the.com/betony
the herb medieval Italians wore as armor against witches, plague, and bad dreams alike
means A perennial herb of the mint family, once a staple of medieval medicine, bearing spikes of purple-pink flowers on square stems.
from From Old French betoine, from Latin betonica — itself, Pliny the Elder claimed, from the Vettones, a people of ancient Iberia said to have discovered the plant's virtues. That tribal link is Pliny's own telling and may be folk etymology, but the name has clung to the herb ever since.
- holy weed
- Anglo-Saxons listed it against elf-shot and night-goblins
- old proverb
- Italians said sell your coat, buy betony
- bee magnet
- its purple spikes draw pollinators all summer long
- name origin
- likely from a Celtic tribe, the Vettones
- medicine cabinet
- a Roman emperor's doctor claimed it cured 47 ailments
wood betony — stachys officinalis, a european herb historically used in medieval medicine and still grown in herb gardens
water betony — scrophularia umbrosa, a wetland plant found across europe with purple-brown flowers
betony island — small island off the coast of cornwall, england, named after the plant that grew there