MHG Volunteer Blog: Week 8 - Salad burnet

The signs of spring are starting to emerge - even if the weather is all over the place! 

Here's what our Medieval Herb Garden volunteers have been up to this week:

24 February 2025

It was quite a busy morning. David and James weeded between the lavender and the drive. Afterwards, James and Kaidan started to dig a trench between the MHG and the weed-infected spoil hill. The spoil hill is left over from the gatehouse excavations. We do this in the vague hope that we will be able to make a break line to stop the weeds getting a toe-hold in the MHG.

We discovered another surprise today. Although snowdrops were used in the past to treat headaches, we haven’t planted any in the MHG. We might take this lone visitor as a hint, and get some for next year.

The lone snowdrop in the Medieval Herb Garden

Carole carried out a general tidy-up of various plants. She removed a bucketful of ragweed and removed all the dead branches from the variegated beech tree. 

As a last job, Carole dug up some liquorice runners (“roots”). These will be used by Kelly, Learning Officer, in her next home education workshops. In the workshops, the children will learn about the history and the uses of liquorice. They will also get to taste the natural plant for themselves.

Liquorice runners dug up from the MHG

Plant of the week - Salad Burnet, Garden Burnet (sanguisorba minor)

The Latin sanguisorba minor, comes from 'sanguis', meaning 'blood', and 'sorbere', meaning to 'soak up'. The name relates to its ancient medicinal use, which was to staunch wounds.

This herbaceous perennial grows to a height of 3ft and a spread of 18 inches. The leaves are rounded with toothed edges. There are four to twelve pairs of leaflets per leaf, which form a rosette. It has knobbly clusters of crimson flowers and burred fruit. It will readily self-seed everywhere. 

Salad burnet growing in the MHG

Although native of chalk soils, salad burnet will grow in any alkaline or neutral, well-drained conditions. It prefers full sun to part shade. 

Culinary uses of salad burnet

Salad burnet is useful as it is one of the first “cuttable crops” to appear before Spring fully takes hold. 

It tastes similar to cucumber or melon and can be used as a substitute for them, where flavour rather than bulk is required. Only the young leaves should be used, as the leaves get more bitter as they get older! Think of it as cucumber-flavoured parsley. 

It is often added to gin and tonic as a garnish.

Folklore and other salad burnet facts

It has long been believed that salad burnet could stop both internal and external bleeding. According to legend, soldiers in the American War of Independence used to drink salad burnet “tea”. They thought that the “tea” would stop them from bleeding to death if they were shot.

Medieval uses*

Salad burnet has been used for more than 2,000 years. It was known to the ancient Greeks and Chinese. Preparations of salad burnet root have been used to treat wounds, dysentery and menstruation. It was once used against the bubonic plague and to control bleeding and heal wounds. Salad burnet has also been used historically to help digestion.

*As always, this isn't to be considered medical advice today. Please don't use any plants mentioned in these blogs as medicine without advice from a doctor.

Browse the previous Medieval Herb Garden blogs here

Research, development and recreation of Cistercian ware - Naomi Aderonke

Naomi Aderonke, a local ceramicist who has a passion for history, has recreated a style of pottery made in medieval Wakefield. 

In the middle ages Cistercian ware was made in Potovens (pot ovens) in Wrenthorpe. Initially, they supplied practical bowls and cups to Cistercian monks in their abbeys. The abbeys closed in 1540. However, the pots were so popular in Wakefield that they kept making them. In the 1600s, they started also decorating the pots in coloured slip. 

Naomi lives near the site of the Wrenthorpe pottery kilns. She has researched the medieval techniques and style to recreate examples from our collections. Her work has now gone on display with original Cistercian ware at Wakefield Museum.

Read on to discover more about Naomi's research and work in her guest blog.

Naomi Aderonke hosting her tyg making workshop

Why Cistercian ware?

I was looking for a historical link between Wakefield and Ceramics. I’d been interested in looking into alternative industries that might have been significant in Wakefield's history, that weren't textiles and coal mining.

