It comes as a surprise to many people that wildlife on our planet constitutes just 3% of the terrestrial mammal biomass. That’s all the rhinos, kangaroos, polar bears, lions, elephants, jaguars, everything – just 3 %. That leaves 97% which is made up of humans and the animals that humans raise for food. That’s a…
My Life with Mel
I stabbed my sister when she was ten. Melanie had formed a writing club beneath some bushes on the bank of the Dorpspruit with our neighbour, Sally. I wanted to join, but they wouldn’t let me, so I stabbed her leg with my pencil. I think that when she died 50 years later, she still…
Uncultivated Food & Friends
“Leave the trees in peace,” I said. “We don’t need more books in the world,” I said. At the moment I am in that curious limbo phase – my freshly compiled book at the printers, nothing can be changed anymore, all I can do is wait for the boxes to be delivered. This pause calls…
Feral Flowers
There is an abundance of flowers that one can eat. Particularly in summer. Don’t be too greedy though, leave plenty for the butterflies, bees and beetles. If you spot a critter in a flower, just leave it be and move on to another bloom. Just pick off the petals, don’t eat the stamen and anthers…
Street Food
Burritos and bunny chow, amagwinya or hot dogs? No. I mean the free food growing in the cracks in our pavements, along the verges outside suburban homes, on street corners and unkempt edges in parking lots. Once you start looking, it’s astonishing how much nutrient-dense food is available all around us. I get terribly excited…
ReWild Your Life
I’m pretty sure the people reading this article are passionate about wilderness, the protection of wild spaces, and accept that rewilding needs to include a mass recovery of ecosystems across the globe. On a grand scale, rewilding is about letting nature take care of itself, enabling natural processes, repairing damaged ecosystems and restoring degraded landscapes….
Wild Harvesting Wild Seed
I have long been an admirer of Vandana Shiva. Her work seeks to restore connections, tell the stories of the seeds, and, in the process of saving seeds, save humanity – and much other biodiversity – is inspiring. Vandana Shiva is the keynote speaker at this year’s Slow Seed Summit, sponsored by Slow Food USA….
Sorghum
For many years, I have been buying ‘birdseed’ at the pet shop. Not to feed our garden birds, but for tasty breakfasts, lunches, and suppers for myself. These days, sorghum is a lot more mainstream and available in other stores too. It is the same thing. The ‘human’ sorghum has been cleaned more, while the…
An Accidental Ode to Potatoes
It’s potato season in the KZN Midlands. It’s also the time of year when Terra Madre Day is celebrated. This annual Slow Food event held on 10 December, is a favourite of mine. I love the idea that we are connecting with thousands of people across the globe celebrating good, clean, fair food and diverse…
Free State Forage
Social media connections set me on the road North to forage in the Free State this month. Along the unkempt road verges beside chemical drenched, ploughed up, bare fields (used for growing sunflowers, maize, sorghum, and soya), our indigenous poppy Papaver aculeatum was blooming. I adore this little flower and for all its delicacy, admire…
Plant Abundance 