Environment
Number of organic livestock farms trebles since 2022
The Irish organic sector continues to expand, with the number of organic livestock farms trebling since 2022.
30 September 2025
Deadline for slurry spreading
Farmers and contractors are reminded that the final day to apply slurry is today, September 30th, after which the prohibited period for applications will come into effect.
30 September 2025
Think before cutting hedges this autumn
Dr. Catherine Keena, Teagasc Countryside Management Specialist, provides a timely reminder of the key factors to consider when cutting hedges this autumn, explaining a whole farm hedge management strategy is needed to ensure that hedges remain healthy and productive for wildlife and farming alike.
27 September 2025
Soil structure – the foundation of farming
Soil is the foundation of farming, food security, and life itself. It sustains crops, supports biodiversity and stores carbon. In this article we explore how you can maintain and improve your soil structure.
26 September 2025
Countering and preventing compaction for soil health
Ever wonder how our farming activities impact the soil beneath our feet? As part of Soil Health Week, Soil and Plant Nutrition Specialist, Dr. Veronica Nyhan and Luis Lopez-Sangil, Soil Quality Technologist, take a closer look at compaction and offer some guidance as to how to reduce its impact in tillage scenarios.
25 September 2025
What’s working harder than any tractor? The microbes in your soil
Dr. Olga Lastovetsky, Assistant Professor in UCD’s School of Biology and Environmental Science, joins this episode of the Environment Edge podcast to tell us about our fungal and bacterial allies, and how these relationships boost crop production.
24 September 2025
Get snapping: Soil Health Week Photography Competition launched
To coincide with Soil Health Week, a national photography competition ‘Soil in Focus’ has been launched.
24 September 2025
A Kildare soil revival
South Kildare farmer, Colm Flynn is witnessing the revival of something many others have long overlooked – the life contained within the soil beneath his feet.
24 September 2025
Conducting the Grass VESS test
To evaluate soil structure in grassland systems, one of the most practical methods available is the Grass VESS test, a visual, tactile technique based on the Visual Evaluation of Soil Structure (VESS) method.
23 September 2025
GroundTruth: How underpants are helping to understand soil health
As unusual as it might sound, the Underpants Degradation Test offers a surprisingly powerful indicator of soil biological activity.
22 September 2025