Country diary: Run out of coffee? Reach for the acorns | Michael White

Cranbrook, Kent: We have no culture of consuming acorns in Britain, but they have a place in my kitchen, especially in a boom year such as thisI tire of hearing the term "abundance" in relation to autumn, and yet the word unavoidably reverberates as the season unfolds, until even I am tempted to use it. Wild food is everywhere, as is a frenzy of gathering and preservation, a ritualised nod to that which was once essential.Not every year is the same, though. Several species don't fruit every autumn, but instead coordinate with others of their kind on so called mast years to produce a bumper crop: a highly evolved tactic that serves to overwhelm the frenzied gatherers, both human and animal, so enough seed will survive to germination. Continue reading...