Duncan Smith

Mild conditions are continuing to make for a good winter in the North Island while in the South the winter pruning programme continues for apples and kiwifruit. Audio

Riverton's Te Hikoi Southern Journey Museum curator, David Asher. Audio

Fourteen years ago Colin and Lynette Wilson left Lower Hutt for the far north. Colin liked eating olives - so he thought they should grow them. They have 1000 trees on their property that borders the… Audio

Calves are arriving thick and fast in the North Island and in the South, farmers are winter feeding, moving breaks and trying to get sheep shorn before scanning. Audio

Rob Livesey is a sheep, beef and cropping farmer from Scotland. Farmers there have finally had a break from 14 months of winter. Audio

The Labour Party leaders seem a bit unfocussed. Could it be that Labour's historically 'robust' internal democratic processes simply make them appear indecisive? Audio

Calves are starting to appear around the North Island as a more wintery week hits most regions, and in the South Island break fencing and general winter maintenance continues. Audio

It's the calm before the calving storm in the North Island while in the South; temperatures reached 20 degrees which is unusual for mid-winter. Audio

The Nationals are courting Peter Dunne and Winston Peters as they try to get the GCSB bill over the line. Meanwhile they have done a U-turn on the Auckland rail loop. Audio

The North Island is damp underfoot and lacking sunshine while in the South it's back to normal winter mode now that the snow storm has passed. Audio

Retired farmer Ken Vincent has been breeding chickens for 70 years. Audio

Bitterly cold weather has been sweeping the country. Heavy snow's fallen in the south. Audio

The anti-fluoride movement has been victorious in convincing the Hamilton council to have a fluoride-free water supply. Wellington is their next target. Audio

The National Agricultural Fieldays attracts thousands of teenagers and young people each year. Some come for a day out but others are interested in a career in the agriculture sector. Country Life… Audio

Farmers at the National Ag Fieldays update us on life in their patch. Most dairy farmers are feeling reasonably okay going into winter, the drought seems to be well behind them in terms of pasture… Audio

PhD student Stephen Archer talks about his love of Antarctica and the science he has been doing there. Audio

The CEO of the National Fieldays Society Jon Calder talks about taking New Zealand exhibitors to similar events in developing markets overseas. They'll have a trade presence over the next 12 months or… Audio

A selection of agricultural news from the week. For further rural news go to the Radio New Zealand website. Audio

Massey and Lincoln Universities have slowly lost ground with farm business management research, but now, thanks to financial backing from Dairy NZ, both are boosting their expertise with a Centre for… Audio

Dairy farmers are enjoying the calm before the calving storm and are very happy their payout's on the move up. Audio