All Creatures Great And Small

The Princess Royal supports many farming institutions, as reflected by the native breeds kept on her organic Gatcombe Park estate. Kate Green meets her eclectic collection of animals

Why three is the magic number

In the early 1900s, a group of Herefordshire farmers came together to form an agricultural society that now runs one of the country’s biggest shows. Jane Wheatley meets those who bring the four-day event to life

That'll do, sheep

The original working trials may have stemmed from banter over whose border collie was better, but, as members of the International Sheep Dog Society tell Katy Birchall, the special relationship between man, dog and sheep continues to enthral

Sporting chances

Two estates come to the market that provide an embarrassment of sporting, historical and cultural riches

Waste not, want not

In the run up to her 70th birthday, The Princess Royal pays tribute to her parents for instilling a lifelong love of Nature and urges us all to be more careful about waste and energy in the hope of securing a brighter future for the countryside

To the lighthouse

The Rubh’A’Mhail Lighthouse garden, Islay Undaunted by all that the sea and the storms throw at this barren headland, Suzanne Cobb has worked miracles to create a floriferous garden–much admired by The Princess Royal–that’s literally between a rock and a hard place, finds Tiffany Daneff

Meet the countryside crusaders

From a retired gamekeeper and a fish warden to a TV presenter and an acclaimed author, The Princess Royal’s chosen rural champions reveal to Julie Harding why they love the countryside and their professions so much

Gone to rack and ruin?

Vice-Admiral Sir Tim Laurence, chairman of the English Heritage Trust, considers how best to manage our ruined country houses, ensuring that visiting them is both worthwhile and enjoyable

A Welsh painter in Italy

The landscape painter Thomas Jones (1742–1803) was one of the most forward-looking of the British artists who cut their teeth in Italy in the last decades of the 18th century. Huon Mallalieu considers his career

Teach Your Old Dog Some New Tricks

Long walks might be good for tiring your dog out, but, as Katy Birchall discovers, brain games are equally as important when it comes to relieving boredom, anxiety and restlessness for man’s best friend

The cottage industry

Disraeli once said that ‘the palace is not safe when the cottage is not happy’, but looking at these five examples, happiness is almost guaranteed

Setting the scene

Looking for homes that were once part of large estates reveals a rich tapestry

Life behind barbs

In the hazy heat of high summer, John Lewis-Stempel stops to contemplate the lives and loves, deaths and hates of his 600-year-old Great Green Wall

Very much a cut above

Harvard Farm, Halstock, Dorset When topiarist Jake Hobson brought his sculpturally inspired techniques to bear on his mother’s evergreens, the results were unforgettable.

Glory be to God for wrinkly tin

From cathedral to gospel halls, tin tabernacles are regarded with a special affection in Britain. Mary Miers discovers the ups and downs of corrugated-iron churches–the original flat-packed buildings

This sceptr'd isle

Dwelling on a tiny island sounds idyllic, but is the reality quite as romantic? Tim Relf explores the charms and challenges of a most particular way of life

Hounds and dairy maids

All Georgian architects enjoyed designing estate buildings, because they gave scope for experimentation and novelty. John Martin Robinson explores the inventive– but easily overlooked–creations of James Wyatt

More than one string to her bow

The violinist on virtual teaching, playing Elgar and lobbying the Government

Exorcising the fear

The sculptor Elisabeth Frink (1930–93) responded to the climate of the Cold War with powerful works exploring man and beast as predator and prey. As her work undergoes a timely reappraisal, Mary Miers considers her career

Nidderdale

Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty

Three hundred not out

It is 300 years since the Rev Gilbert White, creator of Nature writing, father of modern ecology and forerunner of Darwin, was born. John Lewis-Stempel salutes the man who put England’s Eden into words

Wide Sargasso Sea

They can dive deeper than a nuclear submarine, make perilous journeys across the ocean not once, but twice in their lifetime and are trafficked in suitcases in their millions. Julia Platt Leonard learns more about the threats facing Anguilla anguilla

The German way

FEAR not: I am not going to tell you that the German way of using herbaceous plants is better than ours.

Shouldering the burden

The human figure supporting a structural load–the female caryatid or male atlas–is a long-running theme in British architecture. John Goodall examines this playful idea

The future is Raymond

Robotics eventually arrive at the farm, as do wildflowers and oystercatchers

Hello, sunshine

Each fossil we uncover reveals another chapter in the story of life on Earth. In an extract from his new book, A History of Plants in 50 Fossils, palaeobotanist Paul Kenrick examines a 47 million-year-old member of the sunflower family, Raiguenrayun cura

Oh, we do love to grow beside the seaside

The key to making a success of a garden on the coast is finding plants that will be happy whatever the wind, sea and sand throw at them. John Hoyland suggests some of the best to try

It really is cricket

England should beat the West Indies in the Wisden Trophy starting today, but, asks James Fisher, what will be the impact of lockdown, new faces and closed doors?

That's the way to do it !

A parrot-voiced hunchback with a hook nose, an evil smile and a ghastly taste for domestic violence could hardly be considered a role model for children, yet our love for Punch and Judy shows endures. Matthew Dennison explores the evolution of Pulcinella

‘Sir, what's the difference between a cactus and a succulent?'

SUCCULENTS: their very name is mouthwatering— unless, of course, you’re one of those gardeners who lumps them with cacti, their spiny cousins. ‘Sir, what’s the difference between a cactus and a succulent?