CountryWide

To Inis Mor for salted white fish and boiled potatoes

20 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There’s an Irish Christmas food tradition from coastal communities that traveled the world. Salted White Fish, boiled potatoes, drowned in white sau...

A family run bookshop in Wexford

20 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Red Books is an independent bookstore located in Wexford town that sell new, previously loved, antiquarian and collectible books.See omnystudio.com/li...

Kilfinane Intercultural Winterfest

20 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Craft workshops, Carol singing, hot chocolate and Christmas decorations... It's all there at Kilfinane Intercultural Winterfest.See omnystudio.com/lis...

Candle making in county Cork

20 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Frances Murphy is a candlemaker originally from Bere Island in West Cork. She is an aromatherapist and reflexologist who has developed her own range o...

Countrywide 13.12.25 Full Episode

13 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide 13.12.25 Full EpisodeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nitrates and Habitats

13 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Three more years of derogation from nitrates directive for 7,000 farms announced by the Department to prove to Brussels that derogation farms are not ...

Louping Ill

13 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Louping Ill is a serious tick borne disease, deriving from the distressing behaviour of infected sheep - including jumping - or louping. Now, a proble...

TB Breakdown

13 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Following one year on from Philip's last visit, East Galway farmers Joe and Michael Dempsey have once again suffered another TB breakdown, leading to ...

Geese

13 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Darina Allen of Ballymaloe Cookery School discusses how, long before Turkey became traditional, Goose was our Christmas roast of choice and had been s...

Plantain

06 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Could a little grass-herb, dismissed in the past as a weed, play a key role in solving Ireland’s livestock/water quality issue? With Thomas Moloney,...

Countrywide 06/12/2025

06 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide 06/12/2025See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bluetongue Virus

06 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

BBC Farming Journalist Anna Hill reports on the impacts of two years of the virus in England and Wales. Dept of Agriculture deputy chief veterinary of...

Dry Stone Walls

06 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

PJ Davon, the lead Stonemason in Connemara National Park, tells Treasa Breathnach how to building a stone wall is part engineering exercise and part a...

Connemara Pony Heritage Centre

06 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A visit to the newly opened tourist facility which will also play a role in preserving the genetic heritage of our native pony. With Cathy Snow and Ma...

Seen / Unseen

29 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

How do you relate to the landscape and what is going on in the countryside if you are blind or partially sighted. Suzanne Campbell reports from Gavin ...

Rivers of No Return

29 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Walking the banks of the River Nore, artist Bernadette Kiely tells Della Kilroy how she thinks rivers simultaneously shape the landscape and our sense...

Countrywide Full Episode 29/11/2025

29 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide Full Episode 29/11/2025See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Houses of Guinness

29 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Just how historically accurate is the Netflix series about the brewing dynasty. In the grounds of Ashford Castle, one of the family’s many houses, h...

Nitrates Derogation

29 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Agriculture Minister Martin Heydon shares new detail on what promises he had to make on improving water quality in order to secure the EU Commission’...

Gas men in Meath

29 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A new anaerobic digester in Meath, one of the first of many, raises questions about where will all the grass to feed them come from? Minister Darragh ...

Devil in the dancehall

29 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Keith Brennan goes to one hell of a hooley in Tooreen dancehall in MayoSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Seashore solutions to plastic pollution in Cork

22 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Two pupils in Loreto secondary school Fermoy look like they are on the brink of developing a biodegradable plastic packaging made from seaweed washed ...

Michael Miley's flooded farm

22 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide visited a farm in County Kildare that was flooded by recent heavy rain.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Countrywide Full Episode 22/11/2025

22 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide Full Episode 22/11/2025See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nitrates derogation

22 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Back in the early nineties all across the EU a rule was introduced to protect rivers and streams from agricultural run off. At the last count 7,000 ou...

Marine protected areas

15 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Irish scientist Mark John Costello, based at Nord University in Norway, looked at the evidence of economic benefits on 50 existing marine protected ar...

