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The Halloween Garden
October 27th, 2008
With the nights drawing in, the clock turned back, a cold nip in the air, leaves falling, Halloween is one time in the year when the idea of potions, herbal brews etc from garden plants comes to the fore. The real witches of centuries gone by wern't so much boil and bubble toil and trouble but more 'drink this potion as I haven't got a 21st century pharmacological lotion.' using the healing properties of herbs and plants to help relieve ailments and cure illness. Mixed in with their correct science was of course no doubt plenty of dodgy recipes for lovesick hearts etc. but hey, a witch had to make a living.
Here are some medicinal plants that are suitable for growing in your garden and throwing in your cauldron;
(THE LEGAL BIT - A visit to the poison garden at Alnwick Garden soon highlights that consuming the wrong type of garden plant can be HIGHLY dangerous. It is advisable you buy seeds and plants from an experienced grower and consult a doctor or a qualified herbal medicine practitioner before consuming any herbs or plants you have grown. The following is not advice, in other words if you overdose on Peppermint leaves don't blame me! ;0) )
Hops
Hops is used for its bitter taste and as a preservative beer brewing. Dried hops have some sedative properties, perhaps thats why so many people fall asleep after a few pints!?). A climbing plant that can be used as a break.
Common Yarrow
The leaves are believed to help relieve common colds and rheumatism.
Feverfew
Believed to help relieve migraine and insect bites. Grows to 50cm in full sun.
Flowering Chamomile
Use to make a tea, relaxing ant anxiety properties. An attractive plant that can make a nice lawn feature.
Calamint Lesser
A rare wildflower, used many centuries ago as a medicinal plant for a variety of ailments. Grows in full sun.
Sweet Vernal Grass
Relief for pain and spasms. Use in Pot Pourri.
Primrose
Small yellow flowers, found naturally in hedgerows, woods etc. Can relieve pain and promote healing.
Horehound Black - Attracts bees to the garden, believed to help with motion sickness.
Greater Celandine - Grows in shaded areas and hedgerows. Used to treat warts
and if things really are bad you could grow;
Thistle Holy or Thistle Blessed - Grown widely in monastery gardens during the middle ages and used to treat the plague!
Atishoo Atishoo, we all fall down!!
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Autumn Break Guide
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Do you grow medicinal herbs in your garden?
Sophie,
The Vinca genus does contain substances which are used in chemotherapy, particularly to treat lymphoma.
The Lymphoma Association using the periwinkle flower as its emblem and has an annual Periwinkle Ball to raise funds though, sadly, this year's has been cancelled because of low ticket sales.
Colchicum autumnale, the autumn crocus, contains colchicine which destroys white blood cells and has a use in leukemia.
People have used plants medicinally for thousands of years but not necessarily with any actual effect. Trawl the various herbals and you'll find over 1,000 plants which are supposed to cure rheumatism. If any one of them did, the others wouldn't be on the list.
Do you know there is a plant in the poison garden that is used to treat Leukiamia (was it Periwinkle?). The amazing thing was according to the guide was that the Elizabethans used it to treat tumours.
Greater celandine is one of the plants grown in the Alnwick Garden Poison Garden. It is said that the bright yellow sap will burn if left on the skin, that's how it treated warts.
But finding anyone who has actually had that experience is as hard as finding an alchemist who has succeeded in extracting the gold which the plant was thought to produce.