Recommended Books

The Encyclopedia of Herbs

Arthur O. Tucker and Thomas DeBaggio
This meticulously researched compendium provides every aspect of growing, identifying, harvesting, preserving, and using more than 500 species of herbs. Thorough profiles provide a plant's botanical name and family, whether it is an annual or perennial, its height, hardiness, light requirements, water consumption, required soil type, and pH. The often fascinating history of the plant, the chemistry of its essential oils, and its culinary, landscape, and craft uses are also included, as is advice on how to propagate.
For the first edition of their work, both authors received The Gertrude B. Foster Award for Excellence in Herbal Literature from the Herb Society of America. This new edition adds important species and includes updated nomenclature.

The Culinary Herbal

 Susan Belsinger and Arthur O. Tucker

Good cooks know that nothing beats fresh-clipped herbs. The gorgeously photographed Culinary Herbal, by herb experts Susan Belsinger and Arthur O. Tucker, highlights 97 delicious varieties—like black cumin, fenugreek, lemon balm, and sassafras—that you’ll want to grow, whether you’re a gardener who loves to cook and the cook who loves to garden.
Learn which herbs offer the most flavor, how to grow them at home, and how to put them to use. Additional information includes step-by-step instructions for harvesting, preserving, and storing, along with techniques for making pastes, syrups, vinegars, and butters.
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Essential Guide to Growing and Cooking with Herbs

Katherine K. Schlosser

This indispensable guide from The Herb Society of America takes the guesswork out of using herbs in the garden and in the kitchen by providing detailed information for cultivating a wide variety of herbs, along with easy-to-follow recipes submitted by members of the Herb Society.  The volume's first section provides horticultural information for each of the sixty-three herbs found in the National Herb Garden's Culinary Garden.In the second part of the book, HSA members offer classic and creative recipes.  The concluding section of the book contains a fascinating personal tour of the two-and-one-half-acre National Herb Garden, which lies in the heart of Washington, D.C., at the center of the United States National Arboretum, and of its various themed areas. Green thumbs and gourmets alike will find inspiration in these pages to look at herbs in new ways.  Schlosser received the Gertrude B. Foster Award for Excellence in Herbal Literature from the Herb Society of America for this book.