The last, croaking calls of the cuckoo are now but a memory, its
clarion call replaced by bountiful blooms along headlands and
lanesides. The other morning I followed the narrow lane from
Brund Mill, over the late Victorian arched bridge and onward
towards the beckoning, tawny moorsides that climb eventually to
the watershed at Morridge. This laneside ditch was home to a
flourishing colony of common valerian, more than a yard tall and
bedecked with those delightful feathery, pink flowers. This
species is also known as "all-heal" on account of its healing
powers, and a drug extracted from the roots is used as a
sedative in the treatment of certain nervous diseases. This
plant is Valeriana officinalis, the latter word originating from
"officina", which describes the storerooms of medieval
monasteries where medicines were kept. Climbing the steep
pastures beyond Steps Farm, aiming for the dark fringe of
conifers that rim the top of Revidge, the dominant flowers were
yarrow, alias milfoil or "thousand leaves" bec