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It is probably no exaggeration to say that most English canals, rivers and lakes now teem with alien signal crayfish. These originally come from America, but were brought here in the 1970s as ‘freshwater lobster’. Some soon escaped and they are now a serious pest, not least because they carry a disease which is fatal to our native white clawed species.

These small sweet berries are nothing like the familiar cultivated versions which derive principally from North American relatives. Our wild variety shares the same characteristic trefoil leaves, however and is locally common, particularly on chalky soils. It is shade-tolerant and often springs up in large numbers, particularly in woodland after felling has disturbed the soil. Its taste varies widely, however, with the sweetest reputedly coming from those growing wild among limestone rocks where the reflected heat helps ripening. Similarly, they are often found in large numbers along old railway lines where the runners straggle across the clinker, benefiting from the warmer microclimate.