#ferula

Flower in a desert?

The picture, taken by Belgian photographer Marie-Thérèse Ullens de Schooten (1905-1989), on the road to Mashhad in Iran, shows a beautifully otherworldly plant of the genus Ferula. Most likely, it is a specimen of Ferula foetida, a species that occurs over a wide swath of Eastern Iran, Turkmenistan, and Afghanistan. Along with several other species of Ferula that grow wild in Iran, it is the source of the spice asafoetida.

Another, unidentified species of Ferula is considered a likely candidate for the source of the ancient spice and medicinal herb silphium, highly valued by the Greeks and Romans. It was produced only in Cyrenaica, the coastal region of what is now eastern Libya, and was reported to have become extinct in Roman times, due to excessive exploitation and/or the progressive desertification of the area.

Plant of the Day

Saturday 4 November 2023

The dramatic seedheads of Ferula communis (giant fennel) continue to provide autumn and winter interest. This clump forming perennial creates a large mound of dark-green, finely-cut, unscented foliage from which rises a large flower stalk topped with yellow umbellifer flowers.

(Continued from Blood Replenishing Potion)

Now that Remus was awake, Sirius scanned him again for broken bones. He didn’t fins any, but he dressed a wide gash down Remus’s arm that looked like it was the result of a hastily hurled curse.

“Ferula,” he muttered and bandages shot out of his wand, winding themselves around the injured area.

Remus was quiet as he did this, watching him with sharp eyes. He slumped against Sirius when he was done. “Thanks, Pads,” he mumbled.

“It’s alright, Moonshine. Just rest,” Sirius said, shifting them, so they were both lying on the sofa. 

“James and I were just supposed to be scouting but...the Death Eaters were there, waiting…like they knew…” Remus whispered, as he trembled against Sirius. 

“I don’t see how they would have…” Sirius said. But they’d suspected for months that there was a mole. But now wasn’t exactly the time to discuss it. Now he just wanted Remus to rest and heal.

So he said, “Shhh…it’s over now, darling. Just rest.”

Word count: 165