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By Roger Phillips

Published 1986

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Petasites hybridus Forming large patches of enormous, bright green leaves in damp places and by stream edges, the flowers come before the leaves at the end of March.

Traditionally the leaves of butterbur were used to wrap butter which helped keep it cool. Geoffrey Grigson in his excellent book The Englishman’s Flora found and quotes a reference in Gerard, 1633. ‘The Leaf is of such a wideness, as that of itself it is bigger and large inough to keepe a mans head from raine, and from the heat of the sunne.’