• Director(s):

    VIVES (François-Xavier)

  • Producer(s):

    ARTE FRANCE, MIROIR (LE)

  • Territories:

    Worldwide.

  • Production year:

    2009

  • Language(s):

    German, French

  • Rights:

    NON-THEATRICAL, TV, VOD, DVD, INTERNET

Under-appreciated and little-known, the nettle has many hidden properties - medicinal, culinary and ecological.

When it is extracted and fermented, it enriches soil and fortifies crops. Yet, as though they were worried about the extent of its success, public authorities have decided to supervise the use of "nettle manure", bringing in legislation on it, and provoking a veritable "nettle war" - a symbolic struggle against the merchandising of living things. The nettle has become a symbol of freedom and defiance in the face of agrochemical lobbying. It throws our relationship to nature into question, and invites us to enjoy a harmonious relationship with biodiversity. Scientists, farmers, landscape gardeners, and ethnologists share information on the nettle, from the slopes of the Pyrenéés to the rain forests of Australia, via the walkways of the Chateau de Versailles and the laboratories at Kew Gardens in London.