Bawmer
Spindle Berries
Euonymous Europaeus
Common on chalky and limestone soils. Grey, smooth bark and small greeny flowers in summer that give way to pink fruits which, in turn, split to reveal an orange seed. Leaves turn red in autumn. Food plant of the Holly Blue butterfly. The tree has also been known as Prickwood, Skewerwood (due to being made into toothpicks) and Pincushion Shrub. The name euonymous associates the plant with Euonyme, who was the Mother of the Fairies. It is a favourite tree of robins, so much so that it is also known as Robins' bread.
Was traditionally used in spindles for looms. Charcoal was made from the young shoots and also used in making gunpowder. Pegs have also been made from the wood. The fruits (which are poisonous) yield a yellow dye when boiled in water, or green if boiled in alum.
Decoction of the fruit has been used to treat mange in horses and cattle. Contains a resin called euonymin, which stimulates appetite and the liver. The baked fruits were powdered and rubbed into hair as a remedy for headlice.
Spindle Berries
Euonymous Europaeus
Common on chalky and limestone soils. Grey, smooth bark and small greeny flowers in summer that give way to pink fruits which, in turn, split to reveal an orange seed. Leaves turn red in autumn. Food plant of the Holly Blue butterfly. The tree has also been known as Prickwood, Skewerwood (due to being made into toothpicks) and Pincushion Shrub. The name euonymous associates the plant with Euonyme, who was the Mother of the Fairies. It is a favourite tree of robins, so much so that it is also known as Robins' bread.
Was traditionally used in spindles for looms. Charcoal was made from the young shoots and also used in making gunpowder. Pegs have also been made from the wood. The fruits (which are poisonous) yield a yellow dye when boiled in water, or green if boiled in alum.
Decoction of the fruit has been used to treat mange in horses and cattle. Contains a resin called euonymin, which stimulates appetite and the liver. The baked fruits were powdered and rubbed into hair as a remedy for headlice.