17/09/20 - Moorland burning ban, pea vodka, harvest 2020 and deep burrowing worms

Farming Today

• Episode: 17/09/20 - Moorland burning ban, pea vodka, harvest 2020 and deep burrowing worms
• Website: Farming Today
• Feed URL: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qj8q/episodes/downloads.rss
• Duration: 00:13:39
• Published: 2020-09-17 07:00

Campaigners are demanding the government stick to its word and ban peat burning on blanket bog in England. It’s long been a controversial practice. The Moorland Association says burning is a tool very much still in the tool kit, along with other techniques to help reduce heather dominance, mitigate against devastating wildfire and facilitate moss planting. Campaigners say it dries out the peat, releasing carbon, and that voluntary agreements to stop the burning haven’t worked. Last year the Environment Minister agreed and said legislation was needed to phase the practice out. But with weeks to go till the start of the burning season, no new rules have been published. Our exploration of the various crops grown to produce drinks takes us to a Scottish distillery which is making gin and vodka from peas. Harvest 2020 is now officially the worst for 25 years. We hear the details from an expert at the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology. And deep burrowing earthworms can dig up to 2 meters into the ground, and it's thought the burrows help encourage better root structure in crop plants, making them more resilient to drought. A new project is looking at whether certain farming practices - like reducing cultivation and adding more organic matter to your soil - can increase deep burrowing worm numbers. Presented by Charlotte Smith Produced for BBC Audio in Bristol by Heather Simons