When was the last time you lay in a field and gazed up at the clouds? Have you ever walked through the dew laden grass barefoot in the early morning? When did you last sit high on a hill and watch the sun slowly disappear below the horizon? Or lay in the soft, scented pine […]
Nettles (Urtica dioica)
Nettles are a powerhouse of nutrients and contain good amounts of vitamin C, iron, boron, magnesium and calcium. Traditionally used as a blood tonic they can be helpful for anaemia and can also support kidney function, being a mild diuretic (makes you wee) this may even help prevent kidney stone formation. Nettles are antiallergenic and […]
Meet The Herbalist
I’m really excited to be invited back again this year by Chesterfield Borough Council to demonstrate and talk about my work as a herbalist. It’s a chance to talk with me about the types of conditions I treat and I’ll be bringing along some of the herbs I use which you can identify and sample. […]
Wild Garlic
It’s hard to imagine that Spring is really here, what with the blizzards and freezing winds we have been experiencing recently. Nevertheless, the buds are beginning to unfurl on the trees and the leaves of wild garlic are poking their way up through the mud and snow. Wild garlic, (Allium ursinum), has to be one […]
Silver Birch
I took a walk down into an old quarry near Hathersage today and was struck by the number of silver birch trees growing here, whilst there was almost a total absence of other types of tree. It got me thinking about how this tree is able to grow so quickly in areas which other trees […]