De Materia Medica (Of Medical Subsances) by Dioscorides was written almost two thousand years ago. The original manuscript has never been found.
Wortcunning
Wortcunning:- The knowledge of the wise-women and cunning-men. Inherited from our ancient hunter-gatherer ancestors. Accumulated ove millennia.
This built up into a vast array of knowledge of the plants and trees surrounding them. It is the art of wortcunning. Knowing how to find what you need to heal and nourish from that which flourishes just outside your doorstep.
Meddygon Myddfai
Meddygon Myddfai – The Physicians of Myddfai were pioneers of modern medicine through herbalism in the twelfth century. Contrary to the prevalent view that medieval times were ‘The Dark Ages’, they were in fact when the first universities were being founded and monastic schools established.
Hawthorn – Ancient, Magical & Sacred Trees 1
The Hawthorn has more connections with ancient beliefs & traditions than almost any other tree. The Lore, traditions, connections with Faerie Folk & magic go back millennia
Myrrh – A Magi’s Cure
Why ‘Myrrh – A Magi’s Cure’ ? The first meeting with Myrrh for most people in western cultures would have been as one of the gifts that the three wise men (the Magi) brought to the infant Jesus; but Myrrh has a history dating back thousands of years that boasts antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties.
Wildcrafting (Foraging) for the C21st
What is called Wildcrafting today we used to call foraging when I was a kid.
As a child, in the 1960’s, I spent many happy hours grubbing about in hedgerows and other wild places, seeking out our indigenous plants for my grandmothers ‘recipes’.
Frankincense – The Feel-Good Healer
Frankincense – an aromatic resin obtained from trees of the genus Boswellia in the family Burseraceae, is also known as olibanum.
Latin Name: Boswellia carterii syn. Boswellia sacra
Family: Burseraceae
Common Names: Boswellie, Olibans, Olibanum, Olibano, Salai Tree, Oleo-Gum-Resin
Vervain – The Herb of Enchantment
Vervain
Common Vervain – The Herb of Enchantment, has been long been associated with divine and other supernatural forces.
The Humble & Persistent Little Weed – Plantain
Plantain is generally considered to be a weed; one description, referring to Plantago major, even reads ‘a short, fat, ugly weed’!! But beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
Wise Woman’s Power Plant – Mugwort
The Wise Woman’s Power Plant – Mugwort. Or to give it it’s proper name Artemisia vulgaris LINN, is rightly justified in being called that. Named after the Hellenic goddess of the hunt, wild animals, wilderness, childbirth, the moon, virginity and protector of young girls; Artemis.