Being a ceramicist myself I wanted to find a link between where I grew up and the craft I loved. 

Researching this I stumbled upon an article on Engole. Here I learnt of Wakefield's link to Cistercian ware. 

I then cross-referenced with other sources, like the archaeology data service and Historic England's records. I learnt more about Cistercian ware's significance, not just to Wakefield, but the surrounding areas of Yorkshire.

The first hurdles

Initially, I wanted to truly recreate as much as I could of the original process that was used in the 1500s.

Potovens was named for the kilns there. A recreation of the original kilns used is outside Wrenthorpe's village hall. Sadly, I do not have the funding, land or skill to recreate an original replica of a working Potovens kiln.

Another issue I had was sourcing local clay. I worked with a local geologist who obtained maps of clay deposits in the area. I started my inquiries.

I sent several emails to the local parks, castles, estates, canals, lakes. I also contacted the original places the potters would use for their clay, Outwood Colliery.

All answers came back as negative. However, it did give me a deeper insight into the local land.

Most original clay deposits would later become coal mines; leaving the land surrounding them unstable. The old pits themselves have been rewilded into marshland for local birds and animals. The castles, parks, estates and lakes such as Newmillerdam and Pugneys are protected land or have been made unstable due to mining. And finally, the canals cannot be dug up due to it causing canal erosion. 

While initially I felt sad and frustrated at this dead end, I knew that the protection of Wakefield's wildlife and history was more important than a few bags of wild, local clay.

Project research and development 

One of the first things I did once I was able to start this project was contact Wakefield Museum. I wanted to learn more about Cisterian ware in Wakefield from an historian's perspective. 

A piece of Late Cistercian ware pot, decorated with white slip and a heavy iron oxide glaze

I was invited by them to the museum store in Ossett. I got to handle original Cistercian ware dug up from both Sandal Castle and Pontefract Castle.

After seeing these original examples of Cistercian ware I threw myself into the practical development side of the project. 

A Wrenthorpe pot used to practice pulling handles on - hence all the handles! 

What makes Cistercian ware look the way it does?

First I looked for a red clay to recreate the original red clays used at the time. I ended up using one called Keuper Red. This gave me the dark reddish, almost purple, when fired, clay.  

Initially in the late middle ages they used a clay called 'glacial clay'. This white clay was easily found on the surface without too much digging. This clay contained many impurities. It was the main clay used in Brandsby-type pottery popular in the 1200s and 1300s.

The next thing I did with this clay was make around 30 to 40 test tiles. It was important for working out how I was going to make the colour for the pots.

After handling the pieces in the museum store I realised there was the use of two slips under the glaze, not one. A red/brown colour and a yellow slip (or so I believed at the time). 

A Wrenthorpe pot in the museum collection

Trial and error: development

I was not sure how they’d done the yellow slip with glaze. However, I knew from extrapolating the resources and knowledge of ceramics at the time, the colour most likely used in the slip was a red iron oxide.

Red iron oxide tends to create a reddish-brown colour. This explained the rich red-brown colour of the pots, even the ones where the glaze had chipped away (but the surface of the clay had not). 

With this, I created a multitude of test glazes and slips with different red iron oxide percentages. I kept some slip and glaze test tiles without the separate and used a mix of both slip and glaze on others. 

Test tiles stood to dry, with differing percentages of red iron oxide

I also tried to create a yellow slip with yellow staining. Unfortunately, this was a failure, and forced me to go back to the drawing board.

The base glaze was a peer-reviewed transparent glaze for dark clays. This prevented the base glaze from causing any clouding.

After working out the glazes, lead-free compared to the glazes used in the late medieval era, I began to focus on the shapes of the pieces.

Shaping the pieces

Similar to using a sketch book, I used my miniature wheel to create miniature versions of Cistercian shapes I had seen and researched.

Creating smaller versions of these reduced clay usage for failed pots. It also allowed me to create multiple variations of shapes without worry of trimming. 

Miniature test pots

Tygs

I decided to try both throwing and hand-building larger versions of Cistercian ware pieces, specifically tygs. This was a later Cistercian ware style, from around the 1700s.

