x

75% of people globally want unbiased news (Pew Research) but are concerned they're not getting that.

Get balanced coverage with Symby. See how stories are covered across diverse outlets and spot when one side covers a story the other skips.

PODCAST

Thrill Of The Hill

Farm Advisory Service

This is a podcast about hill farming in Scotland, brought to you by the Scottish Farm Advisory Service. Scotland’s Farm Advisory Service is funded by the Scottish Government. Our podcast covers a range of topics which help support your farm or croft to be more profitable and sustainable.

science nature

All Episodes

35:31

Where Policy Meets Pasture - The Agri-Environment...

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2026/02/19

Thrill of the Hill is back for season 6! Armed with a new team, new ideas and a range of new speakers, Alex takes on the hot topics impacting the farmed upland environment.At Scotland's First Nature Friendly Farming Summit, Minister Jim Fairlie announced the return of the Agri-Environment Climate Scheme for a 2026 funding round and a commitment to continue the scheme through to 2030. This announcement brought a degree of certainty to the policy landscape and has allowed farmers and crofters to plan

en

50:48

Counting Carbon - Auditing the Uplands with James Orr

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2026/01/15

Thrill of the Hill is back for season 6! Armed with a new team, new ideas and a range of new speakers, Alex takes on the hot topics impacting the farmed upland environment.Reducing carbon emissions is becoming an increasingly important consideration for upland and hill farmers across Scotland. As climate targets, evolving support schemes and market expectations continue to shape the future of agriculture, farmers are being asked not only to produce food from some of the country’s most challenging

en

56:27

Are You In or Out? Cattle Wintering Strategies with...

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2025/12/18

Thrill of the Hill is back for season 6! Armed with a new team, new ideas and a range of new speakers, Alex takes on the hot topics impacting the farmed upland environment. Cattle wintering is an unavoidable and hugely important aspect of livestock management in Scotland. Whether stock are housed in traditional courts or managed outdoors on forage crops, wintering systems sit at the heart of animal performance, farm workload and long-term land stewardship. These decisions are not only about

en

54:30

Happening Organically - Supporting Organic Farming in...

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2025/11/20

Thrill of the Hill is back for season 6! Armed with a new team, new ideas and a range of new speakers, Alex takes on the hot topics impacting the farmed upland environment.Organic farming is woven through Scotland’s landscapes, from the rolling fields of Aberdeenshire to the upland pastures of Argyll. Rooted in principles of soil health, biodiversity and local resilience, organic systems work with nature rather than against it—building fertility through crop rotations, clover leys and composts, and

en

41:54

Flying Blind - Conservation Management for Bats with...

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2025/10/16

Thrill of the Hill is back for season 6! Armed with a new team, new ideas and a range of new speakers, Alex takes on the hot topics impacting the farmed upland environment.Bats are a defining—if often unseen—part of Scotland’s working landscapes. From the edges of upland pasture to lowland hedgerows, shelterbelts and farm ponds, these nocturnal insect-eaters weave through dusk and darkness, helping to regulate moths, midges and beetles while signalling the health of our wider environment. Species

en

53:46

When the Rivers Run Free - Restoring Our Waterways...

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2025/09/18

Thrill of the Hill is back for season 6! Armed with a new team, new ideas and a range of new speakers, Alex takes on the hot topics impacting the farmed upland environment.The water environment is one of the defining features of the Scottish landscape, shaping both its character and its ecological richness. Rivers, lochs, wetlands and coastal waters weave through glens and straths, carving valleys, feeding fertile soils and sustaining a remarkable variety of wildlife. They provide vital habitats for

en

35:02

Getting Your Fill When Out on the Hill - Livestock...

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2025/08/25

Thrill of the Hill is back for season 6! Armed with a new team, new ideas and a range of new speakers, Alex takes on the hot topics impacting the farmed upland environment.Scotland’s upland farms and crofts are home to hardy cattle and sheep breeds, producing high-quality meat and supporting rural communities in some of our most challenging environments. Yet, feeding and nutrition in these landscapes can be complex, with variable forage quality, harsh weather and limited grazing options influencing

en

34:55

Between a Rock Rose and a Hard Place

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2025/07/17

Thrill of the Hill is back for season 6! Armed with a new team, new ideas and a range of new speakers, Alex takes on the hot topics impacting the farmed upland environment.Often overlooked and easily mistaken for its more common relatives, the Northern Brown Argus butterfly is a small but significant species found in parts of Scotland. Closely tied to very specific habitats and entirely dependent on the rock rose plant for survival, its presence is a clear indicator of healthy, species-rich

en

35:21

Planting MOREwoods - The Woodland Trust

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2025/06/19

Thrill of the Hill is back for season 6! Armed with a new team, new ideas and a range of new speakers, Alex takes on the hot topics impacting the farmed upland environment.In this episode outreach adviser Charlie Owen from the Woodland Trust discusses the MOREwoods scheme set up by the Woodland Trust. The scheme is there to allow land owners to access partial funding and advice which may will lead to planting trees on their land. Set up in 2010 the MOREwoods Scheme has supported 3000 landowners

en

28:27

Finding the Next Generation - The Scottish Land...

