A
very early wildflower, Tussilago farfara, aka colt's foot, aka filius
ante patrem ('the son before the father' because the plant flowers and
dies back long before leaves appear). Once a very prominent medicinal
herb, it is now known to contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids that have a
mutagenic effect on DNA. Because of it's continued popularity in
Germany and Belgium in particular, colt's foot is available commercially
with the alkaloids removed. I've never used colt's foot, and probably will continue to avoid it.
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