Ground ivy

Glechoma hederacea. Ground ivy is actually a member of the mint family. It has lots of nicknames - I liked 'Gill over the ground' - I will be introducing my cousin Gill to her namesake when I meet up with her at the weekend!

Ground ivy seems to have been used as a medicinal herb over the years to cure just about anything. European settlers took it with them, spreading it around the world. It was used as a culinary herb in medieval times, being added to stuffings and rubbed onto meat. The Saxons made use of it when brewing beer.

I am a bit tempted to try it as a herbal tea - 'Gill tea' - very cleansing apparently...