Childhood memories – bogs, sand dunes and a promised treat
Growing up as a herbalist’s daughter necessarily meant we did things that are not your typical day out. Herb picks were a regular seasonal activity. I won’t pretend it didn’t sometimes take some coercion to climb into the car with the objective of filling the black sack in hand. But the promise of some chocolate at the end helped, especially as it was a rather rare treat.
But as an adult, I’m truly grateful for these memories and the years that connected me deeply to the living plants around me and under my feet. Hedgerows aren’t just hedgerows, they are a living pharmacy. Roadside verges, thick with forgotten medicine cry out to be remembered for their medicinal use. Even the cracks of pavements in busy high streets declare the need to know the wonderful healing potential within. I frequently say to myself on my walks, “if only people knew”. If only they knew how these ubiquitous herbs could help them. So, as much as I can remember my resistance, I am glad and know I was privileged to accompany my father and sisters on herb picks in the Scottish Highlands.
I can remember vividly reaching up to gather hawthorn, Crataegus monogyna, in a neglected corner of a deciduous woods, swatting away clegs in blazing heat with the heady smell of hawthorn flowers filling my senses. It wasn’t a pleasant pick as the branches are thorned (hawthorn being a member of the rose family) and the flowers are pollinated by flies. I have never been a fan of flying insects, I’m still not. But there is nothing like hawthorn for protecting the heart and blood vessels. A more fun pick was collecting bogbean, Menyanthes trifoliata (it is a three-leaved plant, hence its Latin name). This herb is intensely bitter and it used for lung conditions and rheumatism. Picking bogbean was fun for a few reasons. Wading into a bog always had the adventurous element – is my next step going to be a mistaken one. I liked to watch the water boatman rowing over the surface of the water-tension and diving deep under. And there was always the possibility of spotting some newts or frogs. I’m a naturalist at heart. And a big bonus to this pick was that the bag filled very quickly with this bulky plant and before we knew it we would be heading back to the car for our reward, possibly even an ice cream!
Collecting eyebright, Euphrasia officinalis (this herb is wonderful for inflamed eyes and hay fever) was another story altogether. This time we would be on our knees picking this beautiful delicate herb at the base of the sand dunes on Dunnet Bay. It’s small and delicate but it comes up easily. It’s so small that it always came with a dread of how long it was going to take to fill a bag although I believe we had smaller bags to fill for this one.
Like the others, the herbs would be dried on a drying rack, either outside in the sun or over the aga until crisply dry for storage or for the process of macerating the herb in alcohol to be made into a tincture.
Smell is very powerful for evoking memory. I will always remember the sunny smell of coltsfoot flower syrup that would be made with a layer of yellow coltsfoot flowers and a layer of sugar, repeated until the barrel was full and left in a warm cupboard next to the aga for a couple of weeks before being strained. And whenever I open a bottle of meadowsweet tincture, Filipendula ulmara, a wonder-herb for the stomach, I am immediately transported to my father’s dispensary.
These are rich memories indeed. Walks for me will always be filled with wonder and thankfulness for the provision all around us.
Hawthorn for the Heart
Hawthorn Tincture – Sophie Lamb
Hedgerow herbs for seasonal allergies
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