A tyg was a mug with multiple handles, with each handle breathing up the mug into separate sections of the rim. This allowed people to share and pass around a drink more easily.

One of the original, incomplete tygs in our collection, and Naomi's miniature replica

None of the original tygs would have been hand-built. However, I decided to do this due to my desire to later host a workshop on 'making your own tygs'. A hand-built method would allow me to teach multiple people how to make their own tygs more easily.

Using these initial hand-built tygs, I decided to recreate the traditional yellow designs or post-reformation Cistercian ware again. 

I looked back on references from the museum store, as well as yellow and brown slip ware from Staffordshire in the 1600s. From this, I was able to extrapolate that the slip was actually not yellow at all. Instead, I worked out it was the old white clay initially used in Cistercian ware back in the 1400s. It was tinted yellow by the iron heavy glaze used.

I tried this method out on some of my failed pots. Unfortunately, they held little colour as I’d not added enough red iron oxide, nor dipped them for enough time.

However, as you can see on these zoomed-in areas, when the glaze pooled it allowed a colour going towards the yellow colour I was looking for: 

Two close-up examples nearing the desired yellow slip effect

Final stage

After putting all I had learnt to practice, I focused back on the workshop and end pieces for the Cistercian display for Wakefield Museum.

Firstly, I made and tested templates for the tyg workshop. I created net templates to work out how to get the best effect.

After working that out, I sought to create an example tyg using this method. This was then decorated with Yorkshire iconography such as rhubarb and Pontefract cakes. 

One of Naomi's tygs with a 'Pontefract Cakes' design

For the pieces for the museum display I wanted to respect the original pieces, but I did not aim to make exact replicas.

The choice to do miniatures came from the fact miniature throwing is a big part of my practice. I wanted to reflect not only the original piece but recontextualise it for a modern era.

Most people enjoy collecting miniatures of ceramic pieces. It allows them to collect much more, especially if they have smaller homes. Most miniatures are wholly based on modern ceramics. I think that having the ability to have a small part of history (whether local or international) allows people to reconnect more with the ceramics of the past.

Naomi's miniatures with their original inspiration pieces at the museum store

I would like to thank Wakefield Council for funding this as part of Our Year - Wakefield District 2024 and the help and support of Wakefield Museums and Castles.

Naomi's pieces are now on display with original Cistercian ware from our collection, in a new exhibit at Wakefield Museum.

The Cistercian ware display at Wakefield Museum

MHG Volunteer Blog: Week 7 - Rhubarb

It's the return of the Rhubarb Festival this weekend! Wonder if you can guess what our Medieval Herb Garden volunteers' plant of the week might be...

17 February 2025

It was a double-fleece day today. The ground was still sticky, so Helen potted-on some more rhubarb. These plants will probably go on sale next week (once they’ve settled down).

David watered all the plants in pots with fertilizer-infused rain water. This should give them a bit of a kickstart for spring. Carole sorted all the plant pots and various labels, ready for use in the upcoming months. She also weeded what could be reached from the path. 

It’s half term this week, so we had many younger visitors with us. One of the non-gardening topics of conversation today was the favourite colours of two dollies who were visiting the castle for the first time, with their human friends who had visited before!

Plant of the week: Common or English Rhubarb (rheum rhubarbum / rhaponticum) 

The word 'rhubarb' is likely to have derived, in the 14th century, from the Old French 'rubarbe'. This came from the Latin 'rheubarbarum' and Greek 'rha barbaron', meaning 'barbarian plant’.

Rhubarb growing in the Medieval Herb Garden

This herbaceous perennial originally comes from China. It dates back as early as 2700 BC. It has large, green, blunt, smooth, wavy-edged, leaves. Its stems can be 1 to 3ft in length, of various reddish colours and mottling, depending on the variety.

Rhubarb plants require plenty of sunlight. They need nitrogen-rich, well-drained soil that contains plenty of organic matter. Regular watering may be required.

