The Flowers of Gorse, Bright and Bold, Paint the Landscape with Strokes of Gold Also known as ‘furze’ or ‘Whin’, Gorse, Ulex europaeus, is an exceedingly spiny evergreen shrub with an abundance of aromatic yellow flowers and a familiar sight across the Northwest of England, from the windswept mountainsides of the Lake District to theContinue reading “The Wild and Yellow Bloom of Gorse”
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Northwest Recipes: Hagese
In one form or another the dish now known as Haggis has been around for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. It is now synonymous with the nation of Scotland, but was once found served upon plates throughout the isles, being a versatile recipe with ingredients that were available in all seasons of the year.Continue reading “Northwest Recipes: Hagese”
Northwest Recipes; Winter Venison Chilli
Venison is one of the healthiest and most environmentally sustainable meats available and we have a plentiful supply of it here in the British isles, but we don’t utilise it anywhere near as much as we could. In the countryside of Northwest England you can find Roe, Red and Sika deer and their venison canContinue reading “Northwest Recipes; Winter Venison Chilli”
Morecambe Bay’s Cockles
‘From Silverdale to Kent sand side, Whose soil is sown with cockle shells’From Cartmel eke, and Connyside, With fellows fierce from Furness fells’ The expansive sands of Morecambe Bay cover over 120 square miles and from their muddy creeks and channels, where flounder abound, to the sandy, silty flats where fields of shellfish can beContinue reading “Morecambe Bay’s Cockles”
The Farming Series
A collection of some of my farming themed articles Most, if not all, of my articles are connected in some way to farming, after all everything in life is in some way, these are some I’ve picked out which are more directly connected. Yain Tain Tethera. A look at the ancient method of counting sheepContinue reading “The Farming Series”
Northwest Recipes, Bowland Roast Grouse
Bowland Roast Grouse This recipe is for a version of the classic English roast dinner which substitutes the traditional Lamb or Beef for Grouse, which is relatively inexpensive*, available from local suppliers, healthy and environmentally friendly. If made with locally sourced ingredients, as much as is possible anyway, it should give you a proper tasteContinue reading “Northwest Recipes, Bowland Roast Grouse”
Northwest Recipes; Elderflower Cordial
The famous British novelist and journalist Sebastian Faulks once said, “If I could eat only one thing for the rest of my life, it would be rhubarb fool, which I would make with ginger and a hint of elderflower cordial”. Now that the hedgerows are white with the delicately formed and scented flowers of theContinue reading “Northwest Recipes; Elderflower Cordial”
Bee Boles
Bee holes are essentially holes built into a south-facing wall for placing bee-hives into, they usually date from before the 19th century, when modern, wooden bee-hives were made commercially available. Normally built into dry-stone walls but occasionally designed into brick walls, bee boles are almost always situated in a south-facing wall and usually accompanied aContinue reading “Bee Boles”
Northwest Nature and History 