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2025/05/08

Thrill of the Hill is back for season 6! Armed with a new team, new ideas and a range of new speakers, Alex takes on the hot topics impacting the farmed upland environment.Scotland has a vibrant and dynamic farming industry, merging traditional practices with new innovations, yet barriers and challenges to entering and exiting the industry remain. Established in 2019 in response to industry concerns over the lack of new entrants across the sectors, the Scottish Land Matching Service (SLMS) offers a

en

27:57

Staggeringly Good: Raising The Profile of Venison in...

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2025/02/21

Thrill of the Hill returns for season 5, with an exciting line-up on new and returning guest speakers and specialists in their fields and on their hills.Venison, an underappreciated meat in Scotland? Despite the abundance of deer in Scotland, farmed and wild, venison has never been a staple of the Scottish diet, certainly not in the same way as beef or lamb. Scottish Government reports that the amount of farmed venison in Scotland increased by around 4.9% on the last five year average, making up

en

41:48

First Aid on Farm with Sean Magee

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2025/01/16

Thrill of the Hill returns for season 5, with an exciting line-up on new and returning guest speakers and specialists in their fields and on their hills.We're all human, fragile and fallible, accidents can occur and mistakes can be made, people can be in danger, get hurt and when that happens, be in need of first aid. The National Farmers Union reports that despite accounting for only 1% of the working population, agriculture accounts for 20% of all deaths in the workplace. In this episode,

en

41:27

Droning On

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2024/12/19

Thrill of the Hill returns for season 5, with an exciting line-up on new and returning guest speakers and specialists in their fields and on their hills.Technology is always progressing, and the same is true in the uplands. New innovations mean it has never been easier to collect, measure and interpret data for the benefit of farming, nature and climate change. In this episode, Environmental Consultant, Jack Zuill discusses the potential for and realities of measuring nature, using a range of

en

25:06

What's Good For The Goose...

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2024/11/22

Thrill of the Hill returns for season 5, with an exciting line-up on new and returning guest speakers and specialists in their fields and on their hills.Love them or hate them, geese are a recurring feature on farms across Scotland. Views differ on the benefits of having them, some see them as a pest species, others as a necessary component of a larger biodiversity network. In this episode we sit down with Rae Mackenzie for a broad discussion on geese and goose management in Scotland. We cover their

en

43:34

Taking it to the Max (MSO)

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2024/10/23

Thrill of the Hill returns for season 5, with an exciting line-up on new and returning guest speakers and specialists in their fields and on their hills.As climate change, biodiversity decline and food security continue to build in our collective consciousnesses the drive to find a comprehensive solution intensifies. In this episode, Chris Clark from Nethergill Associates shares his opinions and approach to Maximum Sustainable Output (MSO), a concept that revolves the ideas of natural and industrial

en

46:30

Climate Change Catch-Up with Seamus Murphy

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2024/09/19

Thrill of the Hill returns for season 5, with an exciting line-up on new and returning guest speakers and specialists in their fields and on their hills.With COP26 in Glasgow well in the rearview mirror and 2030 on the horizon, serious, measurable change has to be made in the fight against climate change. With Scottish Climate Week coming up, in this podcast we hear from Senior Carbon & Sustainability Consultant and returning guest to the podcast, Seamus Murphy on the progress made by Scottish

en

47:42

Cattle Grazing Benefits

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2024/08/22

Thrill of the Hill returns for season 5, with an exciting line-up on new and returning guest speakers and specialists in their fields and on their hills.Life as a cow is difficult and complicated, on the one hand there is a general acceptance that their non-selective grazing, trampling and dunging can contribute to diverse grassland swards, ideal habitat for ground-nesting birds etc. and promote healthy soils. On the other hand, the production of methane and relatively high carbon footprints in

en

36:19

Understanding Soil From The Ground Up with Lorna...

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2024/07/25

Soil is a perennial topic, something that needs to be discussed on a recurring basis, and last time we did so was with Dr Bill Crooks some years ago now. In this episode, we hear from agricultural consultant and soil management enthusiast Lorna Galloway and talk all manner of things, from improving the uplands, raising soil pH, integrating clover, managing drainage and highlighting the support available for soil sampling under Preparing for Sustainable Farming.Soil forms the foundation of just about

en

50:49

A Damming Conclusion? Part II

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2024/06/25

THRILL OF THE HILL | A Damming Conclusion: Part II with Davy McCrackenThrill of the Hill returns for season 5, with an exciting line-up on new and returning guest speakers and specialists in their fields and on their hills.Beavers and their presence in Scotland continues to divide the agricultural community, for some they generate hope for a more nature-rich Scotland and more dynamic landscape, for others they cause damage and threaten the viability of various farm enterprises. Last year we heard a

en

49:06

The Farm Business Survey Part 2

Thrill Of The Hill ·

2024/05/30

THRILL OF THE HILL | Farm Business Survey: Part II with Sascha GriersonThrill of the Hill returns for season 5, with an exciting line-up on new and returning guest speakers and specialists in their fields and on their hills.With change on the horizon, being on sure footing can be the difference between having a successful business and not. The Farm Business Survey is Scotland's way of establishing the state of our farming communities, benchmarking business performance and generating the data that

en

67 results

Similar Podcasts

Classic Radio Science Fiction

solgoodmedia.com

Mission to Mars

Inception Point Ai

The 365 Days of Astronomy

365DaysOfAstronomy.org

Creek Devil

william Jevning

UFO Chronicles Podcast

Nik Hunter