Books about herbs (149 lines)

Jun 13 15:31 UTC 1996

Here's a collection of responses from the Synthesis conference on the 
subject of herb books.  Please share your old favorites and new 
discoveries with us.

#2 of 84: by Robert Henderson (robh) on Wed, Sep 15, 1993 (19:01): 
 I've always had a fondness for plants in general, and love using 
 herbs, even though I know next to nothing about how to use them well.  
 The one book I have on the subject is _Magical_Herbalism_ by Scott 
 Cunningham.  STAY AWAY FROM THIS BOOK!  I find the writing style 
 annoying, and when all is said and done, it doesn't even say that 
 much about what herbs are good for what.  Mostly it goes over 
 "magickal gardening", and since their are herbs growing all over our 
 backyard without any help from me, I really don't worry about that.  
 
 Any recommendations on good herbalism books?  


#4 of 84: by Phaedrus (phaedrus) on Thu, Sep 16, 1993 (08:48): It's 
 funny when the talk turns to herbs people have the weirdest 
 reactions.  I, like Rob, know only basic usage of herbs, which 
 amounts to drinking some chamomile tea when I have an upset stomach!  
 But many people think it's way too esoteric, is this the case? Many 
 of the herbs that I hear about using are already in my kitchen, seems 
 too easy.  About the Scott Cunningham book, I'd have to agree Rob, he 
 tends to give lots of traditional info about herbs but not very much 
 that is useful today, when I have a headache, or the like. But he 
 does make that subject, and I think the Craft as a whole feel more 
 accessible.  I'd also ask for good books on herbalism, though I have 
 a feeling the best learning is probably from a teacher??  -phaedrus 

#6 of 84: by Michael Delizia (md) on Thu, Sep 16, 1993 (14:40): 
 There's Culpepper's Herbal, which dates back to the 17th (?) century.  
 I've seen modernized editions with color drawings.  I haven't owned a 
 Culpepper in many years.  I remember thinking it was naive and out-
 of-date.  Nevertheless, I've found echos of Culpepper in just about 
 every other herbal I ever read.  
 
 There's also the big modern herbal produced by that British author 
 whose name escapes me.  A Ph.D.  (He has his own line of herbal teas 
 now.) 

#7 of 84: by Michael Delizia (md) on Mon, Sep 20, 1993 (11:08): I went 
 through our bookshelves over the weekend.  Apart from some back 
 issues of Herb Quarterly, the only think we have that's exclusively 
 about herbs is a book called _The Way of Herbs_ by Michael Tierra.  
 As the title implies, it has an oriental slant: lots of boring (for 
 me, anyway) Yin 'n' Yang macrobiotic material, and separate sections 
 for Western herbs and Chinese herbs.  "Western" = non-Chinese for 
 this author, since it includes herbs of Central Asian, Middle 
 Eastern, African and Native American (both North and South American) 
 origin.  
 
 If it's specific medicinal applications you want, however, this is 
 your book.  It has loads of them, along with detailed instructions 
 for making teas, elixirs, pills, ointments, suppositories, you name 
 it.  For each herb, Tierra also lists the active chemicals, which in 
 some cases (Foxglove, Ma Huang, etc.) are serious business.  There 
 are also intelligent and responsible warnings about indications, 
 contraindications and dosages.  

#9 of 84: by Michael Delizia (md) on Fri, Nov 19, 1993 (08:57): We got 
 a Reader's Digest contest mailer that was offering a book called 
 _Magic and Medicine of Plants_, and being, you know, rich and able to 
 afford an occasional pig-in-a-poke, I ordered the thing 
 
 It turns out to be a glossy 500-page field guide with supplementary 
 sections about preparation of foods, teas, medicinals, etc., the 
 history of herbalism, and the elements of botany.  As you might 
 expect of a Reader's Digest publication, it isn't exactly a manual 
 for Wiccans and New Agers.  It does strike me as very well researched 
 and comprehensive, though.  The write-up for each plant features a 
 "Uses" section listing the various medicinal and other uses to which 
 the plant has traditionally been put, and specifying which of them, 
 if any, have been confirmed by orthodox medical research.  A black 
 "X" indicates a toxic plant; a red "X" indicates a plant that'll drop 
 you on the spot.  Marijuana and pennyroyal rate black X's, for 
 example, and foxglove and lily of the valley rate the red X.  It's 
 surprising how many herbal remedies have been confirmed by medical 
 research.  Cone flower (Echinacea) really does boost the immune 
 system, and Ginkgo biloba really does make you smarter.  If having a 
 Reader's Digest book on your shelf wouldn't be just too horribly 
 infra dig for you, this is is the best modern herbal I've ever seen.  
 (Me, I don't care.  "The sage uses what is at hand; there is no shame 
 in this," to quote a ninja master in some movie I saw, as he bashed a 
 bad guy over the head with a telephone.) Highest recommendation.  

