CATEGORIES

Delicious drupes

THERE is a peculiar magic in growing almonds. However often you see their soul-lifting, frost-risking flush of white blossom and however often you collect a basket of homegrown almonds, it's hard to lose the sense of glorious impossibility, that somehow you've cheated geography and climate.

It started with a blank canvas

The garden of Patthana, Co Wicklow, Ireland The home of T. J. Maher and Simon Kirby An exquisite small garden is rich in colour and texture and has been imaginatively extended, as you would expect of a painter's domain, reports Jane Powers

Escape to 'God's own country"

Yorkshire folk are rightly proud of their county's magnificent landscapes and rich architectural heritage, but incomers looking to settle there face strong competition from local contenders for picture-perfect country houses

By the light of the harvest moon

As autumn's whisper reminds farmers to reap their crops, inspect your produce for a suggestion of the winter to come, says Lia Leendertz

Building blocks

We can expect fireworks: Labour’s draft plans for a new planning policy contain subtle, but devastating amendments that bear closer inspection

Friends in low places

As special as orchids, as beautiful as bluebells and as important as oaks, our ground-hugging mosses are worth a look down, says Mark Cocker

Talk of the ton

During the golden age of gossip, the fashion choices of the Regency elite were frequently the scintillating subject of the scandal sheets, finds Susan Jenkins

Slopes of hazard

Skiing, ironically, is the safest thing you can do in St Moritz, says Rosie Paterson, who traces the Swiss resort's love affair with adrenaline-pumping winter sports back to a Victorian bet

At anchor down under

A thoughtfully designed ship, with infinity pool and book-lined nooks, is a great base from which to explore Indonesia and the north coast of Australia, finds Jane Wheatley

Peanuts and pencils

The thrill of a new pencil case doesn't fade with age, finds Jo Rodgers, on a visit to Anya Hindmarch's new stationery pop-up shop

Fêted and plated

Behind every powerful man is a woman and behind every successful restaurant is a wise and passionate restaurateur. Tom Parker Bowles meets some of the best

The best seat in the house

Patience, knowledge and practised skill are all required to create handmade furniture. Nick Hammond discovers how one gifted woodworker found the best possible mentor, thanks to a copy of COUNTRY LIFE

Building nationhood

A recently restored villa set in a carefully planted woodland blends traditions in pursuit of a distinctly Romanian idiom of architecture, as Jeremy Musson explains

'Neither fish nor flesh'

A creature of bewitching contrasts, the otter is 'an animal that might have been specifically designed to please a child' and has captured our imaginations since first we encountered its bright-eyed gaze, says Laura Parker

The plant that defied the weather

SO much of what happens, in summer and after, is due to what forecasters like to call ‘weather events’ that occurred in the previous winter and spring.

Sporting chances

Buyers inspired by Team GB's success at the Paris Olympics and the magnificent architecture of the competition venues can pursue their own sporting dreams at four charming houses that have recently come to the market

The sweet taste of freedom

The L-plates are off and it's time to hit the road. Everyone remembers their first (car), so James Fisher asked COUNTRY LIFE staff and friends to tell us about theirs

Attending the barley ballet

Late one August night, John Lewis-Stempel and his labrador are transfixed by the last dance of the barley field, as moonshine bathes the shimmering and swaying sun-goldened crop in an ethereal silvery light

Elegy to a country churchyard

A garden with a church as its focal point is both movingly effective and mellow, with nods to a horticultural hero and a ruby wedding anniversary, as George Plumptre discovers

The summits of excellence

Scaling the Three Peaks of Britain is not for the faint of heart and neither is driving the powerful Aston Martin DBX707. Fortunately, Adam Hay-Nicholls is braver than most and took on the challenge with aplomb

Be not hasty to pluck it

Have we been picking blackberries wrong all this time? Ignore the birds and follow the bees for the ultimate hedgerow delight of summer's end, advises Deborah Nicholls-Lee

A fatal court and folly

In the second of two articles, John Goodall looks at the Jacobite history of Scone and the transformation of the Palace from 1802 into a Gothic Revival prodigy house

Hero of the turf

George Stubbs, born 300 years ago, found Nature superior to art and approached his pictures with the eye of an anatomy scholar, yet no contemporary could rival him in capturing the elegance and character of racehorses, dogs and even zebras, as Jack Watkins discovers

Wheels of fortune

Life is nothing but endless choices, even more so when looking to buy a car. Thankfully, James Fisher has thought of (almost) every possible situation in which you might need one and which model to buy

From Paris, with love

British equestrian sport is riding high post-Olympics and next month's Defender Burghley Horse Trials, which has attracted an illustrious entry, should show it in its best light, believes Kate Green

Can I tempt you with another carrot?

No tea party is complete without a four-hoofed friend in attendance, says Flora Watkins. Just be mindful of where you put the sugar lumps

An undefeated summer?

James Fisher laments the quality of England's Test opposition, and wonders if those at the top of the game are taking it seriously

'Look at the old girl now'

Hello, Dolly!, starring the charismatic veteran actress Dame Imelda Staunton, is a triumph, as is a revival of a rarely seen Shakespearean play

Reality is merely an illusion

Requiring us to suspend disbelief, automata are so much more than toys, demonstrating the separation between the created and the creator, discovers

Cream of the crop

Although small, last month's Christie's Old Master sale brimmed with treasures, such as paintings by Hals, Bonington and Titian, including his celebrated Rest on the Flight into Egypt