Spring is Here — and the Hedgerows are Your Medicine Cabinet

There’s a chill still in the air, and yet the land is waking up. If you look closely along the woodland edges and damp verges, spring is already offering us exactly what we need.

This is the season of renewal — and nature, as always, is perfectly timed.

Step Outside and Forage

Before my elderberry products are back in full flow (they’ll be ready to send in two weeks, just after Easter!), I want to encourage you to head outside and let the hedgerows do their work.

Here are three wild plants that are absolutely abundant right now, and each one is a quiet powerhouse:

🌿 Wild Garlic

You’ll smell it before you see it — those gorgeous green carpets in shady, damp woodland. Wild garlic is rich in minerals, wonderfully anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial, and utterly delicious. Blend it into a vivid pesto, stir it through a potato salad, or add it fresh to soups and eggs. It’s one of spring’s greatest gifts. (Recipes below!)

🌱 Cleavers (Goosegrass)

That sticky, sprawling green herb that clings to your clothes on a walk — yes, that one. Cleavers is one of the most important plants for our lymphatic system. After a long winter of heavier food, less movement and indoor living, our lymph needs a little encouragement. Simply place a handful of fresh cleavers in a jug of cold water overnight in the fridge, and drink it through the day. Gentle, effective, and completely free. It supports the liver and the whole drainage system — releasing that winter stagnation we all feel but can’t quite name.

🍵 Stinging Nettles

Don’t let those stings put you off — gloves on, and you have one of the most iron-rich, nourishing plants growing wild in Britain. Nettle tea is warming and restorative, and nettle soup is a spring classic for good reason. Bright, earthy and deeply mineral. (Recipe below!)

On Elderberry — and the Power of Ancient Remedies

I’ve been so heartened to hear from many of you that the elderberry syrup and tincture have helped see off winter colds. It always makes me smile — not because I’m surprised, but because I’ve always believed in these remedies. They’ve been trusted for centuries for very good reason.

The calendula in my tincture, incidentally, works beautifully alongside cleavers — both support lymphatic drainage and gentle detoxification. There’s a wonderful logic to nature: the plants that appear in spring are often exactly what our bodies need after winter.

Coming Soon from Bloomfield Botanicals

I’m so excited for what’s just around the corner. As the elder trees burst into their magnificent white blossom, we’ll be bringing you:

• Elderflower Cordial — fragrant, floral, and made the traditional way

• Elderflower Fire Cider — a sparkling, zingy new take on a classic

• Elderflower Vinaigrette — using beautiful local extra virgin oil

Watch this space. May is going to be gorgeous.

Spring Mocktails — Beautiful, Botanical and Good for You

Who says a gorgeous drink can’t also be doing you good? Here are two of my favourite spring mocktails using Bloomfield Botanicals products — light, refreshing, and packed with the kind of goodness your body will thank you for.

Elderberry Sparkle

1 tablespoon of Elderberry Syrup and 1 tablespoon of Oxymel, fresh mint, a squeeze of lemon, and sparkling water. Stir, sip, and feel the zing. Deeply cleansing and a beautiful way to support your immune system.

Elderberry Tonic

1 tablespoon of Elderberry Syrup and 1 tablespoon of Fire Cider, rosemary, a squeeze of lime, and a mix of tonic and mineral water. A little more complex — warming, aromatic, and wonderful for digestion.

Both drinks look as beautiful as they taste. 🌿

Easter Offer — 30% Off Elderberry Syrup

If you’d like to stock up on elderberry syrup, orders are open now and will be dispatched just after Easter. And as a little seasonal thank you — enjoy 30% off while stocks last.

Simply reply to this email or head to bloomfieldbotanicals.co.uk to order.

Wishing you a joyful, restorative Easter — may you find some wild garlic along the way. 🌿

With warmth,

Olenia

Bloomfield Botanicals — small-batch, organic, made with love in Bath

🌿 Spring Recipes

Wild Garlic Pesto

Blend a generous handful of wild garlic leaves with olive oil, pine nuts or walnuts, a squeeze of lemon, and a pinch of salt. Adjust to taste. Keeps in the fridge for a week. Wonderful on pasta, toast, or stirred through warm new potatoes.

Wild Garlic Potato Salad

Boil new potatoes until just tender, cool slightly, then toss with finely sliced wild garlic, a good olive oil, and a little grain mustard or crème fraîche.

Cleavers Water

Place a generous handful of fresh cleavers (washed) into a jug of cold water. Leave overnight in the fridge. Drink throughout the following day. Repeat for a week for best effect.

Nettle Soup

Soften an onion and a potato in butter, add stock and bring to a simmer. Add two large handfuls of young nettle tops (gloves on until they’re in the pot!), cook for 5 minutes, then blend. Season well. A swirl of cream is optional but lovely.