Bugloss flowers.

 Common Name: Viper's Bugloss,  Blueweed, Blue-devil, Blue thistle, Blue Echium - The name Bugloss has survived several cultural translations: buglosse in French, buglossa in Latin and bouglossos in Greek. Its original genesis is the two Greek words bous, which means the head of a cow and glossa, meaning tongue.  This refers to the hairy and spiny leaves that are "as coarse as a cow's tongue."  The distinguishing term "viper's" is added to distinguish this plant as the specific bugloss with fruits or nutlets that have the shape of  a viper's head.

 Scientific Name: Echium vulgare - The generic name is probably from the Greek word for  viper, echis. This would seem to be appropriately consistent with  the common name Viper's Bugloss; however, as it is the genus and not the species name, this etymology is suspect. Echion appears in Greek mythology as the name of one of the Spartan warriors who sprang from the dragon's teeth sown by Cadmus. Historically, Echion was a painter in the 4^th Century BCE. Alternatively, Echius was a Trojan warrior slain by Patroclus, the companion of Achilles according to the Iliad. Vulgare is from the Latin vulgaris, meaning common, ordinary or usual.

 Viper's bugloss was introduced to the North America from Europe in the 17^th Century; it has taken on the status of a noxious weed in some areas, notably the state of Washington. It is a native to most of Europe and western and central Asia; its distinguishing brilliant hues make it an easily identified and well-known species. The beauty of the florescence belies its pestilential association; it is ironic that the burned root was used for charcoal by artists. It goes by many names, most of which emphasize the brilliant blue:   lan ji, or  "blue luck" in China; gew�hnlicher natternkopf or "common viper head" in Germany; himmelbrand or "sky-fire" and  stolzer (proud) Heinrich in Austria; andsinyak obryknovenny, or "common blue" in Russian (blue here is a colloquial word like the "black and blue" of a bruise). It is in all cases considered to be a very common blue flower.

"Viper's Bugloss hath its stalks all to be speckled like a snake or a viper, and is a most singular remedy against poyson and the sting of scorpions" in his 1656 work "The Art of Simples" (medicinal herbs were called Simples, as the practice of using herbs medicinally was called Simpling). Any benefit that Viper's Bugloss might impart to a snakebite victim would be largely due to the placebo effect.

Viper's Bugloss was also used as a "simple" for the treatment of a variety of ailments more mundane than snakebite; there may be some credence to its efficacy in these applications. John Parkinson, the apothecary to King James I of England (aka King James VI of Scotland), wrote in his seminal "Theatrum Botanicum: The Theater of Plants, or, An Herbal of a Large Extent" that "the water distilled in glasses or the roote itself taken is good against the passions and tremblings of the heart as also against swoonings, sadness and melancholy."  The treatment consisted of drying the leaves taken from near the bottom of the plant and making a tea by placing an ounce of the resultant powder in a pint of boiling water. The effect was to promote the purging of  liquids in sweating, expectoration and diuresis.  The net result was a diminution of fever, headaches, and other "nervous complaints."  It fell into desuetude as a medicinal in part due to the decline of nature herbs in the pharmacopoeia and in part due to its potential toxicity.

Viper's Bugloss contains relatively small amounts of pyrrolizodine alkaloids that make the plant toxic to livestock and to humans.  These compounds are called hepatotoxic due to their deleterious effect on the liver. Instances of human illness due to these alkaloids  are rare and  have occurred primarily as a result of medicinal teas made from plants that have relatively high levels of the compound, like comfrey (Symphytum officinale). Symptoms include nausea, abdominal pain, fever, and jaundice as a biochemical indication of liver dysfunction; death can result in several weeks if consumption is sustained. Similar symptoms are manifest in range animals that consume the plant, sometimes inadvertently mixed in with other silage. Another manifestation of the toxicity is that the hairs of the stem impart contact dermatitis to humans.

Thyme flowers.

 Thyme:
Thyme, like many herbs, does best in well drained exposed positions and is one of the easiest herbs to grow. The aroma comes from aromatic oils the plant produces which are thought to act as a repellant for many insects, a substitute for water evaporation in hot weather and antifreeze in frosty weather that prevents cells containing water, bursting in winter snows. Thus more oil is produced in plants in cold alpine type climates. Easily identified as a compact very tidy bush with tiny oval leaves that can be up to 45cm tall or in it�s more prostrate form, as a dense fine leafed ground cover, it thrives in the rockery or as a border plant. The stems can either be trailing or upright with small, elliptic leaves that are very fragrant. Many species are evergreen. The leaves are small and oval with tiny flowers of mauve or purple in summer. The flowers are attractive to honey bees.

 History

Thyme is native to the Mediterranean region, and it is thought that the Romans spread it around their Empire, to Europe, Asia, Britain and North Africa. 