Keeping the rhubarb crowns in the dark can force the plant into producing early, thinner, sweeter-tasting stems. This is known as 'forced rhubarb', and is one of the things Wakefield is famous for! Yorkshire forced rhubarb gained European protection in 2010. 

Although the leaves are toxic, rhubarb stems contain several beneficial vitamins and minerals. These include as vitamin K, vitamin C, potassium and calcium. Rhubarb is also a good source of dietary fibre.

Culinary uses of rhubarb

Rhubarb is a vegetable but is often used in the same way as fruits. The leaf stalks can be eaten raw (especially dipped in sugar). They are most commonly cooked with sugar and used in pies, crumbles, and other desserts and fools. They have a strong, tart taste. 

Rhubarb stalks can also be put into savoury dishes, made into jams and chutneys or pickled. Rhubarb can also be dehydrated and infused with fruit juice.

Uplit rhubarb in the Medieval Herb Garden

Folklore and other rhubarb facts

According to Chinese folklore, rhubarb was believed to have mystical origins. The first rhubarb plant sprouted from the blood of a dragon that had been slain by an ancient hero.

West Yorkshire once produced 90% of the world's winter-forced rhubarb. Forced rhubarb is traditionally grown within the 'Rhubarb Triangle'. The Rhuabrb Triangle is an approximately 9mi2 (23 km2) area of West Yorkshire, between Wakefield, Morley, and Rothwell.

In the United States, the common usage of rhubarb in pies has led to it being nicknamed "pie plant". This is what rhubarb is referred to as in cookbooks from the 1800s.

Rhubarb is also used in skincare products. This is due to its high concentration of vitamin C and natural acids. Rhubarb extracts are added to facial masks, serums, and creams. They promote healthy and radiant skin by reducing signs of ageing and improving the overall complexion.

The world’s largest rhubarb plant was reportedly grown in Canada, measuring over 9 feet in height!

Rhubarb leaves contain toxic substances and people have been poisoned after ingesting the leaves. However, a 65 kg adult would need to eat 4 to 8 kg (9 to 18 lbs) to obtain a lethal dose.

Medieval uses*

A handwritten 'cure for cholera' from the 1890s containing rhubarb, on display at Wakefield Museum

In ancient times, rhubarb root was mainly used as a laxative. It was known for its gentle, effective relief from constipation, bloating and indigestion.

Rhubarb has been used to detoxify the body and cleanse the system. It acts as a purgative, helping to remove toxins and waste products from the body. Rhubarb was also believed to have anti-inflammatory properties. It was used to treat swollen joints and other inflammatory conditions.

During the Renaissance, rhubarb became a main ingredient in various healing potions and remedies. Rhubarb has astringent properties, which means it causes the contraction of skin cells and other body tissues. This made it useful for treating wounds and encouraging wounds to heal faster. 

Rhubarb was also used to treat symptoms of fever and improve blood circulation. It was also used to treat cholera, dysentery and scurvy.

*As always, this isn't to be considered medical advice today. Please don't use any plants mentioned in these blogs as medicine without advice from a doctor.

Browse the previous Medieval Herb Garden blogs here

MHG Volunteer Blog: Week 6 - Primrose

Oh dear, that nicer weather has been short-lived so far... here's what our Medieval Herb Garden volunteers got up to this week:

10 February 2025

Well, rain again! So nothing productive could be achieved in the MHG today. 

We moved the rhubarb plants from the nursery to the “plant barrow” so that they would be available for sale. 

After that, Carole and Helen retired to the office. Over a hot cup of tea we sorted through the seeds that had been harvested last Autumn. We were checking for any deterioration and to repackage them ready for sowing later on in the year.

Whilst sorting through the motherwort seeds, we found an unexpected visitor. This ladybird had obviously been in hibernation, in the seed store, for over 3 months! 

We left it scurrying around the table until we had finished with the seeds. We then gently placed it on one of the bunches of drying lavender in the back office. Hopefully, it will be happy there.

Our little ladybird friend inside the packet of seeds

Plant of the week - Primrose (primula vulgaris)

The common name primrose derives from a late Latin form prima rosa, consisting of prima, "first" and rosa, "rose".