#10 of 84: by Michael Delizia (md) on Fri, Nov 19, 1993 (09:01): Btw, 
 the book lists many suppliers of seeds, plants and herb products.  
 There is also the 
 
      Herb Society of America
      9019 Kirtland Chardon Road
      Mentor, Ohio 44060

#16 of 84: by kami landy (kami) on Mon, Jan 10, 1994 (12:17):
 As to books, there's always the basic manual: John Lust's Herbs.  A 
 favorite of mine, a bit hard to find, is Dian Dincin Buchman's Herbal 
 Medicine- very practical, good expanations and stories, not an 
 overwhelming amount of info.  That Chinese one and the Readers Digest 
 both look interesting.  

#74 of 84: by Michael Delizia (md) on Tue, May  2, 1995 (09:22): 
 Rodale's Illustrated Encyclopedia of Herbs is currently on sale at 
 Barnes & Noble for $15.  Original price was $27.  If you wait a 
 little longer, you might find it on the table outside Borders for $5, 
 who knows?  It's a pretty good book.  Covers culinary, medicinal and 
 crafts uses for various herbs, has separate entries for toxicity, 
 what herbs go best with which foods, how to make tussie-mussies, etc.  
 Something for everyone.  

#81 of 84: by DJ Russell (bbskitty) on Sat, Jul 29, 1995 (01:03): 
 Howdy all!  I've joined GREX and was *very* pleased to see the Herb 
 group here!  I've been studying the more arcane topics of life for 
 several years.  Herbal lore has been an important part of those 
 studies.  Three books that I would recommend for anyone starting 
 their study are: "Back to Eden" by Jethro Kloss; "Natures Miracle 
 Medicine Chest" by C. Edward Burtis; and "Natural Remedies" by Peter 
 L. Ferrara.  Two other useful books are "A Field Guide to Edible Wild 
 Plants" by Lee Peterson and "Peterson Field Guides:Venomous Animals 
 and Poisonous Plants" by Steven Foster and Roger Caras.  I've found 
 the internet an interesting source of information, and there's some 
 software (ie:Herb Power v.3.1) that can be useful.  But as far as 
 magical uses of herbs?  I would be grateful for any suggestions.  I 
 can be reached usually at djrussel@syr.edu.  I've also got web pages 
 at <http://web.syr.edu/~djrussel/> where I've set up some "new age" 
 links at <http://web.syr.edu/~djrussel/newage.html>  Thanks for any 
 help! .  

#82 of 84: by DJ Russell (bbskitty) on Sat, Jul 29, 1995 (01:16): 
 Dangit!!  I almost forgot one of my favorites! "Earthway:A Native 
 American Visionary's Path to Total Mind, Body, and Spirit Health" by 
 Mary Summer Rain.  It's got a hodgepodge of everything in it, but 
 definitely worth a read! DJ.

#141 of 145: by Michael Delizia (md) on Thu, Sep  7, 1995 (09:25):
 You might try The Complete Medicinal Herbal, by Penelope Ody.  
 In addition to the usual listings of plants and their uses, it 
 gives instructions on how to make most kinds of herbal 
 preparations, including lists of the equipment and supplies you 
 need to make each kind of preparation, and captioned color 
 photographs of all the steps in each process.  Ody is a British 
 herbalist who studied both in England and in China, so her book 
 is an interesting mix of oriental and western herb lore.  I paid 
 $30 for my copy at Grass Roots Nursery, but you might be able to 
 get it cheaper.  
 
 Grass Roots Nursery is a nice place to visit in it's own right, 
 btw.  It's in New Boston.  From AA I guess you'd take I-94 east 
 to I-275, then I-275 south to exit 11, then follow the signs.  

response 2 of 5:

Jun 14 12:31 UTC 1996

You're welcome.  I should also mention that there is a Peterson
Field Guide to Medicinal Plants.  It's a typical Peterson guide,
lots of line drawings and color photographs, good text.  I have
the Central-Eastern edition.

response 4 of 5:

Jun 29 22:17 UTC 1996

Have any of you heard of Susan Weed ( I think that's her name).  She's a rath 
famous herbalist.  I belive she does correspondence courses and i am sure she
has a least one book out.  I think she lives on the west coast somewhere.