School: Baile an Gharrdha (B.) (roll number 13210)
- Location:
- Ballingarry, Co. Tipperary
- Teacher: Tomás Lotrail
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0563, Page 210
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- The most harmful weeds growing on our farm are: dock-leave, crowfoot, chicken-weed "praiseach", thistles, dandelion, nettles, elder weed, forum, ferns, rushes and robin-run-the-hedge. Dock-leaves and nettles are very harmful because they spread rapidly and ruin all crops. Thistles and dock-leaves grow only in good land. Rushes grow in wet land and blue-buttons grow also in bad land. There is a certain amount of salts in nettles and are great for the blood especially if eaten as a vegetable in spring. Crowfoot is poisonous and cattle never eat it. Thistles are chopped and mixed through pigs food instead of cabbage. Ivy-leaves and elder-berries are used for dying. Ink made from elder-berries was used in the hedge schools. The roots of dock-leaves boiled with milk is said to be good for a cough. The inner bark of the barberry tree boiled with ale and sugar is a cure for yellow jaundice. Farmers used herbs for curing diseases in cattle, pigs and horses. Herb doctors were fairly common and many old women were skilled in preparing and using herbs for various diseases were often efficacious. Goats eat all kinds of herbs and plants, that is why their milk is so good. Bees get honey from all kinds of herbs and plants, that is why the honey is so wholesome.(continues on next page)
- Informant
- Thomas Luthrell
- Gender
- Male
