All that's yellow, are not dandelions

It is time for another blog post by Sarah, our visitor experience intern:

----------------------------

As you take a walk round the reserve you may have noticed a spring visitor has returned along the edges of the paths. This is Tussilago farfara or Coltsfoot as most people call it. You can easily spot them; they have bright yellow flowers that look similar to dandelions, though they often appear just before them in the spring. It is called Coltsfoot because its leaves look like the hooves of a young horse. Though if you see the pretty yellow flowers, you will not find the distinctive leaves as the leaves die off when the flowers come in. Just to make it a little more difficult! Coltsfoot plants are found around our reserve although they do grow all across the world from Europe to South America and even in China.

(Photo by André Karwath)

Years ago, doctors used these plants for use in old Australian medicine. They would grind up leaves and use them to make teas or directly apply it to the skin. This boasted to cure anything from gout to the common cold! Some people still swear by these remedies, but don’t try this at home as these pretty plants pack a nasty punch. If you drink tea made with it, it can cause liver problems and even cancer. However there is a company in Blackburn that makes sticks of rock with the essence of coltsfoot in it, though these are safe to eat and still claim to have healing qualities. Nowadays the only ones using it are animals such as Gothic and Small Angle Shades moths who eat it as food.

So if you’re out and about in the coming weeks keep a lookout and see if you can spot them along our trails!