Forest Healing

12/09/2026

As we walk through the woods at this time of year, there are few mushrooms more recognisable than the Fly Agaric, Amanita muscaria. Its brilliant scarlet cap, scattered with white remnants of the veil that once enclosed the young mushroom, has become almost synonymous with the idea of the mushroom itself. It appears in fairy tales, children’s books, Christmas decorations and folklore, where it often seems to occupy a world somewhere between botany and enchantment. Yet the most fascinating thing about Fly Agaric may be considerably less visible.

Beneath that familiar red cap lies a complex organism whose principal existence takes place underground. There, microscopic fungal threads called hyphae extend through the soil and form intimate associations with the fine roots of trees. In Scotland and much of northern Europe, one of its most common partners is the Birch tree.

This relationship is an example of ectomycorrhizal symbiosis — a biological partnership in which the fungus and tree exchange resources through a specialised interface on their roots. The mushroom that catches our eye in Autumn is therefore only the temporary reproductive expression of a much larger organism, and its conspicuous presence beside a Birch is an outward sign of a relationship that may have been developing underground for months or years. The Fly Agaric is interesting not just because of its appearance and cultural history, but its relationship with the Birch invites a much deeper way of looking at woodland. It reminds us that a forest is not simply a collection of trees standing beside one another. It is a living system of relationships, exchanges and dependencies, many of which remain hidden from human eyes.

As we walk through the woods in Autumn, there are few mushrooms more recognisable than the Fly Agaric, Amanita muscaria. Its brilliant scarlet cap, scattered with white remnants of the veil that once enclosed the young mushroom, has become almost synonymous with the idea of the mushroom itself. Yet

10/09/2026

Snowdonia Society is taking Snowdonia (sic) National Park to court, pass it on

Proposed energy scheme in Eryri National Park prompts first Judicial Review in Society’s 60-year history.

On 24 June, Eryri National Park Authority’s (‘ENPA’) Planning & Access Committee resolved to grant planning permission for a hydro-electric scheme at one of the National Park’s most iconic waterfalls – Rhaeadr y Cwm, above Llan Ffestiniog. The decision notice granting planning permission was issued on 15 July. This is a scheme that Cymdeithas Eryri and other like-minded organisations have consistently opposed: at times, nearly 70% of the water would be diverted away from the waterfall into a plastic pipe, threatening the sensory experience and unique environment associated with this special place.

Cymdeithas Eryri (Snowdonia Society) has applied for a Judicial Review of Eryri National Park Authority’s decision to approve a scheme campaigners argue will damage one of the National Park’s most iconic waterfalls.

03/09/2026

Waterfall of the Day. Sort of!

02/09/2026

Human structures don’t exist outside nature. Nature continually surrounds, changes and eventually absorbs them.

The ancient monuments on Orkney weren’t simply built in nature. They were built as part of a landscape that already had meaning.

01/09/2026

Standing among the ancient stones of Orkney can produce a strange sensation. For a moment, the usual measure of time seems to fall away. We are accustomed to thinking about time in terms of hours, days and years. We remember birthdays, anniversaries and seasons. We think about what happened last week, what we might do next month, perhaps what we hope to achieve over the next few years.

But standing beside a Neolithic monument can stretch the imagination in a completely different direction.

Suddenly, fifty years seems very small.

A hundred years is barely a moment.

A thousand years feels strangely close.

And then the mind begins to struggle with something much larger — the possibility of standing in a place where people were living, working, raising families, observing the seasons and looking out across the same landscape thousands of years ago.

This is one of the gifts of what we might call ‘Deep Time’.

Follow the link in the comments to read more!

30/08/2026

Whilst on holiday here, I am exploring what the landscapes and monuments of ancient Orkney can teach us about how our ancestors experienced their relationship with the living world. I’ll be turning it into an article at the end of my trip, but here are some pictures for starters though.

29/08/2026

I have worked for over 20 years in therapeutic roles including work with drug and alcohol users, and later as a Nature and Forest Therapy practitioner. I now combine the two using nature to support recovery and improve mental and emotional health and wellbeing with people who have experienced problematic drug and alcohol use. In my earlier work, I would meet ‘clients’ in a private one-to-one space indoors, but now my ‘consulting room’ is more likely to be an opening in a woodland or sitting on a rock beside a river.

When therapeutic interactions move outside of the 'consulting room' and into nature, something interesting seems to happen to the relationship between myself and the people I work with and support. Nature can create a shared space where we walk alongside one another, notice the world together, and sometimes discover that healing becomes less about what one person does to another and more about how two people can explore things together.

There is something wonderfully simple about walking alongside another person. We don't necessarily have to look directly at one another. There is no desk between us, no chair positioned opposite another chair, and no expectation that one person has all the answers. Instead, there is a path beneath our feet, trees moving in the breeze, birdsong in the distance and the changing landscape unfolding around us.

Conversation can and does seem to emerge much more naturally.

Sometimes it is easier to talk while walking.

Most of the time silence becomes more comfortable.

Perhaps something noticed in the landscape provides the beginning of a conversation that might never have happened inside four walls.

This is one of the intriguing possibilities offered by nature-based practices — nature can change not only the location where therapeutic work takes place, but the relationship through which that work happens. This relationship is most commonly described as the ‘Therapeutic Alliance’ and is the topic of this week's article.

When therapeutic interactions move outside of the consulting room and into nature, something interesting seems to happen. Nature can create a shared space where we walk alongside one another, notice the world together, and sometimes discover that healing becomes less about what one person does to an

22/08/2026

The Importance of Smell

Discover why smell is such an important part of our connection with nature. Explore how the scents of woodlands, earth, trees and seasons can influence relaxation, memory, mood and wellbeing — and discover simple ways to awaken your sense of smell during time outdoors.

Discover why smell is such an important part of our connection with nature. Explore how the scents of woodlands, earth, trees and seasons can influence relaxation, memory, mood and wellbeing — and discover simple ways to awaken your sense of smell during time outdoors.

21/08/2026

I’m here at the Heal Scotland Wild Festival all weekend, and delivery a guided Forest Bathing and Nature Connection Walk tomorrow (Saturday) from 12-2 so come and join us for a weekend of natural medicine and come and say ‘Hi’ to me!
Hugh 🌻🐝