INTO THE PEATLANDS

The peatlands of the Outer Hebrides are half land, half water. The surface is a glorious tweed woven from tiny, living sphagnums rich in wildlife, but underneath are innumerable layers of dead moss slowly changing into peat. Robin A. Crawford explores the peatlands over the course of the year, explains how they came to be, and recounts how peat has been used from the Bronze Age onwards. In describing the seasonal processes of cutting, drying, stacking, storing and burning he reveals one of the key rhythms of island life.