Faced with a failing farm, she and her husband Charlie decided to step back and let nature have its way with the degraded agricultural land. The result? A profusion of rare species, including turtle doves, nightingales, peregrine falcons and purple emperor butterflies; the return of a riot of plants, both common and rare; and extraordinary increases in wildlife numbers and diversity in little over a decade. Wilding fuses memoir and ecology to offer a unique and fascinating account of the beauty and strength of nature.

In conversation with Micky Astor, award-winning conservationist and farmer.