Cowslip (Primula veris)

Simple yet lovely, cowslips are synonymous with spring and Easter. Find them in woods and meadows during springtime.

 

Value to wildlife

Cowslips are important for wildlife, their flowers an early source of nectar for various insects including bees, beetles and butterflies such as the brimstone. Cowslip is also a food plant for the Duke of Burgundy butterfly.

 

Did you know?

‘Cowslip’ is actually a distorted pronunciation of ‘cow slop’, so named because the flowers are associated with cow pat in meadows and fields.

Uses of cowslip

The plant was traditionally used to treat sleeping problems as it is said to have a sedative quality, as well as the flowers being used to help treat coughs.

 

Cowslip leaves are used in Spanish cooking and have a slightly citrusy flavour. The flowers are traditionally used to flavour English country wine.

 

Mythology and symbolism

Cowslips were traditionally picked on May Day to adorn garlands but also for other celebrations, such as weddings. Cowslips have also been called ‘St. Peter’s keys’ or ‘keys of heaven’ because the one-sided flower heads looked like a set of keys, and it was said that cowslips grew where St. Peter dropped the Key of Earth.

Done