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Time for a tale

This is one of my favourite stories and it does involve nettles!

Introducing the nettle

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Why encourage nettles?

How many of you can see nettles in the garden or on a regular walk?

How many of you have been stung?

Why d’you think nettles have stings?

I don’t have the answer, but I do know that the stinging nettle deters grazers such as sheep and cows which gives the insects who live on them a greater chance of survival 🙂

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So how can nettles benefit us?

Food

Nettles are very nutritious, high in iron and Vitamin A – more info here: https://www.leaf.tv/6653042/nutrition-of-stinging-nettles/

… but what do you pick?

Harvesting nettles:

The leaves can make a nice tea, or be used like spinach, but how?:

The flowerheads of the nettles can be removed:

Plant food

Put the nettle heads, discarded leaves and stems in water, cover and stir daily. After a few days you will have a concentrated plant food for your veg and fruit. Add a little food to each refill of your watering can and watch your plants grow!

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Fibre

For centuries nettles have been harvested for their strong, versatile fibre – this is found in the stem of the plant.

How do you harvest the fibre?

Watch the videos below to find out more 🙂

The nettle stem

Uses for nettle fibre:

Remove the leaves – with gloves or scissors:

Remove hairs and outer skin

Create a bracelet

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Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Nettles and wildlife

In the UK, nettles support over 40 different species of insect – for some the plant is a source of food, and for others, nettles are their home.

The Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly

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This beauty lays its eggs on nettle leaves. Around 200 eggs are encased in a protective web and hidden from sight in a nettle leaf:

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As the caterpillars hatch they begin to chaw their nursery leaf and the others roundabout, leaving a scattering of tiny black pellets, which you might see if you look closely:

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Once they’ve eaten, they’ll have another wee snooze, once more wrapping themselves up in a protective web:

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The caterpillars grow and eat:

And over the weeks become a black swarming mass writhing around the nettle bed:

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Once they have matured, the caterpillars will go and find a solitary place to pupate and will finally emerge as the bonny small tortoiseshell 🙂

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I hope this post will encourage you to look a bit closer at this wonderful plant – see what insects you can spot and enjoy some of its nutritious leaves 🙂