Keys of heaven

Hurray, my cowslips have begun flowering at last!
Apparently these are much less common in the wild than they used to be. They were very popular for all sorts of remedies and drinks. Perhaps a clue to their current rarity is to be found in the enormous quantities of cowslips used in the recipies.

For pickled cowslips- One pound of flowers
For cowslip mead- One gallon of heads
For cowslip wine-One quart of pips

I am not able to make anything out of the few flowers in our garden so I have to make do with enjoying the beautiful golden flowers which were said to look like bunches of keys, hence the nickname - keys of heaven.