Cowslip

You know me as the modern garden primrose with its vibrant yellow, red, and blue blossoms. But are you also familiar with my wild forms in the forest and on natural meadows? My tall flower spikes glow yellow in the spring sunshine, adorning meadows, embankments, and roadsides from Easter until May. Unfortunately, the meadows are mowed far too early, preventing me from reseeding and causing me to become rare in many places. Therefore, I am protected in the wild and must not be collected. I thrive in sunny, rather dry meadows and open woodlands on calcareous soils. I was even chosen as the Flower of the Year in 2016. Not only am I one of the first of spring, "Primula veris," but my German name, "Schlüsselblume" (key flower), is derived from Peter, who received the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven. It is also said that my healing properties for colds "open the heavens." Hildegard von Bingen greatly appreciated this, and I am also described in her book on health. Only since the 20th century have the roots, in addition to the flowers, been used to cough up mucus in cases of colds.