Whether winter-faded ferns, the spindly harvestman or the tyrannical stare of an irate chicken, through-lines from the prehistoric to our modern age are all around us in November, says John Lewis-Stempel

Keep bird baths and greenhouse trays clean. It’s not glamorous, but it’s the difference between healthy visitors and winter woes. A quick scrub keeps plants and wildlife happy – and disease at bay. ●

Mahonia x media ‘Winter Sun’ Forgive me please because I have, in my youth, been a bit sneery about mahonias. I recognise that this was a mistake as they have an awful lot in their favour: colour at a

D oubled over and holding on for dear ...

© HEADER DRAWINGS BY MICHAEL HADDAD/HEART Leaves Byung-Chul ...

The Breath of the Gods: The History and ...