The Book of Wilding: A Practical Guide to Rewilding, Big and Small

by Isabella Tree, Charlie Burrell

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

'Important and empowering' - BENEDICT CUMBERBATCH

'Get this great guide and be inspired' - STEPHEN FRY

'A handbook of hope ... Buy it, read it, start changing things right now' - JOANNA LUMLEY
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The enormity of climate change and biodiversity loss can leave us feeling overwhelmed. How can an individual ever make a difference?

Isabella Tree and Charlie Burrell know firsthand how spectacularly nature can bounce back if you give it the chance. And what comes is not just wildlife in super-abundance, but solutions to the other environmental crises we face.

The Book of Wilding is a handbook for how we can all help restore nature. It is ambitious, visionary and pragmatic. The book has grown out of Isabella and Charlie's mission to help rewild Britain, Europe and the rest of the world by sharing knowledge from their pioneering project at Knepp in Sussex. It is inspired by the requests they receive from people wanting to learn how to rewild everything from unprofitable farms, landed estates and rivers, to ponds, allotments, churchyards, urban parks, gardens, window boxes and public spaces.. The Book of Wilding has the answers.
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'Brilliantly readable and incredibly hard-working' - HUGH FEARNLEY-WHITTINGSTALL

'A deep, dazzling and indispensable guide to the most important task of the restoration of the living planet' - GEORGE MONBIOT

Genres: Nature, Nonfiction, Ecology, Environment, Audiobook, Reference, Gardening

560 pages, Hardcover

First published September 26, 2023

Reviews

[Emma M Broom · Rating 5 out of 5]

To begin with, it seems that the target audience of this book is farmers and large estate owners. However, the book's aim is to educate those people interested in re-wilding and saving our green spaces.

This is not another book telling you to install nest boxes and to stop mowing in May, filled with pretty garden photos. It is a book about re-wilding our society. It will no doubt have influenced how I view and support government policies and local council/charitable projects.

Read it for the science, the studies and facts. Read it for knowledge and for hope.

[Nick Harriss · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent book, however if you have read the author’s’ earlier book, Wilding, you will find some of the earlier chapters a bit repetitive. The latter chapters around wilding of gardens and urban spaces are particularly useful.

[Kieran Twigg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Essential reading for any British person. As a proud yellow belly, I am surrounded by both a lack of central and local investment in rural and coastal areas and large landowner's/farmer's preachings of a lack of support. This book is evidence of doing less and earning more. Provide something back to the community and it doesn't have to be at the cost of yourself or others.

This book does present like a coffee table book but my god it is so much more. I implore everyone to rush out and buy a copy.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's not necessary to read every word to get a good sense of the scope of the authors' accomplishment on their UK farm. The Book of Wilding is full of fascinating ideas about how we humans fit into the natural environment, and ways we can improve conditions for, and our relationship with, the animals and plants with whom we share this big blue marble.

[Naomi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having seen Isabella speak at the Edinburgh book festival, and being a fan of Wilding, I knew this book would not disappoint.
Insightful, informed and very very practical. If I had a garden, I'd definitely be implementing some of these measures. As it is, I'm scoping out window boxes...

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is truly exceptional. It is such an important topic and this book shows what simple and complex steps can be taken to bring some wild back into our lives. Will recommend to everyone 💙

[Laura Iriarte · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I would rather have read the first book. I didn’t realize there were two similar books! This one was a bit technical in places. Just not information I need at the moment. I loved the beginning of the book and finding out more about the wilding concept. I found it really fascinating! I hope we see more places returned to the wild.

[Alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

A profoundly wonderful book. Whenever anyone asks ‘but what can we DO’, I now have this to turn to. A highly valuable resource to add to the world, full of insight and the results of courageous trial and error. The world is a better place - and will be better yet - for this book.

