How Worms, Beavers and Pigs Rebuilt a Dead Landscape

Watch more of this series: https://to.pbs.org/3QDMaGE Scientists said it would take a hundred years. It took ten. See how three unlikely species — worms, beavers, and pigs — brought a depleted English landscape roaring back to life, including one behavior at Knepp that nobody saw coming. "Wilding" tells the story of a young couple that bets on nature for the future of their 400-year-old estate. The couple battles entrenched tradition, and dares to place the fate of their farm in the hands of nature. This program is made possible by viewers like you. Support your local PBS station: https://www.pbs.org/donate Subscribe to the PBS channel for more clips: https://www.youtube.com/@PBS Enjoy full episodes of your favorite PBS shows anytime, anywhere with the free PBS app: https://to.pbs.org/2QbtzhR FOLLOW US: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PBS/ X: https://twitter.com/PBS/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/PBS/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@pbs Threads: https://www.threads.net/@pbs More about Wilding Based on Isabella Tree’s best-selling book by the same title, WILDING tells the story of a young couple, Charlie Burrell and Isabella Tree, who bets on nature for the future of their failing, 400-year-old estate. The couple finds that their land and soil, once fruitful and full of life, has been decimated by decades of plowing and chemicals used in the modern farming industry. They discover the land needs a complete overhaul that can only be done by letting it go back to its ancient, natural processes and introducing ancient wildlife species that once roamed there freely. Ripping down the fences, they set the land back to the wild and entrust its recovery to a mix of animals both tame and wild, in the hopes that their beloved family estate can return once again to its former glory and more, showing the audience what the enchanting and ancient countryside of England should be. The film documents this grand experiment which became one of the most significant rewilding experiments in Europe.