I've been Rewilding Wales and I didn't even realise

At least my little patch of Welsh mountainside...

I have seen the term 'Rewilding' a lot recently - but not really paid much attention to it.

Then I read an article in The Ecologist today... and the penny dropped.

I've already being doing it.

---

---

The Ecologist article talks about the campaign by the group Rewilding Britain to get the subject of rewilding debated in Parliament.

Their parliamentary petition has gathered over 100,000 signatures well within the prescribed 6 month period and so their proposals have to be debated in Parliament.

• Rewilding to be debated in parliament

Rewilding Britain defines rewilding as...

Rewilding is the large-scale restoration of ecosystems where nature can take care of itself. It seeks to reinstate natural processes and, where appropriate, missing species – allowing them to shape the landscape and the habitats within.

Our rewilding may not be so large scale, but over the past 6 years we have planted our 17 acres of Welsh mountainside with over 10,000 broadleaf trees of a large variety of native species.

And since planting we have left them to do their own thing.

We are not imposing any strict management regime on the woodland, we are leaving it to nature.

Previously our land had been tightly cropped and intensively grazed sheep pasture.

The ecology - both flora and fauna - was quite limited.

Now as the woodland develops we are seeing much more diversity of plants, birds, and small mammals particularly.

We regularly see foxes, badgers, hares and rabbits.

My dream is for deer to move in - and maybe one day even wild boar. The boar are now less than 60 miles away.

So I think I've done some rewilding. I've changed the nature of a little piece of Wales, for the better, for ever.

That makes me happy.

The trees will live on long after me.

---

---

---

---

[ all images by @pennsif ]