The Complete Book of Herbs

Rating:
Summary: Truly my favorite Herb book.
Review: Although most of the previous reviews have already explained how great this book is, I still wanted to add my own stating how much I LOVE this book! I have several books on herbs and this one is definitely used the most.

I can't believe how extensive the information is in this book!

Rating:
Summary: --I never get tired of reading this book--
Review: Collecting herbal books has been a hobby of mine for several years, and I own about 20 books on the subject. This particular book was a gift from my son and I have to say it's one of my favorite books about herbs. Because this is an English book, you'll have to take your climate into consideration with some of the suggested plantings.

THE COMPLETE BOOK OF HERBS has gorgeous photographs and illustrations. In the Herbal Index section there are over 60 different plants pictured. Each illustration shows the entire plant with close up pictures of the seeds, flowers and often the root when it's usable. The section on Herbs in the Garden offers different designs with suggestions of which plants are complimentary partners. One interesting picture that I particularly liked in this section was of a moonlight garden. Beautiful and serene!

There are also sections on: growing & harvesting, herbal healing, beauty care, and cooking with herbs. The recipes are pretty diverse. The foods look so good that you'll want to try them all. I especially enjoyed the Oregano Tomatoes; Garden Herb Omelette; Melon, Tomato & Mint Salad and the Lemon Balm Cheesecake. All delicious!

If you just want one book on herbs, this beautiful and concise book is it!

Rating:
Summary: --I never get tired of reading this book--
Review: Collecting herbal books has been a hobby of mine for several years, and I own about 20 books on the subject. This particular book was a gift from my son and I have to say it's one of my favorite books about herbs. Because this is an English book, you'll have to take your climate into consideration with some of the suggested plantings.

THE COMPLETE BOOK OF HERBS has gorgeous photographs and illustrations. In the Herbal Index section there are over 60 different plants pictured. Each illustration shows the entire plant with close up pictures of the seeds, flowers and often the root when it's usable. The section on Herbs in the Garden offers different designs with suggestions of which plants are complimentary partners. One interesting picture that I particularly liked in this section was of a moonlight garden. Beautiful and serene!

There are also sections on: growing & harvesting, herbal healing, beauty care, and cooking with herbs. The recipes are pretty diverse. The foods look so good that you'll want to try them all. I especially enjoyed the Oregano Tomatoes; Garden Herb Omelette; Melon, Tomato & Mint Salad and the Lemon Balm Cheesecake. All delicious!

If you just want one book on herbs, this beautiful and concise book is it!

Rating:
Summary: Terrific reference material
Review: Growing one's herbs is satisfying but using them completes the cycle. If you've ever wondered what to do with all the herbs you've managed to put in your garden over the years this book can help you. If you are just starting out with herbs this book can get you going properly. Not only does it have recipes but it has some ideas that I never could have imagined let alone used. The bulk of the book is dedicated to the herbal index which is extremely helpful. Each illustrated herb is broken down and expalined simply as to it's use, from root to leaves. The only problem I found with this section is that it is organized by their botanical names, which unless you're so inclined is difficult to find quickly. This is a minor problem that is remedied by the oversized common name, which of course is not alphabetized but more recognizable. A page is dedicated to over 100 of the most common herbs used. It tells you how to cultivate the individual herb and it's uses, which includes the medicinal use. Even if I don't use all the herbs or have them growing in my garden it is fascinating to know the historical and contemporary use of herbs. This book is a constant learning experience that can be read over and over. A perfect garden companion for that break under a tree. The knowledge can prove to be invaluable. Even such common herbs as Thyme can present posssibly new insights into it's benefits. Have trouble sleeping? The leaves of Thyme can help insomnia as well as stimulate the production of white corpusules to resist infection amongst it's many other attributes. There is much more information than I need here but there is something for everyone, from herbal dyes, to baths and massages and to the ever popular potpourri. This is, as the title suggests, the complete book on herbs. A great book for the kichen or to help you plan your herb garden, this book has as many uses as the author presents uses for the herbs.

Rating:
Summary: The Best for Herb Gardeners and Users
Review: I adore this book. It supplies you with gardening tips on growing herbs as well as info on garden layouts and cultivation information. It also supplies uses for herbs for your household, culinary arts, and medical uses among other ideas for uses of herbs. I highly recommend this book whether you're a gardener, a cook, or a homemaker.

