Country diary: The house martins are gone for another year. But they’re not forgotten | Ed Douglas
Lockerbrook, Derbyshire: Last week they were here, now they are not. Yet the details of their epic migration are still a mystery to usThe sudden absence of something, even though you know it’s coming, can dent the heart a little. The Japanese,…
When Zeal and Lytchett’s eyes met across the village square | Letters
Readers respond to Adrian Chiles’s article on the sweet spot between quaint rural place names and nominative determinismHow could Adrian Chiles have overlooked Dorset, where quaint village-naming meets nominative determinism (From Bentley Pauncefoot to…
Country diary: A gleaming beetle that could be bad news for my garden favourites | Susie White
Allendale, Northumberland: On a hot autumn day, I see rosemary beetles here for the first time. This could be a problem for many thriving plantsThis year there have been several firsts in my garden: old lady, vestal and blood-vein moths attracted to the…
Country diary: The breathtaking sight of a tuna taking flight in British waters | Anita Roy
South Hams, Devon: These are monstrous animals, growing to 3 metres and reaching 40mph, and I was lucky enough to see a pack in hunting modeIt is a perfect autumn day for a clifftop walk: sea and sky blend into a veil of baby blue, and the water is calm…
Country diary: Which tree sounds the best in the wind? Take a bough, the poplar | Derek Niemann
Frome, Somerset: With a sway and a swoosh, we’re entering the season to enjoy psithurism – the aural quality of the breeze in the treesThe wind-catchers along the bottom of the valley miss nothing. Even the lightest breath has them whispering. And when…
Country diary: A young shieldbug has found a safe place to hide – or so it hopes | Nic Wilson
Bedmond, Hertfordshire: The entire Serge Hill project is a haven for humans and wildlife, and there’s much to find in its collection of drought-tolerant plantsLooking across a swathe of golden oat grass to the Apple House, it seems almost inconceivable…
Country diary: I’m virtually living in the woods now. Wildlife is everywhere | Kate Bradbury
Lewes, East Sussex: Owls, bats, badgers and countless birds are my new neighbours, but I’ve been particularly taken by a mystery tree – and its resident treecreeperI have made the woods my home, moving from Brighton to the outskirts of Lewes, where the…
‘We can’t ride this storm’: the English farmers facing uncertainty after sustainability funding runs dry
After the available money ran out after just six hours, some fear they will have to reverse efforts to boost natureOn Tuesday morning, farmer Peter Hatley logged on to his computer at 10am. England’s 2026 sustainable farming incentive (SFI) was opening…
Thank you, Phil Gates, for nearly 40 years of country diaries | Letters
Jim McManners says Phil’s columns have inspired his teaching, while Ann MacAskill says she intends to follow his marvelling methodI was with great sadness that I read that Phil Gates’s country diary piece was to be his last (Country diary: A lesson…