks.

-OK.

-There's lots of vegetation.

If we find deer dung, then...

-Is this some here?

-In fact, there's some right here.

-Ah, perfect spot, then.

-So, if you find deer dung,

-then you know that deer are using the area...

-OK.

..and deer carry a lot of ticks. Thank you.

'Ticks can jump around from one animal to another.

'The ticks become infected when they feed on an animal that carries

'Lyme disease, typically smaller birds and mammals,

'but they're easily fooled by Lucy's blanket.'

-Shall we have a look?

-Yeah, let's see what we've caught.

-There's one.

-Oh.

We're trying to determine the impact of deer densities

on Lyme disease risk,

because they increase the ticks,

but they don't increase the actual disease.

'The number of roe deer in Scotland has risen considerably in the

'last few years.

'Although they don't carry Lyme disease,

'they can increase the spread of ticks that are already infected.'

It's not certain at all whether if you have a lot of deer,

yes, you'll have a lot of ticks,

but you might not have high Lyme disease risk,

or maybe you will if there are a lot of mice and birds as well.

Perhaps surprisingly,

only around 2 to 6% of ticks actually carry Lyme disease,

but it is always worth taking precautions.

If you just go, "Oh, look, there's a tick."

-Just flick it off.

-Yeah.

-Don't worry about it.

But most importantly, as well,

after you've got home or back to the car,

check yourself really, really thoroughly,

and if you do find a tick attached,

take it off as soon as you possibly can.

Mm-hmm.

'The risk of getting Lyme disease comes from the tick's

'stomach contents entering the bloodstream,

'so it's important to remove attached ticks correctly.'

So, this is the best sort of tool, really.

-I have seen one of these, yes.

-So it's a general tick tool.

-You can get these from pharmacies, pet shops, outdoor shops...

-Mm-hmm.

These are specifically sold as a tick tool.

-They're incredibly fine-pointed.

-Wow, yeah.

Whereas this, for example, is not a good thing to use.

So just, kind of, regular tweezers?

Regular tweezers which are very blunt,

and if you try to pull a tick off with these,

it'll just squash the body of the tick,

and it might force the contents of the tick into your body.

And that's what we want to avoid.

You don't want that at all.

Another thing that a lot of people do,

which you must...really shouldn't do, is use Vaseline or alcohol

-or a match.

-Oh, really?

-Or a lighter.

-Oh, really?

-Oh, OK.

-Because, again, the tick won't like it and it'll...

it'll regurgitate its contents into your bloodstream,

and that might increase the chance of getting the bacteria.

So if you're out and about this summer, remember it's tick season,

and a few precautions and checks can make all the difference.

And, now, we're back on the banks of Loch Tay.

We're always intrigued to know what you think of the programme

and hear your thoughts on the stories we cover.

Log onto our Facebook page, where we also pose questions.

We still want to know what you think is

the least connected place in Scotland.

But, back in the spring, we asked you to share with us

your favourite picnic spot in the country.

Louise McClure suggested Loch Stroan near Castle Douglas,

while Lorna Lyons loves to picnic on the coast

at Achmelvich Beach near Lochinver.

Back inland, Paul Cameron nominated the ever-popular Loch Morlich

in the Cairngorms.

Susan Spink suggested I take a walk up Drummond Hill,

above Kenmore in Perthshire, to visit the Black Rock viewpoint,

and that's exactly what I'm doing now.

The path to the Black Rock viewpoint takes you through

the Tay Forest Park.

Today, it's managed by Forestry Commission Scotland,

but its history predates the Commission by a few centuries.

This is said to be the first managed woodland in Scotland.

Back in the 16th century, a local worthy, Sir Duncan Campbell,

ordered this area to be planted up with oak, birch and pines -

apparently, the first time such a forward-thinking thing

had been done.

The woodlands' other claim to fame is that in the 19th century,

12 pairs of capercaillie were reintroduced here,

having been hunted to extinction.

A few of their descendants still live in the forest,

so, if you're very lucky, you might catch a glimpse,

or maybe you'll just hear them.

WIND HOWLS

No such luck today.

Ah, well - onwards and upwards.

Oh, yes. Very pretty.

Very bonny. Look at that.

Kenmore down there,

Croft-Na-Caber,

the Crannog Centre,

Taymouth Castle,

and the mighty loch.

Well worth the 45-minute walk.

Wow, this is fab -

the perfect spot to enjoy today's lunch,

a beef-and-tomato sandwich.

The countryside of Aberdeenshire is generally a tranquil place

to live and work, but, on some summer weekends,

the peace is rudely broken.

ENGINES RUMBLE

We sent Jean Johannson to find out what all the noise was about.

I love my sport,

and I'm pretty knowledgeable about everything from football to hockey,

but, when I heard about the sport of tractor pulling,

I thought I had better do my research,

and it's got nothing to do with ploughing.

Tractor pulling is essentially the Formula 1 of the farmyard.

Purpose-built tractors, boasting hundreds of horsepower,

competing against each other to see who can pull a weighted sledge

the farthest down a track.