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a worthy tome. It weighs like a thousand pounds, and it is just beautiful. It's a thorough and detailed description of what rewilding is, in the first place, and how and where it is being/could be established everywhere. It includes everything one might need to know, from where to apply for research grants, to links to government projects, to books, programs, and experts for help. Whether one is rewilding a multi thousand hectares (I had to look that up, dratted metric system) nature preserve or a backyard, there are directions for you. I love the whole concept but when they talk about reintroducing wild boars etc. to England's suburbs I kind of thought Not In My Backyard, ha ha. It does not paint a rosy picture - these projects are a whole lot of work and very expensive. I learned a great deal, as well. I did not know that large herbivores enrich the soil (besides the obvious cow pattys). I didn't know their very walking and wallowing and trampling and rootling are essential for the health of the soil. I didn't know that sheep were not always part of the English landscape and are actually extremely damaging to the soil. (sorry James Herriott). Even the vision of England's 'green and pleasant land' is a man made imposition of our own standards of beauty and usefulness on a countryside that resists it all the way. I also always thought of my personal backyard as being pesticide free because I don't use any insecticides or herbicides or anything beyond Miracle Grow, but come to find out my dogs, who receive those flea meds you rub into their skin, are excreting these pesticides, as well as the worm meds they occasionally require, and harming wildlife. The authors heap scorn on these flea meds, but I question whether they remember the old days, where every summer the fleas came and you sprayed them and bathed the animals and none of it did any good at all. Those topical flea meds are a miracle. But I digress (into blasphemy!). I love all the sections on green roofs and vertical forest walls etc. This book exemplifies all the best things about reading non-fiction. I learned some things, my perspective altered and widened some, I grew a little as a human being. Highly recommend whether you live on a large estate, a rippling brook or a suburban backyard. Or a housing project in the inner city! You too can rewild something, even if it is only a window box. Not that there are any window box directions in this book, just a passing reference to starting it with sterile soil. But the blueprint is there - find out which plants are beneficial to the fauna native to your area, and that you want to encourage, and go from there. You might even get an apex predator - like a praying mantis! - to drop by.

[James King · Rating 5 out of 5]

Practical and inspiring

[Richard Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book starts out as a how-to book about returning a giant swath of unproductive farmland to nature. The author's husband inherited a 3500 acre estate in Sussex that didn't work as a farm, so they decided to try wilding - letting the land go back to something approaching its natural state with some care to direct the process. The two main lessons are (i) it isn't possible to turn back the clock exactly because so much has changed since the time when the land first was dedicated to farming - different species, different climate, longtime impact of agriculture, chemicals left by humans, etc. and (ii) there's a lot more to it than letting nature take its course - to make it happen in a single human lifetime and to keep it from going in directions that might not create a rich and balanced ecosystem a guiding hand is required, with much experimentation and a willingness to try new things. Eventually you want to be able to mostly let go and have nature take its course, but it takes work to get there. And then there are a lot of interesting facts spread through this part of the book, particularly in the description of different ways that large ruminants interact with the land with their grazing, wallowing and compacting land with their hooves. Cattle and horses graze differently, so it's good to have both of them in a meadow for best results. Who would have guessed?

But much of the beginning of the book made me sneer a little. Maybe it is well intentioned, but how many people have 3500 acres or a comparable large tract of land that is suitable for this kind of treatment? A few thousand people in the world? And how many of those people would ever consider the wilding option? Maybe wilding helps them to raise some nice organic beef, have an ecotourism business and live in a more beautiful place, but wasn't this just another rich person indulging her fantasies in ways that will do little to save our endangered planet? Fortunately, Ms. Tree does a fine job of responding to these criticisms in the second half of the book where she talks about applying the principles that she learned on her own land to other situations, particularly on smaller plots and in urban environments. That encouraged me and put me strongly in sympathy with her, making me regret the judgmental attitude that I had developed in the first half.

[Dan Gibbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

For anyone with even a passing interest in the state of nature in the UK, this book is a must read!

Having read Isabella Tree's previous book about their rewilding project on the Knepp Estate, I was looking forward to the release of this follow-up... and it absolutely did not disappoint! This book is, in essence, two books in one; the first half is a general guide to the appalling state of biodiversity in Britain, the causes of it, and the broad strokes of the theory of rewilding/wilding. The second half is a lot more about the practical applications of wilding, at a variety of different scales, from full-on farm estates to gardens.

It's very clear that the authors are very knowledgeable and passionate about the subject, and while a lot of the aims are by their very nature idealistic, this book always makes sure to state their case properly, and makes clear why the seemingly extreme path of rewilding is both sensible, and cost-effective in the long run. I'm also impressed by the depth to which they've researched the matter; delving into the historical and even pre-historical ecosystems of Europe to really hit home how unnatural our modern environment is.

