A Roman legacy

No not the stone structures! They are old lime kilns such as are to be found in every bay, large or small, in this acid land. Limestone, delivered by boat and dumped on the shore, would be dropped into the kiln and baked by fires lit in hearths below to produce quicklime to sweeten the soil. A hazardous trade - the toxic fumes shortened the lives of the lime burners while homeless folk taking advantage of the warmth ofthe embers at night might not wake in the morning.

What the Romans left was their favourite potherb that's growing all around and flowering yellowy green in the foreground. Alexanders (from Alexandria) Smyrnium olusatrum, an umbelliferous plant whose young stems provided a celery-like vegetable, its seeds a flavouring and  its leaves a salad, perhaps too powerfully flavoured for our palates now unless picked very young. At this time of the year Alexanders is everywhere here, lining the coast roads and swarming over banks and stonework.

You can read all about it here.  But be warned, while it's not as dangerous as quicklime, it's very prolific and hard to eradicate once established. I introduced some to my garden and rather wish I hadn't.

My previous blip of Alexanders  shows the plant and describes the best way to eat it. Bonum appetitionem!