Country Life

On country Life....an eighty hectare orchard in South Canterbury grows apples for the off-season American market, the Canterbury Horticultural Society supplies apple, pear and plum trees as well as compost, boxing and on-going support to local schools at no cost...and a visit to Mokau, a small coastal settlement with only 75 permanent residents.

The busy calving season is in full swing at Mark and Debbie Van Beek's dairy farm near Hokitika on the West Coast. The 50/50 sharemilkers run 500 cows on a three kilometre strip of fertile land beside the Arahura River.

A Primary Growth Partnership programme between the government and the Waikato-based Dairy Goat Co-operative will see $29.6 million dollars funnelled into research in the hope it'll lead to an almost doubling of the co-op's export revenue.

It's calving time on dairy farms so to find out how it's going and the work involved, Country Life's heading to Mark and Debbie Van Beek's farm near Hokitika on the West Coast. Also... Clint Meyer is growing New Zealand's hottest chillies near Waimamaku in the Far North... and turning them into sauces.

Kiwis have developed a hearty appetite for hot sauces, says Clint Meyer, who grows New Zealand's hottest chillies near Waimamaku for his award-winning Fire Dragon Chillies sauces.

Waikato farms are very wet underfoot and farmers are waiting for a spring surge in grass growth. In Canterbury winter feed paddocks are being planted into a range of crops and spring fertiliser is being applied.

Rainfall levels have been the lowest for some time in Victoria and what do rural communities and farmers think about their new PM?

Northland banana growers reckon New Zealand could be self sufficient in bananas in less than ten years. Juicy pineapples are possible too.

Sophie Barnes grew up in England and was supposed to be an architect. However, one day, she helped deliver a lamb and that was it. She decided then and there she wanted a career working with sheep.

South Africans Owen and Linda Schafli moved to New Zealand ten years ago. They've brought their tropical fruit growing skills with them and are successfully growing bananas and pineapples.