Wood Avens

Wood Avens (Geum urbanum), also known commonly as Herb Bennet, has been used medicinally since Roman times. It is named 'geum' from the Greek 'geno' meaning to yield an agreeable fragrance - the freshly dug roots having a clove-like scent and another of this plant's names is 'Clove Root'.

These aromatic roots were thought to protect against evil and poisons in medieval times, when the plant was worn as an amulet to ward off evil spirits and venomous beasts. It was known as 'Herb Benedict', a name given to antidote herbs owing to a story in the life of St Benedict. Its trefoil leaf symbolising the Holy Trinity and its five golden petals the five wounds of Christ, it appears as a decorative feature in medieval architecture, too.

The leaves used to be added to salads and soups, used for flavouring ale and to fragrance linen, preserving it from moths. The roots boiled in wine were used as a cordial against the plague and Culpeper considered it good for diseases of the chest or breath, or for the stitch.

The infusion may be helpful taken at the start of chills or catarrh and the herb is still used in modern herbal medicine: internally to treat diarrhoea, gastro-intestinal infections, bowel disease, uterine haemorrhage or intermittent fever and externally for haemorrhoids, vaginal discharge and inflammation of the mouth, gums and throat.



An astringent, antiseptic herb which reduces inflammation, checks bleeding and discharges, lowers fever and acts as a tonic for the digestive system.

Flowers May to October. Collect the flowering plant in July or August. Harvest by cutting plants as flowering begins (dry for infusions) or lift roots in the spring (use fresh or dry for decoctions). Roots lifted on the 25th March from dry soil are traditionally the most fragrant and they must be dried carefully then sliced and powdered to best retain their properties.

PLEASE NOTE: These notes on the history and use of herbs have been compiled for general interest and are not intended as medical advice, for which you should consult a professional herbalist.

BIBLIOGRAPY:
'A Modern Herbal' Mrs M. Grieve FRHS ed. Mrs C. F. Leyel (1973)
‘Herbs and Healing Plants of Britain and Europe’ Dieter Podlech (1987)
'RHS Encyclopedia of Herbs and Their Uses' Deni Brown (2002)

May

A May bank holiday trip to Arlesford today and this amazing view of bluebells and stitchwort..





Heavily laden boughs of may were incredibly fragrant in the sunshine and the grass was colourful with buttercups and drifts of sheep sorrel.





I had a wonderful wander in the ruined old church and its graveyard beyond, where the grass and wildflowers are left to grow, hoping for butterflies.





I was treated to these beautiful white star-like flowers peeping out amongst the grass, which I've been trying to identify... Star of Bethlehem?





We did get to see some butterflies later on, walking in the grass (and nettles!) down near the little streams. We think this peacock must have hibernated over winter, as they're not supposed to be about yet - in the second photo you can see how tattered it is.





This was a beautiful butterfly I've not seen before, a Speckled Wood, which we found in dappled semi-woodland very near to a large stretch of water.



And as a fitting end to a fantastic afternoon, we were lucky enough to see both a blue-tailed damselfly and several large red damselflies, one of which obligingly sat on a leaf in the sunshine for us.

Wild Herbs

Amazing, amazing experience at the weekend... a 'Wild Herbs for Food and Medicine' walk with no less than Roger Tabor, chairman of British Naturalists Association and former chairman of the Herb Society, who just happens to live in Brightlingsea! Couldn't believe my luck when I saw a poster up in a shop window in the High Street.. the walk was across the countryside and down to the saltmarsh at the tip of Flag Creek out the back of where I live. Down at the very tip of the creek we tasted Marsh Samphire and Sea Purslane and also saw Sea Beet, Sea Aster and Sea Lavender.

Apart from scribbling down a few notes on cooking Sea Purslane, I failed spectacularly to take any notes or photographs during the walk. I just wanted to be in the moment and give it all my fullest attention.. such opportunities do not come along every day of the week!

But the very next morning I went out on my own for a little countryside ramble near home while it was all fresh in my mind to see if I could find any of the new plants I'd been introduced to..

Mugwort

Can't believe this great Anglo-Saxon favourite is just growing everywhere around and I never knew it!

Wild Carrot

Can you see the purple-ish dot in the middle of the flower-head? This is in imitation of an insect feeding, which encourages other insects to land.