The first half of the book is a great read for anyone with an interest in British nature, but the second half might be of more limited appeal. I read through most of it, but I skipped some sections; it delves into the real nitty gritty of the practical applications of wilding, even down to stuff like securing funding and getting permissions for projects, which is only really of use to people actively embarking on rewilding projects. For me personally, this was of limited use, but I wouldn't say it all detracts from the value of the book. In fact, it adds to it immeasurably; I'm glad a book like this exists, to provide more than just the vague theory of how to make a positive change.

So overall, for anyone who's involved in agriculture, or has an interest in British nature, I'd definitely recommend it!

[Patch · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve just finished The Book of Wilding: A Practical Guide to Rewilding, Big and Small by Isabella Tree and Charles Burrell, and I’m left feeling a bit windswept—in the best way. Like I’ve been walking through long grasses, pockets full of seeds I didn’t know I was carrying.

It’s part practical guide, part ecological love letter. Rooted in the story of the Knepp Estate (which I’d only vaguely heard of before), but sprawling into gardens, balconies, schools, hedgerows, and rooftops. Rewilding here isn’t just about grand gestures—it’s about letting go, about noticing what happens when we stop tidying so much, when we trust the land a little more.

There’s a gentleness in it, even when the authors are talking about species loss or the bureaucracy of land management. And something oddly comforting about the way they speak to readers at every scale. Whether you’ve got fields, or a postage-stamp lawn, or just a windowsill and a wish.

The book is hefty in places—some chapters feel more like reference material, dense with detail and Latin names—but I never felt pushed out. Just… asked to slow down. To pay attention. To remember that bramble and nettle have their own kind of welcome.

🌾 Favourite takeaway: the idea that a ‘messy’ corner of a garden is not neglectful, but generous. A pile of deadwood becomes a hotel. Ivy becomes shelter. The less we interfere, the more returns.

🌙 Four and a half stars. I docked the half-star only because I got a bit tangled in the length now and then—but maybe that’s fitting. Wild things don’t fit neatly.

Would recommend for: dreamers with garden gloves, tired environmentalists needing hope, anyone who’s ever watched a bee sleep inside a flower and felt something in their chest loosen.

[Shahira8826 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book immensely, but until a few days ago, I was a bit reluctant to give it a high star rating due to the author's hypocritical attitude towards fox hunting (allowing trail hunting - which is just a smoke screen for illegal fox hunting - on the site of a rewilding project fundamentally negates the whole premise of letting nature regenerate and restore itself, in my opinion).
As of this month, October 2024, the Knepp estate has finally stopped hosting what has been called "the UK's most violent hunt", and now I feel much less conflicted about shouting from the rooftops how much I loved this book!
I found the advice contained in these pages extremely useful, even though I don't own a large estate and will only ever be able to apply the principles of rewilding on a very small scale.
I learned so much from reading this, and got some excellent ideas about how to move forward in my own rewilding journey! I can highly recommend "The Book of Wilding" by Isabella Tree to anyone interested in the restoration of nature and in becoming part of the solution, rather than part of the problem.

[T · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent guide to rewilding across scales. It highlights the lack of focussed research in the area, with lots coming down to their experience at Knepp. A book like this will age quickly in such a progressive field, with the section on Biodiversity Credits in particular reading more like a PR piece. Many facts and titbits felt repeated throughout sections, making me uncertain at times whether I'd actually read that chapter already. Some parts also felt contradictory (e.g., don't go to garden centres but here's a great product you can buy).

On the whole, a great book to understand more about rewilding across the world in 2023. Highly recommend, it is a hefty tome but a beautiful book that is well typeset. It also provides masses of further reading to get stuck into!

[jcliche · Rating 5 out of 5]

An engrossing textbook-style guide to re-wilding. This is no light bedtime reading, although I found it very easy to read and understand.
It’s a comprehensive explanation of principles and techniques that can lead to greatly improved biodiversity and ecosystem health based on the authors’ experiences doing just that at the Knepp estate in England. It also includes many references to related work being done in other regions.
Principally written for those managing large areas of land, but includes lots for those with small spaces, and fascinating for anyone wanting to be better informed about the ideas and processes being explored in the world of habitat and ecosystem improvement.

