After all the wet weather this year there is talk of both drought and wildfires.

Two separate reports out this week have highlighted the threat that they pose to people and the environment, both in the UK and further afield.

The Shropshire and Herefordshire countryside is peppered with traditional farmhouses and cottages dating back hundreds of years, homeowners are being taught the skills to maintain them for the future.

Plant breeders are worried that UK border rules mean new seed varieties, which need to be trialled in fields in England, are being delayed.

Dry stone walls are an integral part of our landscape from Orkney to Cornwall.

It is estimated that there are about 180,000 miles of them - but that as many as 85% are in need of repair.

Presented by Caz Graham

Produced by Alun Beach

How pylons ruined a harvest: a Suffolk farmer speaks of his frustration after National Grid dug up his field, two days before a barley crop was due to be harvested.

Presented by Charlotte Smith and produced by Beatrice Fenton.

After all the wet weather this year, there is talk of both drought and wildfires this week.

Two separate reports published this week have highlighted the threat they pose to people and the environment, both in the UK and further afield.

Dry stone walls are an integral part of our landscape from Orkney to Cornwall. It is estimated that there are about 180,000 miles of them - but that as many as 85% are in need of repair.

Presented by Charlotte Smith

Produced by Alun Beach

Farmers this year are growing less oilseed rape than they have for the last 30 years. That is partly due to the expense of growing it, the dreadful wet weather preventing crops getting established, and the fact that it succumbs to the Cabbage Stem Flea Beetle. A group in Scotland however are growing it organically - so how do they do it?

Thatched buildings are a common sight in many rural areas, but a shortage of seasonal labour, materials and outdated machinery are some of the modern-day challenges facing a thatcher today, according to a report by Historic England which warns that the traditional industry could be at risk.

And campaigners fighting for the clean-up of thousands of tonnes of illegally dumped waste in a Kent woodland are threatening legal action against the Environment Agency.

Presented by Anna Hill

Plant breeders are worried that UK border rules mean new seed varieties, which need to be trialled in fields in England, are being delayed.

The Shropshire and Herefordshire countryside is peppered with traditional farmhouses and cottages dating back hundreds of years, and homeowners are being taught the skills to maintain them for the future.

Farmers across the UK are still counting the cost of the long wet winter as they start to bring in a record low harvest of grain.

Presented by Anna Hill

Produced by Alun Beach

The Moorland Association says the wet weather this year means it will be the worst grouse season for decades. Some shoots won't have a single day's shooting because there aren't enough birds. High rainfall during the nesting period means has had a big impact on red grouse. In turn, the association says there'll be far fewer seasonal jobs, and it'll have a big impact on local businesses which rely on the income shooting brings.

Fruit farmers in Kent are facing a glut of strawberries. The crop's all ripened at once instead of over several weeks through the summer and some growers are reporting a serious glut. Unable to sell all their fruit, tonnes of it are ending up in anaerobic digesters.

Which skills are essential to maintain the countryside? Hedging, walling, tractor driving, yes, they’re all important but there’s a far wider range of expertise required by farmers nowadays, taking in things like computer mapping, conservation and even drone flying. We’re going to be talking rural skills all this week and to start, we speak to the Royal Agricultural University at Cirencester where they’re currently updating their courses and thinking about what rural skills the next generation needs to be learning.

Presenter = Caz Graham

A BBC Local Radio 24 hour farming event to encourage young farmers to support each other with their mental health.

Farmer led badger vaccination could be a way forward in eradicating TB in cattle, a study of a four year pilot programme in Cornwall says that it has seen the percentage of badgers testing positive for TB drop from 16% to zero.

Timber is an issue here in the UK, we import more than 80% of the wood we use and there are calls for far more of that to be home grown.

In the south of Scotland the Government agency Forestry and Land Scotland is still clearing up the damage caused after Storm Arwen hit in 2021.

When it comes to the physical felling of trees or carrying out pruning at great heights, it’s a potentially dangerous profession, so comprehensive training is essential.

And an Olympic event that isn't, but really should be, shearing over 500 sheep in nine hours to reach a world record.

Presented by Caz Graham

Produced by Alun Beach

BBC Local Radio holds a special 24 hour farming event to encourage young farmers to support each other with their mental health.

A man from Essex has a childhood dream come true - experiencing harvest from inside a combine’s cab.

And when it comes to the physical felling of trees or carrying out pruning at great heights, it’s a potentially dangerous job - so comprehensive training is essential.

Presented by Anna Hill

Produced by Alun Beach

The latest comprehensive survey of woodland across Scotland, Wales and England has just been published. The Bunce report first carried out woodland surveys across 103 woods, back in 1971. They were revisited in 2001, and the same sites were surveyed again in 2021. The latest report, commissioned, initiated and coordinated by the Woodland Trust has now been published. Some of the things that have changed: there are now fewer larger trees, but diseases like ash dieback and Dutch elm disease have created gaps in the canopy; shade-tolerant plants like bluebells are more frequent; and climate change and warmer winters have led to an increase in holly. We speak to Chris Nichols from the Woodland Trust who oversaw the latest survey.

Forestry England is creating 8000 hectares of wild areas in four of the nation's forests, places where the focus will be on rewilding. We visit Kielder Forest in Northumberland which has been selected as part of the project.

We visit a smallholding in North Wales where donkeys are helping people with disabilities or who're struggling with their mental health. A herd of twelve donkeys are working as part of a programme of equine assisted learning.

Presenter = Anna Hill

This year the UK is growing less oilseed rape than it has for 30 years, it has become too expensive and risky for many farmers to use it as a crop.

Clearing up a green, smelly carpet of seaweed known as sea lettuce from the beaches of Jersey.

And we import more than 80% of the wood we use in this country, and there are calls for far more of that to be home grown.

Presented by Charlotte Smith

Produced by Alun Beach