BBC Countryfile Magazine

Countryfile Magazine inspires you to explore forgotten corners of the great British countryside and provides knowledge of the people and wildlife that inhabit it. We want to tempt you into trying new things, seek out new places and make the most of Britain’s beautiful landscapes.

A spark of spring

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THIS MONTH’S CONTRIBUTORS

MARCH IN THE COUNTRY • PICTURES › WILDLIFE › PEOPLE & PLACES › COUNTRY KNOW HOW › FOOD

THE FIVE AUKS OF BRITAIN • These distinctive seabirds return to land in March and April to breed

Music for spring… • Jeremy Pound chooses compositions inspired by the beauty of the British countryside

SPINACH BAKED WITH CLOTTED CREAM & EGGS

Countryfile on TV • Sunday 13 February, BBC One. Catch up on iPlayer.

Did you know?

MARCH IN THE WILD

On the plot • Jobs for the garden with Rekha Mistry

Adam Henson • CELEBRATING THE MOTHERLY LOVE OF BRITISH CATTLE

Sara Maitland • The slow and magical process of spring unfurling is a wonder to observe

SLATE COUNTRY • The epic ruins of North Wales’ once-great slate industry are now a Unesco World Heritage Site. Julie Brominicks marvels at the spectacle

NOW GO TO SLATE COUNTRY • Where to visit, sleep, eat and walk in north-west Wales,

BBC COUNTRYFILE MAGAZINE

Run like wolves • On tracks and trails all over Britain, runners out with their dogs, attached to each other via a bungee, are becoming a common sight. Sam Pyrah and her dog Morris try out the growing sport of canicross

Growing together • With no farming experience, Lynn Cassells and Sandra Baer upped sticks from the south of England to take over a 60-hectare farm in the rugged Cairngorms. After appearing in the BBC series This Farming Life, Lynn tells us how their new life is going, six years on

JOHN CRAVEN • HARE COURSING HAS NO PLACE IN OUR COUNTRYSIDE

GET READY FOR THE REVOLUTION • Technology seems poised to transform UK agriculture – but can science help farmers grow more food, while simultaneously restoring the health of our environment? Jess Stevenson investigates

Meet the beaver heroes • Extinct in the UK for four centuries, beavers are now returning to rivers around the UK, thanks to the work of dedicated conservationists. Richard Baynes profiles four people who are doing their bit for the beaver

The magic of wild words • In 2017, a children’s book was published to treasure the disappearing language of nature. It became a worldwide hit that has now spawned two musical albums. Annabel Ross met author Robert Macfarlane to explore the phenomenal power of The Lost Words

Sublime spring gardens • Sunshine on your face, the scent of blossom in the air, the dreamy song of a blackbird. What better way to while away a spring day than in an idyllic country garden? Matthew Wilson heralds 10 of the best

WEIRD WEATHER • We get a lot of weather in Britain. But just when you think you’ve seen it all, you may be lucky enough to witness one of the strange and startling atmospheric phenomena that occur occasionally here. BBC weather experts John Hammond and Sara Thornton report

Great days out

LARKS ASCENDING OVER SPRING MOORS AND TORS • Of all the spring singers, it is the skylark that delivers the most uplifting melody, discovers Fi Darby on a ramble through the remote northern hills of Dartmoor

COURTING IN THE GLEN • The aromatic scent of Scots pine permeates this spring stroll, accompanied by a varied soundtrack of birdsong, including capercaillie and the sweet tones of the Scottish crossbill, writes Fergal MacErlean

DAWN AMONG PINES • There are few better ways to experience the dawn chorus than to wake in a tent among woodland, your hidden presence...