Colts-foot (tussilago farfara) is now flowering in and around the parish. It can grow in the most unlikely of barren sites. It is often overlooked as its yellow flowers look like a number of other spring species. The leaves, which are hoof shaped hence the name of the plant, will appear after the flowers have died. The leaves used to be dried and smoked in pipes to relieve asthma, and their juice was regarded as a cough cure. The latin name tussilago comes from the greek tussis ‘ a cough’.
Categories: Signs of Spring
