The betony is in bloom. Nodding in the breeze, its copious whorls of flowers made the wayside shimmer with purple. These days betony leads a retiring life on roadsides, churchyards, field edges and other quiet corners, but it was once a superstar. Beginning with the Romans, Europeans celebrated betony for not only curing a whole host of nasties (back pain, headaches, indigestion, toothache and epilepsy to name only a few), but believed it warded off snakes and drunkenness, and kept ghosts and goblins at bay.