Colt's-foot....facts and fables...

Colt's-foot (Tussilago Farfara) - a favourite of mine because it is one of the first to come out when the sun shines in late winter / early spring, just after the snowdrops. It provides a lovely sulphur yellow splash of colour when all else is still pretty drab. Colt's-foot grows pretty much anywhere - waste sites, dry banks, fields or other places with a little loose soil, but it particularly likes clay. The flower heads close up as evening approaches. It is a strange plant because the leaves, which are hoof-shaped giving the main common name, only come out once the flowers have finished - hence the folk-names "son-before-father" or "Son of the father".


Folklore

William Coles, in his book, " The Art of Simpling: An introduction to the gathering and knowledge of plants" (published in 1656) states that, "if the down [seed heads] flieth off colt's-foot, dandelion and thistles when there is no wind, it is a sign of rain." Gypsies are said to believe that wherever the brilliantly yellow Colts-foot grows, coals will be found below.

Medicinal uses

Colt'sfoot had (and still has) a number of medicinal uses. These were best described by John Gerard in his book, "The History of Plants" (1597) and Nicholas Culpepper in his book, "The Complete Herbal" (1649). The plant, in various types of preparation could be used to treat coughs - Tussilago comes from the Greek, Tussis, meaning "a cough". It could also treat hot swellings and inflammations, "St Anthony's fire (whatever that was!!) and wheals that arise through heat. It could also treat the "burning heat of piles or privy parts" according to Culpepper.

Today, Colt's-foot is still an important ingredient in many cough medicines and can be used to treat tracheitis, bronchitis and asthma. It is also said that the bruised leaves can be applied to slow-healing cuts and grazes.

Edible uses

Apparently, the young leaves, flower buds and young flower heads lend salads a distinctive flavour and can also be used for soups or like spinach (leaves).

Other things...

The underside of the leaves was once (and could still be I suppose) scrapped off and used as tinder. The leaves could also be dried and used as a substitute for tobacco (Pliny recommended Colt's-foot smoke as a cough chaser).

What an amazing number of uses for such a small plant! Watch this space for more fantastic facts and fables about our common wild flowers (until the rain stops and we get a day's worth of sun so I can go out with my camera again!!).