Rating:
Summary: Encyclopedia of Herbs....
Review: Is there anything herbs can't do? This heavy paperback book (notebook sized, semi-gloss pages and about an inch thick) covers every angle of herb growing and use. The opening pages discuss how to lay out your herb garden (parterre or pots), what themes you might explore: children's garden (easy), moonlight garden (reflective), culinary garden (parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme), Chinese garden (peonies of course), literary gardens (here's pansies that's for thoughts), gardens for bees (you need a big yard), gardens for witches (spell-casting and prophylactic herbs), gardens for meditation and contemplation.

Herb growing involves learning something about the nature of the various plants. For me, this is where the rubber meets the road. My entire yard consists of herbs and their near relations. In my growing zone, some of the combinations shown in this book will not work. They may work somewhere (in England), but it's misleading to think the combinations will work everywhere. Also, some of these herbs are thugs -- yarrow, catmint, bugleweed, for example -- which means they will dominate their neighbors.

Consider this--Lavendula and other pale fuzzy plants generally need lots of lime and hot dry sun, while creeping woodruff needs moist acid soil in shade. Too much sun and the Woodruff dies. Too much moisture and the Lavendula decays. This book shows a garden with these two plants growing in close proximity. Granted, the Woodruff is under a bench, and the Lavender is in the center of the bed, but until you experiment, you won't know if you can pull this off. A wrong mix of moisture and sunlight and one or the other will suffer. Also, Woodruff blooms in the Spring in Zone 7 and Lavender blooms in June. The book shows several kinds of Lavendula so you will have to experiment to get the right combo.

Not all herbs grow well everywhere. I love Bee Balm (Bergamot) but it doesn't do well in my growing zone. Bergamot does better up north where the summers are a little bit milder (where delphiniums and phlox do well.) In my garden, Bergamot comes down with a terminal case of mildew. I tried growing Bergamot next to Enchinacea and it did not work. The Echinacea did well--it likes heat and drought.

The book dedicates a page to a goodly number of herbs, and these plants are displayed well -- laid out in a nice color photo with a box showing cultivation information. I don't see much about U.S. growing zones on these pages, so you'll probably be consulting other sources to figure out what will do well in your area. If I forgot to mention it, the book seems to be one of those British gardening books that aren't always sensitive to the variety of needs in U.S. gardens. It does contain a list of U.S. garden suppliers in the back, however.

The book contains hundreds of ideas for herb uses -- recipes for herb dishes; limited information on herb floral arrangements including wreaths; information about herb medicinal and homemaking uses (I want a woad-colored blouse). There's something for almost every part of your body: face, teeth, feet, nerves, you name it. There's a section on 'Spices' too, which are not herbs of course, but are used in many of the preparations such as potpourri. And, you cannot grow spices in your yard in all liklihood since they mostly come from the tropics.

I invested in the book even though I know I can't use it without other resource materials. One of the features I like best is the herb trivia. We learn from the Bible that Hyssop is a healer. Seems the penicillan mold grows on it's leaves and a bath seasoned with Hyssop leaves can relieve bacteria driven diseases such as leprosy.

Rating:
Summary: The First and Last Book You'll Ever Need on Herbs
Review: Look no further, this book will give you everything you ever wanted to know and more about herbs. The only thing else you might want is a more elaborate book on herb garden design...but don't be dismayed the section on herb garden design is very complete and inspiring.

ACTUALLY TELLS YOU HOW TO USE THEM! My wife and I love to use herbs particularly culinary, tea, and medicinal. This was the only book we came across that had detailed and useful information that was easily understood on how to use herbs in practical ways.

The book covers garden design, making herbal decorations, use in the kitchen with many recipes, household uses of herbs, beauty care use of herbs, essential oils, health uses of herbs, cultivation and harvesting of herbs and a very complete index of over 100 herbs. The herbal index is great. It contains full color photographs of the foliage, flowers, seed, dried leaves, and roots as applicable to each herb. A short history is given along with cultivation, harvest information, and uses (including what parts for what use).

It has a nice section on making potpourri. The beauty use section is complete with recipes. The table of essential oils is very complete and useful. The health section describes different general preparation techniques and an A-Z guide of ailments with accompanying herbal remedies. The herb cultivating section is complete and useful.

