In 1961, a four-hectare field on the southern edge of an ancient woodland called Monks Wood in Cambridgeshire produced its last crop of barley. Having originally been cleared of trees during the Roman

P leached trees are often described as ‘hedges on stilts’. But that somewhat prosaic description doesn’t do justice to just how versatile, useful and beautiful an artfully pleached tree can be. Specia

Say “Rainforest”, and the average sailor will conjure up an image of some exotic tropical landscape covered in jungle that is home to a diverse array of plants and animals. I first came across such a

Over half the trees in Kew Gardens could be dead before the end of the century. You’d think they’d be better plant protectors at the Royal Botanic Gardens, but this isn’t botched botany – Kew just mon

What the scientists are saying… Falling puffin numbers ...

Plundering a local byway for a spot of festive foraging, John Lewis-Stempel finds all life proliferating in the multitudinous micro-habitat of the winter hedgerow