A garden plant used to make paper

This winter-flowering shrub is a popular garden plant in the UK, but in Nepal it is the basis of a whole industry – the production of lokta paper. The paper is made from its fibrous bark which is pounded in water to make a thick pulp. The pulp is spread in a thin layer onto mesh frames and left to dry into the distinctively textured lokta paper. Daphne is particularly suitable for making paper due to the strong, durable fibres in its bark. Because of these fibres the bark can also be shredded into strips and twisted into rope.

Daphne is used medicinally, to treat fever, intestinal disorders and parasitic worms.