The Nettle

Today the nettle bears a bad reputation - it is considered to be a noxious weed and an evil, stinging plant, to be eradicated from our gardens. However, this reputation is very far from being deserved. Our ancestors regarded the nettle…

The Rose

The ROSE is the national flower of England and is thoroughly intertwined with our history. The old name for these islands, Albion, is said to have been taken from the white rose and all our past seems to be haunted by roses, both red and white.…

The Oak

We think of the Oak as the nost English of trees and it was, not so long ago, of immense importance in the daily lives of our people. When Britannia first ruled the waves it was the oak that furnished wood for her ships. Throughout the middle…

Legend of Spearwort

When Odin walks the Earth - the Wanderer of the Wilderness - he carries magic with him - you can see where his footprints lie. Springing from them grow great plants, at the edge of woodlands, in forest glades, beside the streams and waters of…

Spring

FOR those of us who live in cities the arrival of Spring may not have much significance. It may pass unremarked, although our minds turn unbidden to thoughts of holidays. For our ancestors, however, the arrival of Spring was eagerly looked forward…

The Yarrow

The yarrow grows in abundance all over Europe and most of the temperate and sub-Artic parts of the globe. It is generally denigrated and despised by gardeners, who call it a weed, and work diligently to eradicate it from their lawns and flowerbeds.…