Primroses are a native, evergreen, herbaceous perennial. They have rosette-forming, tongue-shaped, wrinkled, deeply veined, bright green leaves. The leaves are 5 to 25cm long and 2 to 6cm wide. The pale-yellow flowers are 2 to 4 cm across, and appear between February and April. 

Each plant can grow to a height and spread of around 10cm. Over time, they will create clumps of multiple plants. Primroses prefer full sun or partial shade, on any sheltered site with moist, well-drained soil.

Some of our primroses poking through the mud

Primroses are popular with a range of insects, such as brimstone and small tortoiseshell butterflies, wasps, bees, sawflies, ants and beetles. 

The flowers are often removed from their stalks and scattered on the ground by greenfinches. These birds seem to enjoy eating the plant's ovaries and nectaries.

Culinary uses of primroses

Both the flowers and leaves of a primrose are edible. The leaves have a sweet taste, ranging between mild lettuce and more bitter salad greens. The leaves, which are rich in vitamin C, can be cooked in soup. However, they're best mixed with other plants as they can be a little strong. The leaves can also be used to make a “tea”.  

The sweeter petals were often used to make wines, syrups or vinegars. They were added to salads and desserts or used as cake decorations.

Folklore

In Victorian times, the primrose represented fickleness or inconsistency. This could be due to the short-lived blooms or the tendency of some species to open at different times of the day. Primroses, in general, signify youthfulness, welcome or young love.

According to a Scottish legend, if you want to see a fairy, you must eat a primrose, or rub primrose oil on your eyelids. Some ancient Druids thought that standing in a large swathe of primroses gave you passage to fairyland.

Some farmers used to put primroses in their cowsheds to stop fairies stealing the milk, or braided them into the manes of horses for protection.

Medieval uses*

In the early days of medicine, the primrose was considered an important remedy for muscular rheumatism, paralysis and gout.  The whole plant, and especially the root, was used as a painkiller. It was used to treat various ailments such as headaches and toothaches. Primrose was given for colds. It was also believed to have a calming effect on the nerves and could help induce sleep.

According to John Gerard in 1597:  'Primrose Tea... drunk in the month of May is famous for curing the phrensie.'

*As always, this isn't to be considered medical advice today. Please don't use any plants mentioned in these blogs as medicine without advice from a doctor.

Browse the previous Medieval Herb Garden blogs here

MHG Volunteer Blog: Week 5 - Anemone

The days are getting longer, brighter and warmer! It's time to find out how our Medieval Herb Garden volunteers made the most of a mild Monday.

3 February 2025

Well, it was lovely weather this morning; I even took my fleece off at one point.  The ground was still a bit sticky, but almost perfect for getting-to-grips with the green alkanet seedings from last year.  When I say seedlings: they are about six inches across and have roots going down at least eight inches. 

We have two green alkanet plants in the MHG because the bees love them so much. It’s strange though, as one self-seeds everywhere and the other one doesn’t seem to self-seed at all. We also had a general tidy up of the columbines, comfrey and salad burnet.

Exciting news - it looks like there will be some rhubarb plants ready for sale next week! They're doing well in our little nursery. Just in time for the Rhubarb Festival!

Plant of the week: Anemone (anemone coronaria)

Some of our anemone coronaria in bloom 

The plant of the week is the an-em-o-ne (not as is often mispronounced an-en-o-me)

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, Greek ἀνεμώνη (anemōnē) means 'daughter of the wind'.

More than 50 anemone species are used in various traditional medical systems worldwide. The Medieval Herb Garden has anemone coronaria. We chose this species because it is clump-forming, rather than the spreading (via runners) variety.

Anemone coronaria means crown anemone. It refers to the central crown of the flower.

It is a clump forming, tuberous, perennial plant. It is originally from the Mediterranean and will grow in well-drained loam or sand. It likes the sun, but prefers a sheltered aspect.

