Book Review : Wilding by Isabella Tree (The return of nature to a British farm)

As soon as I received this newly published book I recognised the author's name - I had read her account of the life of John Gould ( The Bird Man : 2004 ) a decade ago and remembered finding it an absorbing and fascinating read.

Then as I was about to start on the book I got a message recommending that I read it ! ... this does not happen every day ... I could hardly wait !

The book tells of the 'rewilding' of a large estate farm in Sussex.  Significantly, the word 'rewilding' has been avoided and this is for the very good reason that this project has not attempted to recreate a wild landscape according to the model of an imagined past - rather, it is based on the idea that a new equilibrium will be established once the land has been freed from the influence of insecticides, herbicides, artificial fertilisers and the interventionist hand of man.

The author in the first chapter recounts meeting Ted.  From him she describes learning about the complex ecology of oak trees.  This sets a nicely anecdotal tone that introduces a whole gamut of fascinating information about the oak.  It tells of the unwitting damage that is often done to these trees by inappropriate farming practices.

Then each chapter unfolds in discussing sometimes processes like the introduction of grazing animals and sometimes the way in which such scarce and declining species as Nightingales and Turtle Doves have recolonised the land simply because it has been left to establish whatever form of wildness happens once human interference is removed.

The writing style is wonderfully lucid and engaging.  I never once found myself having to re-read a sentence to get the meaning of it ( so often I have to do this with some well respected writers ).  And I was constantly enthralled by the emerging story that each chapter tells - while at the same time I was picking up a plethora of related information thrown in along the way.

The central message of the book is one of letting nature find its own balance once it is allowed to do so.  The author contrasts this approach with the frequently adopted conservation schemes designed to create what is seen as the ideal habitat for a particular species to inhabit.  She interestingly points out that conservationists will often mistakenly assume that the habitat where a declining species is found is its preferred habitat rather than the one that it has in desparation been forced to retreat to.

The book is a remarkable tale of how an economically failing farm was made viable by relinquishing conventional farming strategies.  And in addition to the farm's economic salvation, wildlife has benefitted hugely.

While rejoicing in the burgeoning wildlife on this estate, it is as well to remember that the project is largely propped up by agri-environmental funding currently under the umbrella of the European Union's Common Agricultural Policy.

Let us hope that in a post-Brexit world the government of the day will be sufficiently enlightened as to fund poor quality farmland for the benefit of wildlife.