Episode 2 of my Edge of the Hedge podcast has been published this week. It’s called ‘Mallows and Purple Hedgerows’, and takes you on an audio walk with me, along a small section of the Viking Way in Lincolnshire, on a baking hot day at the end of July. We take a look at the Common Mallow (Malva sylvestris), as well as noticing some of the other purple flowers in the hedgerows at this time of year, such as Black Horehound (Ballota nigra) and this various Thistles. You can read the show notes right here, just under the podcast player below. You can subscribe and listen wherever you listen to your podcast, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, Stitcher, Google …

A brand new monthly nature connection podcast, guiding you in awakening your senses and making connections with the nature that surrounds us. This week I’ve launched Edge of the Hedge; a brand new, independent, nature connection podcast. It’s written, hosted edited and produced by myself. With each episode, I’ll guide you in rekindling and nurturing your connection with nature, through field recordings, rich narration, sensory exploration and contemplation. It takes you on an gentle, peaceful audio journey, walking the landscape with me, tracking the seasons and changing landscapes throughout the year. Think of it, as an audio almanac, encouraging you to slow your pace, and see the natural world at your feet, with new eyes. In Episode 1 – Linden …

This is the second of two online talks that I provided for the Urban Tree Festival in May 2020, about enriching our health with the Elder tree (Sambucus nigra). Elder flower is one of our classic June flowers, gracing our hedgerows with its creamy blooms. A truly fascinating tree, with a rich history of all kinds of stories associated with it. Elder has a really valuable part to play in our seasonal health, with the flowers, leaves and berries all bringing benefits. Grab a cuppa, put your feet up, and treat yourself to an hour of learning how to enrich your health with elder.  

Back in May 2020, I had the great pleasure of presenting some online talks for the Urban Tree Festival. An annual London celebration of urban trees, which branched out to wider parts of the UK, featuring a whole host of fantastic speakers and opportunities to celebrate all things arboreal. Here’s the recording of a talk I gave about the Hawthorn tree – Crataegus spp.- where I share how it can be helpful for our health, how herbal medicines are made from the flowers and berries, and demystifying a little about its history. If you like it, hop over to YouTube and give it a like!  So grab a cuppa, and treat yourself to discovering all about the hearty Hawthorn tree. …

“… let it thunder to the tune of Green Sleeves, hail kissing-comfits and snow eringoes;” Falstaff: The Merry Wives of Windsor. William Shakespeare Commonly known as Sea Holly, Eryngium maritimum, is commonly found on the East Coast of the UK. Like much of our native plant life, Sea Holly has also been historically known by many different names, including Eryngo (as detailed in the Shakespeare quote above), Sea Hulver and Sea Holme. A particularly striking and beautiful perennial plant, it nestles itself along sand dunes and between dune grasses on the sandy coastline of the England and Wales, but especially along the East Coast and in Cornwall. How to identify Sea Holly Growing to a height of up to 60cm, …