Ep. 052: Three Years In: The Honest Truth About Rewilding 80 Acres

No guest this week. Just Tom and Chloe with a drink, a lot to catch up on, and roughly an hour to get through it all.

It's been 18 months since the last proper project update and quite a lot has happened. 4,000 trees planted. A tiny forest that nearly died twice and is now over six feet tall. A market garden. A distillery in the barn. A charity. Four schools through the gate in one week. And an otter, which felt significant.

This is the third update episode - episode 9 was the start, episode 29 was one year in. This one's the most honest of the three.

What We CoverRestoring More Nature

The trees, the dragon's nests, and what happens when you prepare the ground properlyWhy the tiny forest survived a drought, deer, and voles - and is now extraordinaryThe wood meadow: a rare habitat, hand-scythed by the community, and why it mattersThe pond that failed, then gave us house martins, a kestrel, and an otterThe pig situation (it got complicated)The cow debate: October, says Chloe. Tom is less sureBreeding birds: double the species recorded between 2024 and 2025Naturfa Pathway: one of four sites selected across Wales by the Welsh Government

Producing More Food

From silage grassland to 50-100+ varieties of fruit and veg - and why that matters for food securityThe cathedral polytunnel, the duck pond, the new orchard, and chickens planned for under the treesCourses launching this summer: market gardening, agroforestry, mushroom growing, seed saving and moreWhat it actually means when the food you grew feeds the people who came to help grow it

Contributing to the Local Economy

From two tractor drivers twenty days a year to six people working on siteWilder Spirits: pre-orders open 2 April. The first spirit distilled on a rewilding site in Wales, in a paper bottlePlatform Nature: 20 founding partners from Wildlife Trusts to a koala sanctuary in AustraliaThe Grange Hub, Wilder Away Days, and why Tom talks about money on a nature podcastRevenue transparency: what the first six months actually generated

Connecting More People to Wilder Nature

Wilder Connections charity: Chloe's co-design phase with schools across MonmouthshireWhat happened when a group of teenagers asked if they could hug a treeMonthly open days: selling out a month in advanceHopes for the rest of 2026 - and why Tom wants everyone to slow down a little

Timestamps00:00 - Tom's opening confession