It folds up into this distinctive 'birds nest' shape when it forms its seeds.

Woody Nightshade















None of these pictures would win any prizes, but you get the idea! Very inspiring and feel greatly encouraged about going out and about and learning more plants.

Beautiful Stranger

One of the joys of allowing the herb garden to 'get away from me a bit' (to put it mildly!) is the delight of stumbling across surprises and nature's free gifts.

A week or two back, I pulled up short during my early morning visit to the garden .. at the back of the stand of Evening Primrose something was coming into flower, it was beautiful and it was pinky purple. I had a good look at it - the leaves and habit were so like the Evening Primrose all around it that I hadn't spotted the interloper in its midst - so fair play to it, I say! I just love it when a new plant comes to find me .. a great opportunity to get the old books down, dust them off and learn something new and amazing. So who is this beautiful stranger?

Well, I think, Great Willowherb (Epilobium hirsutum) - please lend me a hand here, if you are familiar with this plant? I got the preliminary id from my field guide, Collins' Complete Guide to British Wildlife, the photo looked spot-on and the description 'pinkish-purple flowers.. pale centres... appear July-August' is also spot on. The joy of the internet is that once you get a lead like this, you just type it in and before you will appear hundreds of images .. so you can get to see the plant from every angle and in lots of different situations.

The stems and leaves are supposedly hairy (hence 'hirsutum', presumably!) and this didn't strike me immediately. However there is a certain fluffiness about the leaves in the photo, so I'll be out having a little look for that later this evening.

Mrs Grieve tells us that Evening Primrose is related to the willowherbs, so I don't feel so daft for not spotting it now (!) and also that the willowherbs are rich in tannin.. used in fact as a tea substitute in some times and places .. and so the leaves have often been used as astringents. However, and PLEASE NOTE, there are 'reports of violent poisoning with epileptic-like convulsions' associated with the use of Great Hairy Willow Herb itself, so this is one plant I will just be happy to enjoy seeing in the garden, methinks!

Nettles for Energy

I just wanted to share with everyone my experience this year of drinking nettle infusions ..

"Drinking Nettle infusion is like drinking the energy of the earth - good solid energy"

I have to tell you that I have found a fantastic increase in energy. And its not a sudden but finite burst of energy like you might get from caffeine, which you have to do 'payback' for later. Firstly, I noticed I wasn't getting that mid-afternoon 'slump' anymore. But then, it seemed that somehow I had more mental energy as well. I experienced a definite shift from feeling overwhelmed and exhausted by my multiple and ongoing health issues to being able to tackle them.

One of the reasons I was interested in trying the nourishing herbal infusions was to find a rich source of minerals (esp. magnesium) to replace the multi-mineral and vitamin supplement I was taking. This has worked out brilliantly for me. Once I stopped taking the multivit/mineral (which had a high level of ascorbic acid in it) and stopped needing caffeine to keep me going through the day, my heartburn and stomachache subsided quite rapidly (in about 10 days).





I don't want to be bore and embarass everyone with long ramblings about my ailments, but I decided its so important to share and document experiences of working with plants so that hopefully others don't have to reinvent the wheel, everyone struggling away on their own in isolation. If I can save someone some time or point them in a helpful direction than it'll have been worth it.

I have to tell you, too, that the biggest test of whether something is working for you is what happens when you stop! So having done my nettle infusion drinking for several months it kind of fizzled out in May .. partly because we were eating nettle soup, but really because I was feeling so much better and just getting absorbed in life. And I suppose, you know, that you think it just couldn't be that simple .. maybe your condition just improved of its own accord, coincidentally.

But after a month or so, everything started creeping back .. caffeine started reappearing and indigestion along with it.. and a general feeling of struggling. So now I really start to get it .. drinking the infusions isn't a 'quick fix' its an insurance policy, long-term nourishment - the clue is in the title 'nourishing herbal infusions'. And we all know that prevention is better than cure! I think I will always be one to learn the hard (or long) way!

So it would appear, actually, that it really IS that simple.

