Would you recognise comfrey? Comfrey is a common perennial herb, native to Europe, and growing in abundance alongside the British waterways and on the forest floor. It grows fast and is versatile. But far from being an unwieldy nuisance, comfrey is incredibly useful when we know what to do with it.

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Aside from its medicinal uses, comfrey is invaluable as a natural, organic fertiliser. Its roots dig deep, mining nutrients fifteen feet below ground. Its fast-growing leaves can be sustainably harvested and turned into a nitrogen, calcium and potassium rich mulch. Bringing to surface nature’s gold, they make great companions for apple trees. The bees love comfrey too.

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I borrow the metaphor of comfrey under apple trees to paint a humble but powerful picture of hope. We live in extraordinary times. We face exceptional social and environmental challenges rooted deeply in the shortcomings of our global economic system and its tendency to ignore what's truly valuable. Coming to terms with the fact that blindly chasing growth without redressing wider impacts is simply no longer viable in a world with limits is an opportunity for deep change.

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Comfrey and apple trees speak of tangible, practical action. Local and available solutions; the reviving of traditional knowledge. Understanding systems as complex rather than linear. Co-operation and the rebuilding of community resilience in the face of a changing world. Sharing and up-skilling. Getting hands in the soil.

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This is a space to share my musings as I explore that golden question: how to transition to a society where we can all thrive within the limits of our planet.