It has a height of 20-45 cm and spread of 15-24 cm. The leaves are finely divided and parsley-like. The flowers are solitary and shallowly cup-shaped. They typically have five to eight red petals, which are up to 8cm across. The flowers sit atop stiff, slender, stems. The anemone's usual flowering period is from April to June. However, ours are already out now.

Folklore

Anemone coronaria blooms in deserts and wild places. However, it is fragile and short-lived because the winds soon destroy it.

In Greece, and in many places in the Middle East, this blood-red anemone is identified with the beautiful youth Adonis. Adonis was adored by the goddess Aphrodite. He was torn to pieces by a boar whilst out hunting. After blaming the Fates from taking Adonis away from her, Aphrodite sprinkled the blood of Adonis with sweet-smelling nectar. His blood began to sparkle. In less than an hour, a flower sprang up. It was dark red, the very colour of Adonis' blood.

Luigi Primo, 'Venus lamenting the death of Adonis', from around 1606. Venus is the Roman equivalent of Aphrodite.

It is said that this flower symbolises Aphrodite's everlasting grief for Adonis. Just like him, it is beautiful, slender, and short-lived.

Medieval uses*

All species of anemone can be poisonous to humans and animals. Despite this, they were used in folk medicine to treat headaches, gout and other conditions.

In small doses, the flower and roots are sometimes used to ease eye and skin inflammation, menstrual pain, emotional distress, and respiratory problems.

* This is what people in the medieval period thought the plant could be used for. It is not to be considered to be advice on its use today. No herbs mentioned in this blog should be used without consulting a doctor.

Browse the previous Medieval Herb Garden blogs here

MHG Volunteer Blog: Week 4 - Black hellebore

It's time to find out what our Medieval Herb Garden volunteers have been up to this week! Find out more about their blog series here.

The Medieval Herb Garden and Visitor Centre at Pontefract Castle

27 January 2025

So, no snow last week, just lots of wind and rain. The crab apple tree has weathered the storm well. However, the upright rosemary is still looking “battered”.

Today, Dave and James helped Site Officer Joe by sweeping up the fallen leaves in the kitchen area.  They also re-planted some of our fallen signs. Dave later checked the concentration of the liquid fertilizer we made last summer.

Carole finally finished weeding the dry-stone wall. This took longer than planned, as lots of lovely castle visitors wanted a chat! The non-gardening topics for today were the pleasures of completing the Pennine Way and the Lyke Wake Walk, and the merits of the various Doctor Who incarnations since 1963. Never a dull day here! 

If the ground dries next week, we will start to dig up all the green alkanet seedlings from last year. These managed to escape the last Autumn weeding session.

Plant of the week: Black Hellebore / Christmas Rose / Melampode (helleborus niger)

The generic name of this plant is derived from the Greek elein (to injure) and bora (food). This indicates its poisonous nature. The specific name refers to the dark coloured rootstock.

One of our rain and mud-splattered black hellebore flowers

The black hellebore is a semi-evergreen perennial. This means it tends to return each year, unlike an annual plant which only grows once. 

It originates in the mountain areas of Europe, and grows to a height and width of 0.1m to 0.5m. It prefers growing in moist, well-drained, humus-rich soil (not the chickpea kind!) in the alkaline to neutral range. Black hellebore is said to prefer dappled shade. In summer, ours are protected by the large horseradish plants. However, this plant can thrive in most aspects.

Black hellebore flowers between midwinter and early spring. Its white flowers look similar to wild roses, hence the name 'Christmas Rose'. Despite this, it's actually a member of the buttercup family.

Medieval uses

Black hellebore was used in the past to treat 'insanity', melancholy, gout and epilepsy, and was referenced in Pliny's 'Natural History'. In the medieval period, people would use hellebore to ward off evil spirits.

However, we now know it to be very toxic, so it musn't be used to treat any ailments today!

Folklore

In Greek myth, the god Dionysus used his powers against the daughters of Argos. They roamed naked and hysterical, until Melampus of Plyos made them a special brew. The brew was made of hellebore, and this is where the name 'melampodium' comes from.

