Luck and Protection

Scottish Heather grows freely and abundantly, and carpets the Scottish moors, glens and highlands with glorious purple hues. For this reason, the heather plant played an important historical role in daily life, as it was used as thatch for roofing, bedding, fuel, and the making of brooms, baskets and rope. Although heather still grows wild in many parts of the world, it has also been cultivated as a garden and landscaping plant, and cuttings are often used in formal flower arrangements.

Traditional 'Heather Beds' were considered to be just as comfortable as 'feather beds', the dried heather wasn't just light and soft, it was also fragrant and the heads of the dried flowers were usually placed toward the top of the bed, perhaps providing some sort of ancient aromatherapy.

The virtues of a mattress made from Scottish Heather were described by King James VI's tutor, George Buchanan, like this...

'..... so pleasant, that it may vie in softness with the finest down, while in salubrity it far exceeds it ...... and restores strength to fatigued nerves, so that those who lie down languid and weary in the evening, arise in the morning vigorous and sprightly.'