Ruskie & Gargunnock Visit to Herbal Homestead

Ruskie Rural and friends from Gargunnock spent a super day with the lovely Lauren Lochrie of Herbal Homestead at Cardross Estate and the Beewell Garden. When Lauren left behind her roots in Clydebank she found a new connection to nature and we are lucky that she shares her passion and knowledge in our local area. From the start of the session she encouraged us to focus and reconnect in surprising ways. Lauren encouraged us to select a few plants to become familiar with over the course of the seasons and get to know them and their changes so we could make best use of them – from sorrel whose spring leaves are a welcome addition to a salad, or whose autumn seed heads taste more earthy and like mushrooms (to some people!). Other plants, although edible are more suited to medicinal use eg plantain which makes a wonderful multi purpose oil. Or ‘dock-snot’ from young unfurled dock leaves which is similar to aloe vera and better for nettle stings than simply rubbing on the leaves! Lauren also challenged us with a mystery tea (which was the colour of strong coffee) made from the chaga fungus which grows exclusively on silver birch trees and is very slow growing and rare. Other stops on our walk highlighted different uses of different plants – brambles for a yummy ‘shrub’ with vinegar & honey, or when we have used the leaves of nettles for their superfood properties, the stems can make soft cord for tying up beans in the summer! On returning to the garden we closed out the day with a final session making natural hand creams and relaxing muscle rubs but after such a chilled out and refreshing day it may be a while before we need them! All of the information sheets and recipes will be shared with the group by email.

Lauren runs various sessions throughout the year, tailored to the changing seasons and I’m sure we’ll be back!