Learning about regenerative farming in Monaghan

15 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In Monaghan, a not-for-profit co-operative called Síolta Chroí is hosting training courses on regenerative agriculture. They recently started a six-...

Tralee Oyster Fishery

15 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Tralee Oyster Fishery was founded in 1979, after the near collapse of the native oyster stock. The local fishers came together to restore the popu...

Safety at sea

15 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Marine Casualty Investigation Board is the body that investigates accidents and incidents at sea. It says that fatalities and injuries remain too ...

The latest on avian flu

15 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Several cases of avian have now been confirmed here in Ireland, and that means it’s more important than ever to stick to strict biosecurity measures...

Countrywide Full Episode 15/11/2025

15 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide Full Episode 15/11/2025See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Countrywide Full Episode 08/11/2025

08 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide Full Episode 08/11/2025.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A visit to the repair café in Tullamore

08 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Across Ireland, repair cafés are springing up. The idea is simple: reduce waste, reuse what you can, and give old items, from clothing to furniture, ...

Shifting Baseline Syndrome

08 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Mary Reynolds is a writer based in Wexford.  She’s been thinking about how our concept of nature has shifted over generations and wants to introduc...

Séamus Boland

08 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Last month, Séamus Boland became President of the European Economic and Social Committee, an EU body that gives voice to workers, businesses, farmers...

Protecting Donegal Tweed

08 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

At the moment, anyone across the world can use “Donegal Tweed” to describe their fabric, whether it was made in Donegal or not. This might all sto...

Nick and Cass McCarthy's Lúnasa Farm

08 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In 2021, Nick and Cass McCarthy set up Lúnasa Farm on 30 acres of land in Co. Clare. Neither of them comes from a farming background. Nick’s an eng...

Efforts to eradicate bovine TB

01 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Last month the government allocated €157 million of public money in Budget 2026 for the Department of Agriculture to continue their efforts to eradi...

A poem for Manchán Magan

01 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A poem by Janet Heeran, remembering Manchán MaganSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Land value

01 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Two very large farms that have just come on the property market, and the asking prices for both say all kinds of fascinating things about the value we...

Careful restoration brings a Wexford cottage back to life

01 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Up on Forth Mountain in Wexford, a group of volunteers and craftspeople have been slowly restoring an old cottage, a place that was once the centre of...

Countrywide Full Episode 01/11/2025

01 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide Full Episode 01/11/2025See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why flea treatments for cats and dogs are threatening river life

25 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

London-based vet Sean McCormack tells us why flea treatments for cats and dogs are threatening river life.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy info...

How Sweden responded to Storm Gudrun

25 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On Saturday 8th January 2005, a powerful storm swept past the northwest of Ireland before gaining ferocious strength as it reached southern Sweden.See...

How Marie Hannah Curran storm-proofed her life

25 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Marie Hannah Curran and her husband moved to a windy spot in East Galway, and quickly realised they’d have to adapt their home if they were going to...

Civil Defence: How volunteers help deal with emergencies

25 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The backbone of communities is neighbours helping each other, but also the teams of volunteers who are trained in dealing with emergencies.See omnystu...

Countrywide Full Episode 25/10/25

25 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide Full Episode 25/10/25See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How we should prepare for extreme weather

25 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

October is the start of storm season. So how should we prepare for extreme weather?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Comfort can sometimes be shaped like a hedgehog

18 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Maria Moynihan reflects on how she found comfort in nature, while grieving the loss of her firstborn.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informati...

Why are beef prices going up?

18 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Philip visits Balla Mart to see who is selling and the prices cattle are making.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Irish Farm Book in colour

18 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Celebrating publication of the Irish Farm Book in colour, we visit Kinvara to see a uniaque collection of photos from the 1950s.See omnystudio.com/lis...

Impact of the Blackwater fish kill on people living and working along the river

11 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

During the week, Countrywide went to the lower reaches of the river catchment and talked to a few people who describe the Blackwater as part of their ...

