Saturday 10 December 2022:  Uses and Folklore of Cemetery Plants, West Norwood Cemetery, London Borough of Lambeth, 2.00 -c.3.30 p.m.  Free, but booking required; see Events page on this website for further details. Fully booked.

Report:  c.20 people turned up on a frosty, but fortunately wind-free, afternoon to spend about 75 minutes discussing the folklore of some of the plants in a small corner of the Cemetery.  As usual the leader stressed that common, ‘ordinary’ plants feature more in plant-lore than rarities, and elder (Sambucus nigra), creeping cinquefoil (Potentilla reptans) and groundsel (Senecio vulgaris) were amongst the plants examined and discussed.  West Norwood Cemetery is unusual in that it contains very few stinging nettles (Urtica dioica), and none were found on this walk, so, for once, they remained unmentioned.

Despite the cold everyone stayed to the end, so we assume they enjoyed the afternoon.

Image:  frosted wood avens (Geum urbanum), a plant which was not discussed during the walk, and creeping cinquefoil.