Harry Potter's wand was made from holly and a phoenix feather.
Holly is a native Irish tree with shiny, evergreen leaves. These leaves are prickly but if you look up you will see that the higher up the tree you look the less prickly the leaves are. At the top of the tree the leaves are just curved. This is because the prickles are a defence against animals that might eat them and the animals can't reach up high on the tree so there is no need for the prickles there.
Holly trees are unusual in that there are male and female trees. Both trees have small white flowers in May and the wind blows the pollen from the male flowers to the female flowers and berries then form on the female tree. These berries turn red in the autumn and are loved by thrushes but poisonous to humans. Never eat berries from trees!
In early Irish law there were seven trees known as the noble trees because they were very important to people. Holly was one of these. It seems that the holly was a good wood to choose for Harry's wand then because Harry is a character who does good and he is a noble person.
This wildflower is called Herb Robert.
It is a pinkish flower and there are two flowers per stem. The flowers come out in May and remain until September. The stems turn bright red in autumn. Herb Robert is found along hedges and shady areas and spreads easily. It is a member of the cranesbill family and its seeds are said to look like the beak of a crane. It has a pungent scent which is supposed to be a bit like the scent of a fox!
The name of this wildflower is said to be connected to the Normans even though the flower has always grown in Ireland. The Normans were familiar with a powerful wizard in English folklore called Robin Goodfellow and Robin is a version of Robert. This plant was used by the wizard in his spells. Herb Robert was also used to stop bleeding.
I hope you get a chance to get out on a nature walk to find some of these plants for your notebook. Have fun!
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