The title says it all, get this book and you will learn something new about herbs every time you pick it up. We reference it all the time. It is invaluable to any gardening or health library.

Rating:
Summary: A real treasure
Review: Most National Trust properties in the UK are grand old manors originally owned by nobility who liked their comforts and had the means to do things right. Unfortunately their upkeep is prohibitive in cost and many buildings and grounds have been deeded to the Trust that does an excellent job in maintaining them, educating us on the traditions of those times and making them available to the public. As herb gardens were almost always a part of the original master plan, wherever possible they have been restored and we are very fortunate to have a glimpse of this part of the life of the well to do of an earlier era. Collectively, the National Trust must have as many different varieties of herbs as can be found in the country and we are fortunate indeed that we have this book which is indispensable for anyone who wants to understand why our ancestors put such great emphasis on herbs, the value of herbs to us today and how to cultivate a selection in our own garden. Not only are herbs a delight to the touch, smell, taste and sight but you can have a herb tea garden, a culinary herb garden, a medical herb garden, a flowering herb garden and a fragrant herb garden. Moreover, we are told which herbs are suitable for edgings, low hedges, ground cover or a variety of other uses which make herbs multi-functional.

We are told that there was a time when all plants were important to human kind - they were thought of as children of mother earth - each marked by divinity, worthy of respect and important on the physical, mental and spiritual levels. Today, herbs are considered by many to be useful only as seasoning in the kitchen. Study of the history of herbs, going back 5000 years, is intriguing in itself for their use in ceremony, magic, medicine and superstition. Drinking water from a stream with Chrysanthemums was thought to bestow longevity. Greek and Roman records describe and illustrate 600 healing plants. Other ancient texts devote themselves to perfumes, saying that the best marjoram essence came from the Greek Island of Cos, the best Cypress from Egypt, and the best saffron from Rhodes. In England there were treatises on culinary herbs with details of the part of each to be used - seed, flower, bud, leaf, stalk, or root and how it was best prepared - raw, chopped, steamed, blanched, or pickled. While there is so much interesting history and background information, the bulk of the book is taken up with one page devoted to each herb. When it comes to use, there are beautiful sections on herbal decorations, herbs for the household, herbs for massage and herbs for beauty. For the section on herbs in the kitchen there are recipes for six soups, nine fish dishes, 13 meat dishes and many savory, vegetable, side dishes, salads, snacks, deserts, breads, cakes, biscuits, preserves and drinks.

In the introduction under the heading of 'The lure of herbs today' we are told: "Recently there has been a tremendous surge of interest in herbs. Research on medicinal and cosmetic uses and new ideas for decorative and scented applications are continually adding to the large body of herbal knowledge and skills. The object of this book is again to combine traditional with scientific knowledge and present the many innovative ways herbs can be used to enhance life in the home and at work. The practical approach will, I hope, encourage you to further inventiveness by providing a glimpse of the inexhaustible potential of herbs" and "If pressed for the reason for my new-found enthusiasm, I would say how delicious herbs were and that they could transform an ordinary dish into a culinary delight, or I would explain how handy they were with a growing family for treating colds, coughs and other minor ailments, but in truth these were the extra benefits. The real pleasure for me was just being with the herbs."

For those who have not yet felt the urge to grow herbs, this book with its magnificent photos and helpful text is a perfect way to start. For those who are already growing a handful of herbs, this book will surely alert you to many more that you should experiment with. Even for the herb addict this book will be a useful addition to the library. It is difficult to think of anyone who would not profit from this truly beautiful work. Even for those city dwellers with limited space there are ideas for the patio, balcony and indoors. There is even a page on a children's herb garden and a moonlight garden.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful Book
Review: This book has beautiful illustrations of herbs, a comprehensive listing of herbs, and suggestions of various ways one could organize an herb garden.

It still left me disappointed, though. Why? I had been looking for help in how to make certain of my herbs grow successfully (this is half the sub-title, after all), and this book only gives general guidance on this front ("keep moist, drain well").

I have several herbs at home, and some grow tremendously and others are on the verge of death, and I had been hoping this book would give me suggestions so that I could get all of them to be healthy. It didn't. So for a general, comprehensive introduction to herbs, this book may prove very useful. But for my purposes, it wasn't as useful, and I returned it.

Rating:
Summary: Very Complete and Simple
Review: This is a very comprehensive and easy to read and understand book about herbs and their uses.