Country Life 19 July 2023

Country Life 19 July 2023 looks at cherries, chalk grassland and village life as seen by Britain's best novelists.

Here’s a look at some of the articles you’ll find inside:

Shining a light on moths

John Lewis-Stempel marvels at the pollinating prowess and intricate markings of these largely unseen and unsung insects

Tales from the echoing green

Stephen Wade tells the story of how village life inspired a whole host of authors, from Agatha Christie to Stella Gibbons

Jewels of the downs

Chalk grassland attracts a variety of plants and insects not seen anywhere else in the British Isles, as Vicky Liddell discovers

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Adam Hay-Nicholls explores Jersey’s magical coastline and Antonia Windsor presents her essential island A to Z, plus the pick of local properties for sale

Another bite of the cherry

Britain is enjoying a renaissance in growing native cherries and Tom Parker Bowles is tempted by this most seductive of fruits

Freya Simms’s favourite painting

A mesmerising miniature catches the eye of the CEO of LAPADA

In fair weather and foul

Jamie Blackett remains stoical as he battles with the elements in a typical British summer

Renewal and Wrenaissance

In the second of his two articles, Roger Bowdler looks at the evolution of the Royal Hospital, SW3

Native breeds

Kate Green on the Jersey cow, a bovine beauty-pageant winner

Interiors

Amelia Thorpe picks the best floral furniture and accessories

Painting the landscape

Non Morris is fascinated by the restored 18th-century garden at Melbourne Hall in Derbyshire

Kitchen garden cook

Sweet peppers add sunshine to Melanie Johnson’s dishes

Sex, drags and pottery roll

Sir Grayson Perry tells Charlotte Mullins why he’s off to Scotland with his Map of an Englishman

The good stuff

Hetty Lintell gets kitted out for The Game Fair at Ragley Hall

When the world goes crazy

Michael Billington finds solace in exuberant song and dance