A PEEBLES author has penned a new book about the natural history of the Manor Valley.

Graham Pyatt OBE has written ‘Nature of Manor’, which details a vast background on the area, and includes some of the highest hills in the Southern Uplands.

Having spent 37 years as a forest ecologist and soil scientist with the Forestry Commission, Graham’s work has taken him across Europe, and over to Newfoundland and British Columbia in Canada.

He was awarded an OBE for services to forest research in 1998.

His new book features a chapter on rocks, ice and melt-water, and describes how the area has changed during the Ice Age, and shows where the evidence can still be seen. 

Another chapter on soil types looks at how soils are formed in different glacial deposits.

This flows into a chapter on the many stages of water – from arriving as rainfall, passing through soil and rock, emerging from numerous springs and leaving through a complex network of streams to join the River Tweed near Peebles.

The book delves into various other topics, including flooding in the area, and explains just how the current land use may affect the rate of water run off.

Turning to the valley’s biodiversity, it shows how over 500 different kinds of wildflowers and trees are distributed among the Manor Valley.
Graham also details the range of animals. 

He hopes the book will act as an essential guide both for local residents and anyone visiting the valley.

A launch event for Graham’s book, which costs £20, will be held at Whitie’s bookstore in Peebles on Thursday, March 1, from 6.30pm to 8pm.