Vincent weir and wildlife conservation

MAKE Y OUR BIRDING C OUNT

Ian McEwan is strolling through the garden of his Cotswolds manor house. Bees waft drowsily between wildflowers. Plump apples, pears and walnuts bauble the trees. Vibrant cerulean-blue damselflies hov

Curlews were commonplace when vet Alf Wight -the fictional James Herriot - was driving through the Yorkshire Dales. Today they are a threatened species and All Creatures Great and Small actor Samuel West is adding to the call to ensure their survival

30-minute birder Amanda Tuke sees the benefits of being distracted by birds at home, and on the coast

Bringing you some of the gardening news highlights

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