Résumé
Herbal Handbook is a charming, information-packed guide to 51 herbs and their uses illustrated with rare botanical art from the renowned archives of The New York Botanical Garden.

Did you know that woodruff was used as a room freshener in the Middle Ages; that crushed bergamot leaves can soothe bee stings; and that dried fenugreek seeds were found in the tomb of King Tutankhamen?

Herbs are magical, and their uses myriad. Inside Herbal Handbook are fifty-one herbs portrayed in words and rare botanical art curated by experts at The New York Botanical Garden. Some, like saffron, are treasured and rare; others, like purslane, grow by the roadside. They all have a place—in the garden, in the kitchen, in the bed or the bath. Use Herbal Handbook to explore their history, how to grow them, and how they were used in the past and present. Then bring them into your daily life; each herb’s profile offers a recipe or project that highlights its unique properties.

So cleanse your face with calendula when you wake up, sip a bergamot tea at breakfast, have a lovage tuna sandwich for lunch, and mix a caraway cocktail at the end of the day. Let Herbal Handbook delight your senses as they have done to others for thousands of years.

Échantillon de lecture
Introduction

Fairy clock. Lion’s teeth. Little dragon. Eye of the star. Calendula. Meadowsweet. Juno’s tears. These plants conjure enchanted worlds, brighten our gardens, enrich our meals, heal our bodies, freshen our air, soothe us before sleep. If one wants to believe in magic, one might do well to begin with the study of herbs.

From the tomb of Tutankhamun to medieval kitchen gardens to suburban lawns, herbs are everywhere, and have been with us for thousands of years. Archaeological remains indicate that as long as there have been people on this planet, there have been plants that supported them. Their use predates any surviving written records we have. At the cross-section of botany, medicine, history, natural history, the culinary arts, holistic healing, and, of course gardening, herbs have a stunning range of aromas, flavors, and applications. On our tables, at our weddings, in our skin care regimens and in our sacred rituals, they mark the seasons and connect us to the past. They give us flowers and essential oils. Some revitalize our spirits; others help relieve anxiety and settle us down. They can be sewn into dream pillows, cut fresh for bouquets, rubbed on the scalp to invigorate the hair, or grown to turn your lawn into a fairy-tale cottage garden.

What makes an herb an herb? The definition is twobranched. Botanically an herb is defined as a plant that produces seeds but does not develop a woody stem. But an herb is also defined as any plant with leaves, flowers, seeds, stems or roots that can be used for seasoning, medicine, or perfume.

In this book you’ll find herbs in Sanskrit texts and Renaissance cookbooks, in Greek myths and Roman feasts, and lining the baby cribs of North American indigenous peoples. There’s a hollyhock festival in Japan, lavender fields in Provence, Indian curries, Greek spanakopita, and ancient love potions. The simple entries—which all include a description, instructions for growing, and tips for usage— take you from marshes to rocky cliffs, across pastures, into woods, through cultivated fields, across oceans, and along the Silk Road. Some herbs are considered weeds, and others are precious and treasured, handpicked from plants that flower briefly, with blooms that fade quickly.

And because it’s best to learn by doing, each herb profile includes a recipe or project using that herb. You’ll see how they can be chopped into salads and soups, sautéed in oil, or used to flavor pasta, garnish punches, enhance baked goods, and steeped for a comforting tea. Whether you find them growing in the wild or cultivate them with care; whether you use them to transform your mood or your food, welcome the spring, or cheer up your living room, we’re sure you’ll enjoy learning about these plants and trying your hand at the recipes that follow. Despite a multiplicity of uses, you’ll find herbs reassuring in their simplicity: they need water, and they (mostly) love the sun.