Nettle Diary

This is the photo diary of a little nettle which grew this year alongside our compost:

March 9th

March 12th

March 18th

April 29th

May




This nettle was tall and green and handsome, bursting with life. I had hoped to dry some tops for making infusion. But I was too slow and somehow, overnight so it seemed, flowering happened and I missed my opportunity. Now the nettle is in a bucket with some rainwater and soon all its goodness will be returned to the earth by way of my vegetable patch, making way for a playhouse for the little'un under the tree.

April Blooms

Everything's flowering! Really feels like Eastertime .. went for a little nature ramble today, just a little footpath near our house. Am slowly learning. Love the process of finding out! Interesting to see the difference in the plants growing in full sun and on the other side of the footpath in full shade.

Examined the blackthorn closely .. pure white buds opening directly onto dark twigs, no greenery or leaf in sight. And those really are big old thorns! See how it gets its name.

On the other side, in the sunshine, a full hedge with leaves unfurling too, much further ahead. (Those are the boys, hand-in-hand in the sunshine!)

No, darling, that's not buttercups, its ... aconite? no, celandine! Leaves look wrong, the dark heart-shaped leaves must have been buried low down with just the flowers peeping through.

Got this one right... love speedwell, its so tiny that I'd have missed it if I hadn't been walking with purpose and looking. Could really imagine fairies living in speedwell (and, as a rule, I'm not one for fairies!)

Also seen today white deadnettle, though not much, not enough to collect. And masses of nettles, of course, though all in the dog-pee zone either side of the path, so not gathered. Ladybirds everywhere.

Seeing the baby leaves bursting out on all the brambles helped show me that they are members of the rose family (which I have been reading about here) because they look a lot like new strawberry leaves. When everything is new and fresh things are somehow easier to see.

Lots and lots of vibrant highly scented something we hadn't come across before (no photo, sorry folks!).. very distinctive, looked it up when we got back and delighted to find that its Alexanders:

widespread and locally common near coasts.. yellowish flowers seen March to June

[Collins Complete Guide to British Wildlife]

Masses of it and its in its prime now, so shall look into uses.. please share your knowledge and recipes here, if you know Alexanders?

Update:

OK, great starting place here

Dandelion Salad

I've been reading about the tradition of using bitters to stimulate digestive juices to help breakdown rich meals. As my poor old tum has been sadly in need of assistance lately, I am trying having a little dandelion salad starter before my main meal. Its just a handful of washed, chopped dandy leaves mixed in with a handful of conventional salad leaves and I chucked a tomato in for colour and dressed with olive oil and a splash of my homemade nasturtium vinegar (more on this another time!)

I have to say, I think it helped... I had a roast dinner afterwards and didn't have any problems till about 4 hours afterwards. Will definitely use again, especially as it was really rather tasty!!

Nettle Infusion

The last fortnight I've been taking 2 to 4 cups a day of nettle infusion, following Susun Weed's approach of nourishing the body with herbal infusions instead of/as well as treating the body with herbs in response to problems.

I was really interested to discover just how many nutrients are available from plants such as nettle .. I'm hoping I may be able to replace my daily multi-vitamin and mineral pill with herbal infusion. I was particularly drawn to nettle because it has high levels of calcium, magnesium and the relevant vitamins to aid their absorption plus it is healing for the digestive tract.

(I find that supplementing magnesium helps to keep down the number of migraine attacks I have and through trial and error have found that it only works if I take enough calcium and vitamins with it. Unfortunately, taking enough magnesium to have an effect on my migraine tends to upset my stomach, so I am ever on the lookout for ways of boosting magnesium gently ... at the moment I'm trying epsom salt baths as a means of absorbing the mineral directly through the skin.)

Its been quite interesting taking a herb in this new way .. rather than steeping a teaspoonful for 5 to 10 minutes, Susun's method involves brewing a cupful of herb in a litre of boiling water in a screwtop jar for 4-10 hours, or overnight before straining, then keeping in the fridge to slow spoiling (you need to use it within 24 hours or so). See her full instructions here.

The liquid is thick and rich, rather than watery, but still has the lovely green earthy taste of nettle tea - not strong or bitter as I might have expected from stewing so long. I'm using the leftovers to water my houseplants .. may try as a hair rinse too. And, I have to say, you have never seen such perky looking plants (I only wish I had taken a 'before' photo so I could show you their rapid improvement with some nettle love!!)

