Nature

The Howardian Hills AONB: 'If Yorkshire really is God’s own county, then the Howardian Hills are the divinity's chosen estate within it'

John Goodall takes a look at one of the varied and picturesque parts of Yorkshire: the Howardian Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

The Northumberland Coast AONB: Just bring a pair of good boots and a fondness for untamed natural beauty

Giles Kime continues our series on Britain's Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty with a look at the Northumberland Coast.

Curious Question: Why can we see the moon during the day?

For many years, Martin Fone was convinced that the moon was inextricably linked with the night. Having realised his error, he ponders why it's so rare to see — or at any rate to notice — the moon in the daytime sky.

Is the time right to reintroduce beavers across Britain? Maybe, but it must be done carefully

Country Life's leader article from the June 17 issue takes a look at the benefits and pitfalls of bringing beavers back into the wild across Britain.

'Unleashed, mad and dangerous': How Britain's wild, romantic moorland is our 'signature habitat', inspiring everything from Beowulf to The Hound of the Baskervilles

Mark Griffiths examines our ancient fear and fascination with ecologically invaluable moorland, of which we have more than any other country in the world, and makes the case for its protection.

The Tamar Valley AONB: Mines, otters and the ghost of a 'black widow' who roams the moors in a carriage of bones

Kate Green focuses on the Tamar Valley AONB.

The Kent Downs AONB: One of Mother Nature's works of art, from the famous White Cliffs to the wildlife of the Garden of England

Victoria Marston takes a look at the magnificently beautiful Kent Downs AONB.

How the nation's wildlife reclaimed Britain under lockdown, from the Llandudno goats to the owls at Ham House

How to re-wild your garden, from ponds and trees to attracting butterflies and hedgehogs

Joel Aston — one half of the 'butterfly brothers', along with his sibling Jim — explains how rewilding gardens to attract myriad species, from nectar-feeding insects to newts, birds and hedgehogs.

Curious Questions: When does summer start?

You'd think it would be simple. It's anything but, as Martin Fone discovers.

Huge swathes of Britain will be replanted with trees. But where will they be? Who will do it? Who pays? And, critically, which trees should we be planting?

The Government has promised to plant 60 million trees by 2024. It’s a laudable aim, but there are taxing questions to answer about practicalities, such as funding, work force, which species, where to get them from and where to plant them. John Grimshaw, director of the Yorkshire Arboretum, explains more.

10 sustainability myths busted, and six things you can do to make a real difference

Jason Goodwin: 'I found myself shaking my fist at an aeroplane, as outraged by the interruption as any uncontacted tribesman in the rainforest'

Jason Goodwin's efforts to transcribe his father's colourful life story are suffering all sorts of unusual interruptions.

The Wye Valley AONB: 'If you have never navigated the Wye, you have seen nothing'

The Wye Valley is considered the 'birthplace of British tourism' — and it's not hard to see why, says Kate Green.

The 18th century canal tunnel that was a miracle of engineering, now reclaimed by Nature

The coronavirus put an end to Fiona Reynolds’ big walking adventures, but a local round along a Cotswold canal proved a restorative.

The grand plan to re-seed the Cotswolds with endless carpets of wildflowers

Wildflower meadows were once abundant in the Cotswolds, making up 40% of its landscape. Today, it's around 1.5% — but an ambitious new plan to turn things around is in place. Nicky Lowe finds out more.

Curious Questions: Why don't spiders get caught in their own webs?

Spiders webs are sticky — very sticky — and make short work of flies, wasps and other insects. So why don't the spiders get stuck? Martin Fone investigates.

The head of the CPRE: 'Just looking at open fields and woodland and hills makes you feel great... The countryside has a soul, and people can feel that'

Crispin Truman, the CEO of CPRE tells us about his favourite places in England, the importance of rural spaces, and what he would do if he was the King of the Countryside for one day. 

Peat takes millennia to generate, and bogs store 10 times more carbon than forests — using it in gardening is madness

Mark Griffiths explains exactly why the continued practice of cutting peat from bogs for use in horticulture must be stopped.