This is an interesting and well-written book about farming and food. It is definitely in the farmer-sympathetic camp, which is fine but also gets close to being in the ‘agriculture is doing well’ camp which I find a little irritating. But I learned a lot from it and it is a good read. The format…
Year: 2017
Tim Melling – Anna’s Hummingbird
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Tim writes: The Anna’s Hummingbird is about 10cm from bill tip to tail and weighs less than five grams. It was named after Princess Anna d’Essling the 19th century Duchess of Rivoli, wife of Prince Victor Massena and son of one of Napoleon’s Marshalls. It was named by René Lesson, a French naturalist who also…
An Unreliable History of Birdwatching (33) by Paul Thomas
Saturday cartoons by Ralph Underhill
and…
Wild food (14) – Sweet Chestnut by Ian Carter
This is not a native tree but it has been established in Britain for around 2,000 years and the nuts have long been exploited by humans. They only ripen well in some years and, even then, only on a sub-set of the mature trees. Climate change may help as the tree is native to warmer…