Fisherman in Iceland on the technology he uses to monitor water

11 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Haraldur Eiriksson runs a salmon fishing business 45km outside Reykjavik. The technology he uses gives him live readings of what is going on in the ri...

Blackwater river fish kill

11 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Barry Fox, Deputy CEO of Inland Fisheries; Tom Ryan, a Director of the EPA with responsibility for environmental enforcement; Rick Officer CEO of the ...

Walls of Arainn

04 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Poet Jane Clarke reading Walls of Arainn, one of her poems from a new book called The Hare’s Corner.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informat...

The Hare’s Corner: Making Space for Nature

04 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Hare’s Corner: Making Space for Nature by poet Jane Clarke and journalist Catherine Cleary, is a celebration of the quiet, hopeful revolution ta...

Seventy Years in the Wild West

04 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Seventy Years in the Wild West is the story of Dhulough Farm, published by Mayo Books. It is a chronicle of the human disaster behind creating the big...

The Living and the Dead

04 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Conor W O’Brien’s book The Living and The Dead, tales of Loss and Rebirth from Irish Nature is published by Merrion Press.See omnystudio.com/liste...

Countrywide full episode: A special programme on new books about farms, rural life and nature

04 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A special programme on new books about farms, rural life and nature.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Shepherd’s Life and English Pastoral

04 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

James Rebanks is a farmer turned author in England’s Lake District. In his farming memoirs The Shepherd’s Life and English Pastoral, he tells his ...

Remnants of Our Past

04 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Walking during lockdown Deirdre O’Neill noticed how visible the fingerprints of history are on our landscape. This inspired her to chronicle as many...

Come October

04 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On the Burren in County Clare, farmers are preparing to move their livestock up onto the limestone pavement winterage in the hills. This traditional w...

Féile na bPuiteachaí

27 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Féile na bPuiteachaí is a celebration of the blackberry on Inis Meán ar nOileann Arainn.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Heritage apples from orchards in Roscommon, Clare and Cork

27 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Hundreds of farms across the country have taken advantage of support from the ACRES scheme to plant native apple trees on their farms, including varie...

Countrywide Full Episode 27/09/2025

27 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide Full Episode 27/09/2025See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How to restore river health

27 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The report on the River Blackwater fish kill published this week was inconclusive, with no enough evidence to say what was to blame for the largest fi...

Harvesting rye

27 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Rye is in the same family as wheat and historically was used in distilling and thatching. Nowadays most farmers are planting rye for animal feed. With...

Listen up Irish

20 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A brand new language school which creates an on line community of Irish language learners who audio-read a book together. Lorna Siggins took a look in...

Nature and Wildlife Farm Plan

20 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There is a scheme generating a lot of inquiries, the National Parks and Wildlife Service’s Farm Plan scheme. Tailored plans and financial support to...

Country vets crisis

20 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There is a real concern that the local vet in rural Ireland, on call all hours of the day or night, to tend to farm animals on hillsides or in farmyar...

Ploughing Championship Townhall

20 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Minister Martin Heydon addresses the concerns of Farmers expressed during the RTÉ Townhall during ploughingSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy in...

An essay by Maura McElhone

13 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Maura, from Co Derry, married a farmer from Leinster and now lives on the farm in Kildare. This morning she tells us about the changing seasons of her...

Countrywide Full Episode 13/09/2025

13 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide Full Episode 13/09/2025. (For copyright reasons the full musical tracks are not available in the podcast)See omnystudio.com/listener for p...

First ever female young farmer of the year in Cork

13 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For the first time in the 26 year history of the Macra Na Feirme Young Farmer of the Year competition, the overall winner is a woman, Aileen Sheehan.S...

Harmony in Connemara

13 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Music Network has been bringing live music performances to venues in towns and villages across the country for decades, fostering interesting collabor...

The cost of nature restoration

13 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Back in the 90s, the introduction of Special Areas of Conservation created mistrust among some farmers, and now there is fear that history is about to...

