Introducing Knepp Estates
Over the next few weeks, I’m giving you a peek inside my mind as I wrote my new children’s book, Miss Prim Goes Wild. I’m gathering all the significant sources of inspiration and experience that influenced the creation of this book, plus some ideas and projects and beauty we can all dive into. I’ll zoom in on one area each week as I countdown to the book’s launch in March. This is my brain spread out on a big board!
Today I want to tell you about Knepp Estate in West Sussex, England.
I first happened upon Knepp Estate’s owner, Isabella Tree, in a Desert Island Discs interview while out for a morning walk about six years ago. Before I reached home I was already looking at plants and birds and little yard mushrooms in a whole new light. As someone deeply inspired by the wonder of nature, my interest was piqued by her hopeful message. She was working to preserve the natural world and seeing remarkable success, using methods I could wrap my mind around. I ordered her book immediately and soared through it over the next few weeks.
Knepp Estate is 3,500 acres of land with a deeply rooted place in history, dating back to the 12th century. About 25 years ago the owners, Charlie and Isabella, had to make changes to their farming methods in order to keep things financially afloat. The more research they did, the more they felt compelled to take a drastic approach and begin to let the land grow wild.
This came with a host of challenges and critics, but the results from a conservation standpoint have been astounding, and globally recognized.
I loved reading about Painted Lady butterflies finally finding a safe place to land as they flew from Morocco. I was fascinated by the pigs rooting in the soil, creating unsightly holes, only to find they were bringing life back to the packed clay soil. And how delightful to learn the little tree babies were naturally protected from animals by the thorny scrub which is typically pulled up, enabling a host of new trees to regenerate quickly. Chapter after chapter recounted hopeful stories of flourishing.
Castle print-out from Knepp source
One aim in raising our own children has been to instill in them a love for nature, pointing them to the Creator in all the little hints of His handiwork and design. Considering a variety of approaches to steward the natural world, in all the little ways we can, feels like an intuitive response as a Christ-follower.
There is so much to learn about the creative work happening at Knepp. If you’re interested, here are some places to get started:
Listen to the 2019 interview: Desert Island Discs interview, BBC
Get the Book: Wilding, by Isabella Tree
Learn more about Knepp Estate
Castle print-out from Knepp source
Pre-Order from your favorite bookshop HERE!
A whimsical picture book that follows strict Miss Prim as she learns how nature's wild ways can heal both her yard and her heart--and teaches children how to watch the wild grow in their backyards!