Red campion, Silene dioica. There are five pinkish petals which are deeply notched at the end, narrowed at the base and all go into an urn-shaped calyx. The nectar of the flowers is utilised by bumblebees and butterflies. Crushed seeds of red campion have also been used to treat snakebites. WT
Rosebay willowherb, Chamerion angustifolium. This species is abundant in wet slightly acidic open fields but it has earned the nicknames ‘fireweed’ and ‘bombweed’ as a result of its tendancy to colonize quickly on burnt ground and bomb sites during World War II. The plant’s rise from a local rarity is closely linked to the expansion of the railway network making it […]
Russian comfrey, Symphytum x uplandicum. Comfrey is a particularly valuable source of fertility to the organic gardener and is used as a compost activator, liquid fertiliser, mulch or potting mixture. Comfreys have been used as traditional medicinal plants in Europe for centuries. Russian comfrey can be considered as a toxic plant and some comfrey products have been banned for human […]
Common Valerian, Valeriana officinalis. It bears sweetly scented pink or white flowers that attract many fly species, especially hoverflies. It is consumed as food by the larvae of some butterflies and moths. Valerian has been used as a herb in traditional medicine since at least the time of ancient Greece and Rome. Hippocrates described its properties, and Galen later prescribed […]
Common vetch, Vicia sativa. A member of the pea family, Common vetch is able to make its own nitrates, a special nutrient essential for healthy plant growth.
Zig zag clover, Trifolium medium. Similar to red clover but for narrow stipules and by having longer thinner leaves which grow on a zig zagging stem.