Records show thyme was used as far back as the Sumerian days as a disinfectant.  Ancient Egyptians used thyme as a part of their mummification formula.  If you look at the properties of thymol, which is the phytonutrient found in the thyme�s essential oil, you will see why.  This compound is known for killing moulds, microbes, bacteria and fungus.  Thyme is traditionally associated with the spirit world, and even today is thrown or planted on a grave in some cultures.
Greek soldiers bathed in thyme and had a thyme oil massage in order to bring out their bravery.  It was a compliment in ancient Greece to be told that you smell of thyme.  In medieval days, ladies embroidered thyme on a scarf or cloth and gave it to their favorite knight for courage.
Both the Romans and the Scots used thyme to treat depression.  The Scots believed thyme could ward off nightmares.  A sprig of thyme under your pillow at night is said to prevent bad dreams.
Thyme is very attractive to fairies.  In Shakespeare�s A Midsummer Night�s Dream, Titania the Queen of Fairies sleeps on a bed of wild thyme.  Drinking a potion of thyme is said to protect a person from fairy mischief.  Thyme is the main ingredient in a 17th century Irish recipe which is supposed to make the drinker able to see fairies. 

 Thyme enjoys an alkaline soil and a hot sunny position � it also does very well grown in pots which generate extra heat that thyme just loves. All species need full sun and good drainage. Avoid poorly drained soils, plants will die in soil that stays wet for long periods. Thyme grows very well all summer in sub tropical climates and even tropical areas if the humidity is very low, especially if it�s very cold at night. If plants wilt or get die back due to high heat and humidity; cut them back and new growth will emerge. Ideally thyme should be pruned annually to keep the bush compact. With scissors give the bush a haircut � pruning the tips. Plants will be fuller and more vigorous if they are pruned back frequently up until August. (Pruning after this may result in tissue that is not hardy enough to survive the first hard freeze.) It is important to not cut plants back during fall or winter garden cleanup -- wait until new growth emerges in spring.

Thyme enlivens the garden, purifying the air and enhancing the overall health of the garden and one can simply not have too much of it in the garden. Plant thyme and rosemary liberally in your  garden because it encourages honey bees which will improve pollination of everything else in your garden increasing the yield by a minimum of 20%.

As a garden plant perennial thyme can be used as an edging plant, between stepping stones, in pockets in stone walls, and in containers.

 Growing thyme: 
Thyme can be grown from seed, plant division or stem cuttings.

Growing herbs often becomes a passion and Thyme is one of the easiest of all herbs to grow, whether grown from seed or from bundles of store bought plants � it should be planted in abundance for its uses are amazing.

Thymus vulgaris is the plant most used medicinally and also for use in the kitchen (generally known as common thyme).

Sow seeds in trays in moist but not wet soil and cover very lightly, the seed is very fine and will rot if planted too deeply.

Seeds germinate in 3-4 weeks at 21�C � so Spring is the optimum time for sowing. When they are about 2cm high and have been �hardened off� by exposing to ever increasing outside temperatures daily � returning them to shelter in the evening. When well hardened, plant them about 30cm apart or closer if you want a hedge. Thyme plants grow to about 30cm in height and make an easy care inexpensive hedge that the bees love.

Thyme related species and varieties:

1. Thymus x citriodorus
2. , lemon thyme, smells like lemons and grows 9 to 12 inches tall. Look for the pretty variegated forms.
3. T. herbabarona, caraway thyme, smells like caraway and is a robust plant that grows 2 to 5 inches tall.
4. Thymus praecox, mother-of-thyme, is the traditional dark green ground cover that grows 4 inches tall.
5. T. pseudolanuginosus, woolly thyme, has minute, woolly silver leaves and stays low to the ground.
6. T. serphyllum, wild thyme, grows 4 to 6 inches tall and is used extensively as a ground cover. 'Coccineus' bears tiny rose-colored flowers and forms a dense mat.flowers occur on short, dense spikes. The flowers are very attractive to honeybees.

Bramble flowers.

Rubus fruticosus (Bramble or blackberry flowers)

 A name often referring to the native blackberry bush, a thorny perennial plant that can often be seen growing wild amongst hedgerows and in gardens and woodland. It is able to tolerate even poorest soil types, and if left unchecked, often spreads, covering large areas of ground.

 Its distinctive growth of long �biennial stems� also known as Canes, these are covered along their length in sharp spines or thorns. In late Spring/early Summer stems of white petaled flowers appear from the canes attracting many species of  butterflies, and other insects like hover flies and bees.

 As the flower petals fall away first signs of the green fruit begin to appear, growing in size during the summer and turning from red to black when fully ripened in the Autumn.

 The blackberry is one of a group of more than 350 different species found around the world, these include raspberries, cranberries and loganberries.

Edible Uses 
Fruit; Leaves; Root and New Shoots. 
Fruit either raw or cooked. The best plants have delicious fruits there are a range of types, because of this it is possible to obtain ripe fruits from late July to November. The fruit is also made into syrups, jams and other preserves. If the fruit is eaten before it is ripe and soft it can cause stomach upset. 
Root - cooked. The root should be neither to young nor too old and it requires a lot of boiling. 
A herble tea can be made from the dried leaves. The young leaves are best for this. 
Young shoots can be eaten raw. They are harvested as they emerge through the ground in the spring, peeled and used in salads.