Dr Dara Stanley on pesticide use

06 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Dara Stanley, Associate Professor in Applied Entomology in the School of Agriculture and Food Science, and Earth Institute, at UCD.See omnystudio.c...

Countrywide Full Episode 06/09/2025

06 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide Full Episode 06/09/2025.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Turtles in Irish waters

06 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The temperatures of waters off the west coast of Ireland have been heating up, resulting in a lot of changes to marine life. Six months ago, we heard ...

Supporting women entrepreneurs with the ACORNS programme

06 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

ACORNS (Accelerating the Creation Of Rural Nascent Start-ups) is a free initiative for early-stage female entrepreneurs based in rural Ireland. Centra...

Reducing the amount of pesticides going in to lakes and rivers

06 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Uisce Éireann is running a pilot project to reduce the amount of pesticides going in to lakes and rivers. They think it will be easier in the long ru...

A farmer on TikTok

06 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Fin Walsh is a dairy farmer from Patrickswell, Co Limerick who has amassed over 150,000 TikTok followers, with posts about daily life on the farm.See ...

The Spindle Tree turns red

30 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

If you go down to the woods today, particularly the woodland created by John Normanly in County Sligo, you are sure to see all manner of wild life. To...

Minister Michael Healy-Rae

30 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide speaks to Michael Healy-Rae, Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine with special responsibility for Fores...

Inside the Gate: Farming for Nature's Open Farm Day

30 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The people at Farming For Nature have asked 21 of their farming ambassadors all around the country to open the gates to the public tomorrow for guided...

Countrywide Full Episode 30/08/2025

30 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide Full Episode 30/08/2025See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A milk churn time capsule unearthed in Ballsbridge

30 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In 1988 the Guild of Agricultural Journalists put together a time capsule in a milk churn. Inside, they placed articles of the day from the main Irish...

Restoring the Ash tree in the Irish landscape

30 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The fungus that causes Ash trees to die arrived here in 2012, with devastating consequences for 90% of the population. But now scientists have been in...

The Rural Cycling Collective

23 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

If you’re a child in rural Ireland, will it ever be an option for you to cycle safely to school? The Rural Cycling Collective, which is part of the ...

Roscommon entrepreneur John Stapleton

23 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Ella McSweeney speaks to entrepreneur, investor and food king, Roscommon’s John Stapleton. Go to johnstapleton.eu for more information.See omnystudi...

On board a traditional barge travelling along the Grand Canal from Sallins in Kildare

23 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide decided to hop on board a traditional barge which travels along the Grand Canal from Sallins in Kildare, joining other passengers to explo...

Countrywide Full Episode 23/08/2025

23 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide Full Episode 23/08/2025.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A New Yorker returns to a Sligo farm

23 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Throughout the country, although the vacant property grant has breathed new life into old, empty homes, plenty still sit untouched. In the town land o...

The demise of small abattoirs

23 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The demise of small abattoirs around the country has been decades in the making, but farmers producing small quantities of meat for local consumption ...

Growing seaweed in West Cork

16 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The economy of many coastal communities has changed in recent decades from fishing towards other marine-based industries. Lorna Siggins went to West C...

Celebrating Irish native rare breed farm animals

16 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On Sunday, the Irish Native Rare Breed Society will have a celebration of all their animals at Bunratty Castle in Clare. On 24th August they’ll be a...

Harvest 2025

16 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

All around the country you might have seen combine harvesters and tractors on the roads and in the fields cutting the crops and bringing them in. Over...

Fears of fish wipeout on the Blackwater river in Cork

16 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Earlier this week, reports emerged of a fish kill on the river Blackwater, initially believed to affect an eight-kilometer stretch between Mallow and ...

Fuddlefest

16 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Preparations are in full swing in Fuddlestown, Co Wexford, for an on-farm local music festival taking place on the last weekend in August. Fuddlefest....

Countrywide Full Episode 16/08/2025

16 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Countrywide Full Episode 16/08/2025See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.