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In the murky fulsomeness of Leighton’s canals and river, armoured, scuttling food lurks.  I dont often go in for animal protein, more due to the fact I am crap at catching stuff rather than having any ethical boundary on this.  However, in a survival situation, (or if you, like me, have overspent this month on…

My beautifully illustrated (by Mervyn Peake) copy is gifted to ‘Lynn, from Uncle Gordon, Istanbul, 1955’, with a golden tan cover printed in rich burgundy and dark green palms, ships and huts.  Dogs, guns and ‘savages’ grace the inside cover. Throughout this swashbuckling family adventure our heroes master the tropical island they become stranded on…

So around our lovely River Ouse (and in the back yards of various businesses, and on most waysides) stands the tall silvery turquoise spears of mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris).  Mugwort is related to Wormwood -remember Kylie Minogue’s Green Fairy in Moulin Rouge!, hence the distinctive deeply lobed, branched leaves with silvery undersides, and small flowers bunched…

Im talking about Typha latifolia, better known as Reedmace or even Bulrush.  You will know it.  The reed with its fat brown hot dog sausages poking skyward.  And for the record, its NOT a true Bulrush…for you plant geeks out there, that honour goes to Sciripus species which are not as memorable or cute! Reedmace…

So, the last couple of weeks I caught the last of the wild green soft parts before everything seeds and discovered the food preserving process of lacto-fermentation.  This works something like this: Rip or cut up the greens and place layer after layer in a bowl, adding a smidgin of salt each time, press down…

Welcome to the common nettle’s best kept secret (until it was blared all over the internet, anyhow)…its seeds!! They are not only edible, they are a superfood containing adaptogens to strengthen the immune system and help you cope with stress, whilst the iron and calcium plus other trace minerals aid vitality and endurance, and the…

As the rain hurls itself into the canal im reminded of the film that first made me want to become a boater…Kevin Costner’s epic masterpiece of dystopian global warming gone wrong.  who cares if it plummeted at the box office?  His trimaran was awesome and germinated a craving for the life aquatic that never went…

Here are some of my favourite literary inspirations to get close and personal with the wilderness…. ‘Walden’ by Henry David Thoreau – in depth account of one mans personal decision to live in the woods, very philosophical musings on the nature of humanity intersposed with brilliant observations of animals and people he meets on Walden…

Last Sat me and the littleun trekked to Tring to see what collidge Lake nature reserve has to offer and if its possible for me to run workshops there.  after a fairly pleasant half hour walk pushing the buggy over a stony towpath to the second bridge (nr Bulbourne’s Grand JUnction Arms) i fled Marty…

Great, your’e about to start shovelling handfuls of luscious wild greens (and reds, purples, yellows and browns) into your foraging basket.  But wheres the best place to start?  It might not always be where you think. Busy roads dust nearby plants with heavy metals and fumes, so stick to quiet country lanes, which you would…