Heather and the ethnobotanical tradition

On the Island, this plant is known as scopa or stipa. In folk medicine, heather was used for its diuretic and antiseptic properties associated with its arbutin content. A decoction made from its flowers was used to treat cystitis, particularly when caused by prostatitis. An excellent melliferous plant, its slightly bitter-tasting honey is valued for its medicinal properties associated with its content of diuretic and antiseptic ingredients.

In ancient times, its wood was used in charcoal burning to produce an excellent charcoal, extremely heat-resistant due to the high silicon content of the plant's stem. This factor made it an excellent heat producer, particularly important in kilns for working iron ore and in blacksmiths' forges. Particular use, once again due to the high silicon content of its timber, was made of the briar block that forms at its base. These were harvested to make fine smoking pipes whose bowls were fireproof and especially ornamental due to the beautiful grain on the briar of the heather bush. For the same aesthetic reason, strips of briar were used by furniture makers to create fine veneers.

Being a species with extremely flammable foliage, tree heather's secondary branches and twigs were collected to make kindling for lighting kilns. The branches and twigs were also woven to build roofing and windbreakers. The twigs, particularly the upright or straight ones of Erica scoparia, were also tied together and used to create besoms or rustic brooms. Groups of tree heather bundles were used in ancient times as ribs, for example in support bases for construction of arches and vaults. In the cellars of Fort Falcone in Portoferraio, in the concrete made in 1548 under the direction of the architect Giovanni Camerini, some tree heather twigs from bundles used as formwork for casting are still perfectly preserved, trapped and conserved in the lime all this time.

(Antonello Marchese, translation from Italian)