★★★★★
Channel Island Folk Remedies
On the south-west coast of Alderney you could usually find some Kidney Vetch which has leaves that can be used to stop bleeding. It was always a bit tricky if you were unlucky enough to be at the opposite end of the Island though when they were urgently needed! (I once met an eighty-year old resident who had never ventured to the East of this small Island claiming, "There was nothing useful to see "Way over there" so why bother?"! That comment was a bit hard to figure out and left me perplexed for a while).
On the other hand, if you were unlucky enough to be stung by stinging nettles, help was always close at hand because it was always accepted that whereever there were stinging nettles there were always DOCKS growing close by. All you needed to do was scrunch up the leaves and rub them on the sore spots and no more stinging!
A tea made from those same nettles would purify and cleanse our blood however. Strange!
A preparation of a mixture of dock and dandelion roots could also prove useful for the health of the blood.
I well remember that it was accepted wisdom back in the 40s, 50s and 60s, that in any small community (especialy an island community), that there would be at least one "Healer" in that community to serve the needs of the residents.
Michael