Helleborus niger is commonly called the Christmas Rose, as it traditionally flowers around Christmas. There is an old legend that it sprouted in the snow from the tears of a young girl who had nothing to give to the baby Jesus in Bethlehem.

In the past, people blessed their cattle with this plant to keep them from evil spells. For this purpose, it was dug up with certain mystic rites.

In Victorian times, the flowers of the hellebore plant signified delirium. Some cultures today still see the flowers as representing stress, anxiety, and scandal.

Find out more about the Medieval Herb Garden here

Visitor information for Pontefract Castle

MHG Volunteer Blog: Week 3 - Bay laurel tree

Here's the next blog from our dedicated team of volunteer gardeners at Pontefract Castle.

Find out more about their blog series here.

20 January 2025

Today it was bitterly cold again at the castle. The main garden was still a bit sticky in places so I started on weeding the top of the dry-stone wall, below the keep. I say “started” as that is a lot of wall! At least you can see where I’ve been.

If not for the cold, today would have been perfect weather for weeding, as the weeds and grass came up easily. All I had to do was make sure I didn’t disturb the saffron leaves that are left over from autumn.

In the main Medieval Herb Garden there are signs of new growth all around, assuming they survive the forecasted snow of next week.

As the flowers are still in fairly short supply this week, we are going to put the spotlight on one of our ever-popular evergreens.

Plant of the week: Bay Laurel Tree, Sweet Bay (laurus nobilis)

Leaves of the bay tree growing at Pontefract Castle

This evergreen shrub / tree is originally from the mediterranean region. It has a life span of at least 50 years. It will grow in any moist, well-drained soil type (between 4.5 – 8.3 pH). It likes the sun, but it must be sheltered from cold winds! (The bay tree near the gatehouse has been hit by these recently). 

If left unpruned, this tree can reach a height of 60ft and a spread of 20ft. It usually flowers in the Spring. The flowers are small, yellow and unisexual (they have only male or only female parts). The flowers grow in small clusters, and eventually form small berries. Bay tree leaves can be harvested throughout the year, and can be used both green and dried.

Folklore

Apollo was the Greek god of wisdom and the arts. He wore a wreath of bay leaves on his head. Since then, the laurel wreath has been linked with academic achievement. Today's term 'poet laureate' comes from the Latin for laurel.

The modern term 'bachelor', given for university degrees, is probably derived from the French 'bachelier' (laurel berry).

The Latin for laurel berry, ‘bacca laureus’ is also the basis of a type of academic examination taken in some schools, the baccalaureate.

For centuries, bay leaves have been placed in foods to deter insects and meal moths. In both Greece and Italy, bay leaves are commonly packed-in with dried fruit, especially dried figs.

Bay leaves have also been used as an insect repellant. Placed in the corner or a room, they can help to deter cockroaches.

Witches and devils are also supposedly repelled by bay leaves!

The Narrow Leaf Bay Laurel in the Medieval Herb Garden

Medieval uses*

In cooking, bay leaves are most commonly used whole. They are used as a dry leaf in soups and stews, sauces and ragouts, and removed before eating. Cooked bay leaves smell of balsam, honey and hints of spice. The peak of the bay’s aroma is between three days and a week after it has been picked. This brief drying time concentrates the oils.

This herb contains more than 80 identified chemicals. These include calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, vitamin A, vitamin B6, Vitamin C, riboflavin and zinc. However, they didn't know this in the medieval period!

Bay leaves had many traditional medical uses. Respiratory infections, digestive problems and bruises were all treated by bay leaves. It was also used against stings, poisons and all “cold griefs”.

* (Needless to say, this isn’t to be considered medical advice from us to you today! No herbs mentioned in these blogs should be used as medicine without advice from a doctor.)

We currently have two common bay trees near the Medieval Herb Garden. We also have a more specialised Narrow Leaf Bay Laurel (laurus nobilis f.angustifolia) within the garden itself.  See if you can spot it on your next visit!

Find out more about the Medieval Herb Garden here

Visitor information for Pontefract Castle