It was looking like one of the warmest winters we have had, then all of a sudden a cold snap followed by a week of rain, which set off an alarm in my head, as it should do in your's too. A cold and wet winter is the perfect breeding ground for the parasitic fungus, ergot.

Usually found growing on rye and other grasses, if the ergot fungus is eaten or makes its way into your bloodstream you are likely to get very ill, symptoms of paranoia and hallucinations, twitches and spasms, cardiovascular trouble, and a weakened immune system are common.

In fact, one derivative of the fungus is commonly known as LSD, a popular drug in the 60s, in essence if you ingest ergot, you will have a bad trip. It is now a common theory that the town of Salem in America had a bad ergot infestation in its crops, which led to people who ate the bread produced in the town acting rather strange, a little bit like a witch, some might say.

Historically, ergot has had a lot to do with the shaping of the world. The plague of Holy Fire in 800 AD gripped the Holy Roman Empire causing widespread illness with the symptoms of ergot poisoning. Which allowed the Vikings to overpower the Holy Roman Empire, which eventually split in 887AD.

Ergot is also believed to be in the centre of the bubonic plague and has had recorded cases of whole towns being stricken with the disease as late as the 1950s in France. These disastrous cases occur when the ergot grows in the town's rye supply and consequently, everyone eats it and becomes affected.

This may sound a little far fetched, but I know a man who was working in his garden in Beecroft and got ergot through a cut in his leg while he was walking in the long grass. So be careful, wear long trousers if you have cuts on your legs, and most importantly, if you see someone freaking out, don't call them a witch and burn them on a tomato steak in your backyard.