Weeds

Little violets ..

didn't notice the beautiful spiders until I enlarged the photo!

Chickweed

An extremely prolific weed, chickweed (stellaria media) is an abundant source of edible and medicinal foliage. It has traditionally been harvested as a vegetable, cooked like spinach or used in salads or soup. It has also been used as a healing herb for centuries. The name ‘chickweed’ derives from its use as food for birds and domestic fowl and ‘stellaria’ comes from the Latin ‘stella’ or star, relating to the shape of its flowers.

Chickweed is used internally to treat rheumatism and chest infections, externally for itching skin conditions, eczema, psoriasis, urticaria, ulcers, boils and abcesses.

The leaves infused in oil make a simple remedy for dry, itchy skin (try adding a tablespoon to bath water for eczema) and a poultice of fresh leaves in muslin can be used for inflammation or external abcesses (use the water you boiled the herb in to bathe the affected area). However, chickweed is mostly used in the form of an ointment which is cooling when applied to piles or sores.

A soothing, cooling herb that relieves itching and promotes healing.



Flowers bloom from March through to late autumn, the leaves closing up at night to protect tender buds and shoots.

Collect the whole herb from May to July, when in best condition.

CAUTION: Do not use during pregnancy; Excess causes diarrhoea and vomiting.

PLEASE NOTE: These notes on the history and use of herbs have been compiled for general interest and are not intended as medical advice, for which you should consult a professional herbalist.

BIBLIOGRAPY:
'A Modern Herbal' Mrs M. Grieve FRHS ed. Mrs C. F. Leyel (1973)
'RHS Encyclopedia of Herbs and Their Uses' Deni Brown (2002)
‘Herbs and Healing Plants of Britain and Europe’ Dieter Podlech (1987)

Chicory

Continuing the 'blue skies' theme, the first chicory flowers opened yesterday.. I haven't grown this herb before (you may remember I bought one from Herbal Haven at the Capel Manor show) so it was with great delight that I found it in all its glory.

Dave from Osage and Orange posted a beautiful piece in defense of chicory a while ago, in which he mentioned that the flowers only open for a day. So I grabbed the camera immediately! The plant has thrown up a very tall spike which has many many buds, so although the two blooms from yesterday may not last, I am hoping for more to come.

Weeds and Wildflowers

I always intended Earth and Tree to be a repository of information and resources, a kind of 'bringing together of interesting stuff' relating to a more natural and earth-centred way of life. To this end, I spent some time (more than I anticipated!) yesterday organising all the blog links on the side column into categories so that we can find things more easily.. if your site has fallen off, please let me know as it won't be intentional! Some of the wonderful blogs could have been listed under several categories but I just went with what felt right at the time .. hope you will find it useful?

Speaking of bringing together interesting stuff...

Its a good time of year for Backyard Herbalism with all the weeds and wildflowers in abundance, including the dandelion .. if you're wondering what you can do with them, check out Greenwoman's post on making a Dandelion Salve and Yolanda's post on making a Soup with the buds.



And if you liked yesterday's post on the Cowslip, you should also see the Wiggly Wigglers post on Cowpats and Cowslips which has more interesting information for you.

Wildflowers

Here in London we had a lovely warm day .. and I visited a local nature reserve, the WaterWorks in Leyton, East London. It was so peaceful there, and it was great to be amid nature in all her glory. Today I saw a heron, red admiral butterflies and lots of enormous bumble bees!

There are little hides to watch the birds on the old water filter beds and a nice place to have a picnic. Also, they are having a wildlife open day this weekend .. if anyone is interested and in the area, these are the contact details:

The Waterworks nature reserve, Lea Bridge Road, Leyton, London E10 7NU (020-8988 7566). Open daily, 9am-9pm. Entrance free. Nearest tube Walthamstow; nearest railway station, Clapton. Buses 48, 55 and 56 stop outside.

I didn't gather anything, of course, but some of these plants are valuable medicinally and have interesting uses .. and as they are growing wild within 2 miles of home, I like to 'learn' them by watching them grow, seeing what wildlife they attract and looking them up when I get home.


From top:
white deadnettle, red deadnettle, cowslip, speedwell, hawthorn