Today is round one of the Scottish Tractor Pulling Club's Championship

2017, and the fans are excited.

I just like to see the tractors,

and the speed and that that they go up.

It's quite good to watch.

ENGINE REVS

Just to see the tractors going really fast,

and just seeing all the smoke flying up in the air.

ENGINE RUMBLES

Just the noise, and it's really loud,

and I like it when it explodes.

-Do you have a favourite tractor?

-True Blue.

And do you have a favourite tractor that you support?

-Yeah.

-What?

-True Blue.

True Blue is a Ford 8600, with a six-cylinder Ford engine,

generating 1,000 horsepower.

Its owner is Graeme Simpson from Fyvie in Aberdeenshire.

-Hi, Graeme.

-Hi. How are you doing?

-Hi. Jean. Nice to meet you.

-Graeme. Nice to meet you.

Now, I know this is a very big day in your calendar today.

Yes, first round of the Scottish Championship for us.

'He's today's event organiser, as well.'

It's also a week before we go down the road for the first round of the

British Championship, so this is a very important day for us.

We want to get the tractor on the track, and get it tried out,

and make sure it's doing everything it should be doing

before we go down the road and compete against the big boys.

And I see lots of people just arriving.

How many spectators are you expecting today?

I think today we should, if the weather stays good,

I would like to think we'll have about

1,500, 2,000 people in the crowd.

Now, this is True Blue, the famous True Blue.

Tell me all about her.

Well, this tractor is originally a 1973 Ford 8600.

It left the factory with a 401 cubic inch, six-cylinder Ford engine.

-It's the same engine block and crankshaft that we use today.

-Wow.

We've modified the cylinder head a little bit.

We've fitted a turbocharger,

which you can see underneath the shielding here.

We've fitted a larger fuel pump.

We have larger injectors, different injector pipes,

and I suppose the most important thing in this tractor is that

when it left the factory, it would have done around about 2,300rpm.

We'll be doing double that, and hopefully a little bit more today.

And all that power has allowed True Blue to

win six British Championships.

Ah, so this is the sled?

Yes, this is where it all happens.

All right, explain this to me.

This is the sledge. It's...

When it's empty, it weighs just under 11 tonnes.

You can see, down at the bottom here, we have what we call the pan,

and at the back there, we've got the weight box

that currently sits above the wheels.

Now, at the start of the run,

-that weight box will sit at the back where it is now.

-Mm-hmm.

And the further down the track you pull the sledge,

that weight box will move forward, towards the front,

and it transfers the weight off of the wheels onto the skid pan,

and it transforms it from rolling weight to dead weight.

OK, I've got it.

-So, at the beginning, it's a rolling weight, which is a good thing.

-Yup.

By the time it gets to the end, it's a dead weight,

and that would stop the tractor from pulling it.

-Yup, it's the equivalent of...

-OK.

..pushing your car with the brakes off and then someone putting the

brakes on and you're still trying to push it.

We just have to pull it as fast as we can

-and just give it everything it's got.

-Well, good luck.

ENGINE RUMBLES

OK, enough of the science - time to get down to the action.

The pull isn't against the clock.

It's all about getting the weight to the end of the course.

If more than one tractor does it, extra weight is added to the sled.

It's time for Graeme's pride and joy, True Blue,

to take to the track.

Here she goes.

ENGINE RUMBLES

ENGINE ROARS

APPLAUSE

Another successful run for Graeme, as True Blue tops her class.

-Well done, Graeme.

-Cheers. Thank you very much.

-How was that for you?

-I thought it was perfect.

-Yeah.

-The tractor went dead straight, just the way I wanted.

Didn't have to steer, didn't have to touch the brakes -

just hold on and enjoy it.

It was brilliant watching you, and you made it look so easy.

Cheers. Thank you, but I think it was going to the tractor, really.

Yeah, good job to you and good job to True Blue.

-Cheers. Thank you.

-Well done.

And if you'd like to see the next round

of the Tractor Pulling Championships,

they'll be at the Angus Show in Brechin on the 9th and 10th of June.

ENGINE ROARS

And on that high-octane note, there's just time to tell you

what's coming up on the next Landward.

Kelsey boards the floating palaces boosting Invergordon's economy.

This year, there's going to be 91 ships and 142,000 passengers.

Arlene investigates the challenges of running a rural post office.

It can be seen as a bit of a cuckoo in the nest, you know?

We have the shop,

but it takes a lot of work to look after this side of it.

I'm in the Firth of Clyde, literally.

There's nothing better than coming out here in the summer

at 5.00 in the morning, putting your wet suit on,

and you can snorkel all the way up to here, and there's dozens and

dozens of different colours jumping out at you.

And Nick puts an oriental twist on the results of my coastal forage.

And some of this stuff too. This is an amazing type.

Did you pick this?

-I did pick it, yes.

-Really?

Yes.

So, please join us for that and much more.

In the meantime, from all the Landward team here at Kenmore

on the shores of Loch Tay, thank you so much for your company.

Bye for now.