Nowadays we hear very little about herbs or their use. There are few people who know about them now. Long ago the people had certain weeds that they used in many ways.
For example they used the green moss that grows on rocks as dye for stockings and other woollen articles. First of all the moss was pulled off the rocks and then it was boiled with the article that was to be coloured. It is still used as a dye in the Islands. Then there is the chicken-weed which is used to put down swellings or sprains. Water-cress which grows near water is sometimes used as a vegetable. it is also a cure for piles or swelling sores. Old people also say that the juice of the dandelion used to be used as a medicine and now many people use it to get a good complexion. People use the white of a rush to stop blood.
Collector: Unknown
Informant: Bridit O’Toole
Place: Cleggan, Co. Galway
Footnote: Duchas, http://www.duchas.ie
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