[Jonathan Heaslet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Deeply researched. Data driven. The presentation of a new paradigm of human relationships with nature. Tree & Burrell present their journey of “wilding” when the decide to convert an uneconomic farm into a profitable natural area. They share their mistakes and missteps and discuss alternative definitions and approaches to letting nature do “its thing.” While the authors insist that their writing is for both small and large parcels of land, the bulk of the writing pertains to larger projects. Readers in the US may be a bit disappointed in the amount of time spent on laws and regulations, along with discussions centered around flora/fauna in the UK.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Practically an encyclopedia of rewilding, with some surprising viewpoints, like the idea that closed-canopy forests should be minimized, that environmental niches emptied by extinction thousands of years ago should be filled, that humans already have plenty of food, that most rewilded lands need active human management to encourage biodiversity, etc. The most interesting section, on urban rewilding, is at the end of this long book. Hopefully, the authors will publish a book on this subject specifically as their next project.

[David Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Book of Wilding: A Practical Guide to Rewilding Big and Small by Isabella Tree and Charlie Burrell (Bloomsbury Publishing 2023) (333.95416) (3995).

This incredibly useful text is a manual for “rewilding” one’s yard, neighborhood, town, or nation. Its usefulness will become much more obvious after our 21st century lifestyle infrastructure fails.

Anyone can rewild on a small level. This book will serve as an instructional template for much more macro-scaled projects as well.

My rating: 7.75/10, finished 10/19/24 (3935).

[Tim Regan · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Wrong edition, I listened to the Audible version)

This wasn't really for me, but I loved it! Lots of detailed advice and facts about how to re-wild your farm or your estate. There are chapters on gardens but even then Tree tends to go meta and talk about the sum of all gardens. The reason I loved it was that there are so so many fascinating tidbits. So many things I want to look up and places to visit. I'll have to get a copy from the libraby so I can make notes.

[Brian Gormley · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.8 out of 5. This is a pretty dense book, and may be designed more to read a chapter at a time, or to only read relevant sections. I eventually got through it a chapter at a time. It’s brilliant. There are inspiring examples from across the world. As someone who can only dream of owning a few acres for rewilding, the chapters on gardens and cities were particularly inspiring. Well worth getting out of the library.

[Leanne Hunt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an exceptional book for anyone interested in the project of re-wilding — whether that project is a garden, farm, nature reserve, wetland, forest, or any other terrestrial space. Isabella Tree is well qualified to write on the subject in relation to re-wilding projects in the UK, and her experience shines through on every page. Comprehensive and accessible, the content is a valuable and timely resource for nature lovers.

[William Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent, expansive, detailed, and highly informative work about rewilding. Tree provides a compelling case for not just the theoretical groundwork of rewilding, but a convincing set of instructions for implementing rewilding at all levels of being. A highly recommended read for all those remotely interested in environmental science or policy.

[Joe Downie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautiful, instructive, important book. It will become the holy book of rewilding - packed as it is with useful advice for rewilding at all scales. I loved how clear the information is, and the presentation is fantastic. The kind of book you don't want to give back to the library...!

[Mrs B · Rating 5 out of 5]

As I read this practical textbook on bringing better wild diversity to our landscapes, I noted down a number of ideas to try in our own garden, which we’ve already started implementing. An inspirational and encouraging manual.

[Krista · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is well worth the read. A documentary based on this book just came out and I saw it at the Boulder International Film Festival which inspired me to read the book. This gives me hope for the future of the planet.

[Roger Morgan-Grenville · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not just an extended book about the Knepp project. It is a step by step guide to ways of bringing nature back into our lives, whether on farms, in gardens or even city centres. As such, it is an extraordinary handbook for living a more nature literate modern life.

[Marin Chester · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very inspiring, I think I’ve found my motivation to be an eco-designer! Thinking about this book can feel like the world is swamped in responsibility problems, so I hope that I can find some optimism in people.

[Martina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even if you don't own large tracts of land for rewilding, this book is hugely interesting and inspiring, on so many levels -- from the practical to the subliminal. A true gift to humanity!

[Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extremely interesting book with lots of information. Well written and beautifully read.