| | TRR photo by Sandy Long
Herb Robert, a member of the geranium family, sports delicate fern-like leaves and half-inch pink flowers that bloom through early fall. Despite its visual appeal, when these leaves are crushed, the plant emits an offensive odor, earning it the common nickname, “Stinky Bob.” Ripe seedpods burst and distribute seeds in various directions. Herb Robert has antibacterial properties and was medicinally used in the past to relieve toothaches and nosebleeds, and to treat malaria and tuberculosis. In folklore, the plant was claimed to be named after Robin Goodfellow, another name for the fairy Puck of “Midsummer Night’s Dream” fame, whom some also connect with Robin Hood.
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Wild woodland beauties
Blooms abound throughout the Upper Delaware region lately, as summer progresses toward the season of berries and fruits. A lunchtime walk along River Road, beginning at the Pennsylvania end of the Narrowsburg bridge, revealed tumbling troves of purple-flowering raspberry and sprays of Herb Robert.
These pink and purple beauties prefer rocky woodlands, slopes and ravines, and were indeed discovered growing from rocky outcroppings in Milanville, PA, overlooking the Delaware River.
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