I used to be lately reminded of this historic African proverb.
I used to be talking with a village healer in an nearly abandoned mountain village within the Peloponnese Area of Greece.
She’s the final particular person in her neighborhood who is aware of the normal makes use of of their native vegetation.
When she passes, centuries of plant knowledge will vanish together with her.
That is greater than only a distant downside in far-off lands. It’s taking place proper now.
In each British village.
In each European city.
Throughout each American state.
Treasured plant data is slipping away like water via our fingers.
On daily basis one other piece of our botanical heritage fades into silence.
Give it some thought – simply two generations in the past, most individuals may determine frequent medicinal vegetation.
They knew which wild meals have been suitable for eating.
This information had been handed down via households for hundreds of years.
In the present day, most of us stroll previous these similar vegetation with out recognising them. The chain of information has been damaged.
Why does this matter?
As a result of that is about extra than simply dropping attention-grabbing historic info. That is residing data that:
- May assist us adapt to local weather change
- Offers sustainable, native meals sources
- Gives options for neighborhood well being
- Connects us deeply to our panorama and heritage
Every bit of plant knowledge we lose is like tearing a web page from humanity’s survival information.
However there’s hope.
In my 20+ years documenting these vanishing traditions, I’ve found one thing exceptional: when folks reconnect with this information, one thing profound occurs.
They start to see the world otherwise, really feel a deeper connection to their atmosphere, and develop into a part of the answer.
