For early American households, the herb garden was an all-purpose medicine chest. Herbs were used to treat apoplexy (lily of the valley), asthma (burdock, horehound), boils (onion), tuberculosis (chickweed, coltsfoot), palpitations (saffron, valerian), jaundice (speedwell, nettles, toad flax), toothache (dittander), hemorrhage (yarrow), hypochondria (mustard, viper grass), wrinkles (cowslip juice), cancers (bean-leaf juice), and various other ailments. But herbs were used for a host of other purposes as well — and in this fascinating book, readers will find a wealth of information on the uses of herbs by homemakers of the past, including more than 500 authentic recipes, given exactly as they appeared in their original sources. Selected from such early American cookbook classics as Miss Leslie's Directions for Cookery, Mary Randolph's The Virginia Housewife, Lydia Child's The American Frugal Housewife, and other rare publications, the recipes cover the use of herbs for medicinal, culinary, cosmetic, and other purposes. Readers will discover not only how herbs were used in making vegetable and meat dishes, gravies and sauces, cakes, pies, soups, and beverages, but also how our ancestors employed them in making dyes, furniture polish, insecticides, spot removers, perfumes, hair tonics, soaps, tooth powders, and numerous other products. While some formulas are completely fantastic, others (such as a sunburn ointment made from hog's lard and elder flowers) were based on long experience and produced excellent results. More than 100 fine nineteenth-century engravings of herbs add to the charm of this enchanting volume — an invaluable reference and guide for plant lovers and herb enthusiasts that will "delight and astound the twentieth-century reader." (Library Journal).

Carefully researched, charmingly written guide describes over 50 herbs and plants: bee balm, bloodroot, candytuft, daffodil, hyssop, lovage, rosemary, tansy, wormwood, yarrow, more. Illustrations.

This beautifully illustrated guide to growing and cooking with fresh herbs offers 50 recipes that showcase the flavor of basil, sage, mint, and more. Cooking teacher and best-selling cookbook author Lynn Alley shows you how to make the most of fresh herbs, from your own garden to your own table. With profiles on mint, dill, rosemary, thyme, parsley, tarragon, sage, basil, cilantro, and oregano, Lynn proves that fresh herbs are an easy way to add flavor without a lot of fuss—or a lot of fat. Cooking with Herbs features recipes for seasonings, spreads, and dressings, as well as mouthwatering dishes like Apple, Sage, and Hazelnut Rounds; Cheddar, Mustard, Garlic, and Chive Mac ‘n’ Cheese; Polenta with Two Cheeses, Basil, and Oregano; Potatoes Rosti with Indian Flavors; Savory Tomato Sorbet with Tarragon, Chervil, and Parsley; and Deep Chocolate and Peppermint Cheesecakes. Lynn also offers easy tips and techniques for starting your own container herb garden, from picking your plants to choosing the perfect spot—even if you don’t have a yard!

From tulsi to turmeric, echinacea to elderberry, medicinal herbs are big business—but do they deliver on their healing promise—to those who consume them, those who provide them, and the natural world? “An eye-opener. . . . [Armbrecht] challenges ideas of what medicine can be, and how business practices can corrupt, and expand, our notions of plant-based healing.”—The Boston Globe "So deeply honest, sincere, heartful, questioning, and brilliant. . . . [The Business of Botanicals] is an amazing book, that plunges in, and takes a deepening look at those places where people don’t often venture."—Rosemary Gladstar, author of Rosemary Gladstar's Medicinal Herbs "For those who loved Braiding Sweetgrass, this book is a perfect opportunity to go deeper into understanding the complex and co-evolutionary journey of plants and people." —Angela McElwee, former president and CEO of Gaia Herbs Using herbal medicines to heal the body is an ancient practice, but in the twenty-first century, it is also a worldwide industry. Yet most consumers know very little about where those herbs come from and how they are processed into the many products that fill store shelves. In The Business of Botanicals, author Ann Armbrecht follows their journey from seed to shelf, revealing the inner workings of a complicated industry, and raises questions about the ethical and ecological issues of mass production of medicines derived from these healing plants, many of which are imperiled in the wild. This is the first book to explore the interconnected web of the global herb industry and its many stakeholders, and is an invaluable resource for conscious consumers who want to better understand the social and environmental impacts of the products they buy. "Armbrecht masterfully manages the challenges and complexity of her source material . . . [She] is a spirited storyteller . . . [and] presents all this with the skill of an anthropologist and the heart of an herbalist."—Journal of the American Herbalists Guild

The author of ‘the bible on herbalism’ returns with a portable guide on North American medicinal herbs—for the professional and amateur herbalist alike Based on the now-classic reference text Indian Herbalogy of North America, this illustrated pocket guide is the perfect companion for those eager to expand their knowledge of herbal healing. Through detailed descriptions and illustrations, Alma R. Hutchens walks readers through: • 125 of the most useful medicinal herbs found in North America, and their uses • How to create herbal remedies for common ailments • The herbal traditions of North America and other lands Entries include staples of folk medicine such as echinacea and slippery elm as well as common kitchen herbs—from parsley to thyme to pepper—whose tonic and healing properties are less widely known.