Recommended Books
The Encyclopedia of HerbsArthur 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. . |
Essential Guide to Growing and Cooking with HerbsKatherine K. Schlosser
Provides detailed information for cultivating 63 herbs, along with recipes submitted by members of the Herb Society. The 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. Schlosser received the Gertrude B. Foster Award for Excellence in Herbal Literature from the Herb Society of America for this work. |
Beyond Rosemary, Basil, and Thyme |
Herbal Houseplants--
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Theresa Mieseler
Beyond Rosemary, Basil, and Thyme is a unique book that encompasses seventy interesting and uncommon herbs. Several of the described plants are cat’s whiskers, cape mallow, caracalla, jasmine star, pepiche, porterweed, and scented geraniums. Each herb is outlined with history, a description, culture and growing, propagation and uses. You will find herbs easy to use in the kitchen, herbs to grow in the landscape, and many herbs to plant in containers for the deck or patio. It’s about fragrance and beautiful flowers! The book has many tasty recipes and how-to directions for herbal projects! To order, visit Shady Acres Herb Farm website. |
Susan Betz
"Author Susan Betz assures us that many herbs do well indoors if they get the right care. No need to be without their aromas, flavours and beauty when we can’t be in the garden. The key is knowing what each herb needs and this book is the perfect guide to the light, soil and pruning requirements of dozens of popular culinary and fragrant herbs. There is a chapter devoted to the art and craft of herbal topiaries. And there is a helpful chapter on using and preserving the clippings from herbal houseplants in the kitchen and for body care, with timely tips, sage advice, and recipes."— Conrad Richter/ Richters 2021 Herb & Vegetable Catalog
Visit Susan's website to order an autographed copy, or multiple copies of the book: www.freshstartherbs.org |
Additional books: some are a little older, some a lot older, some new, but every one of them is worth seeking out:
Herbs and The Earth. Henry Beston, David R. Godine, Publisher (Boston)--A special edition published for members of The Herb Society of America, Inc. Original publication 1935. This edition, 1990.
More than a gardening book, this is a singular example of a man thinking about what he grows, and into these conjectures weaving the fabric of the past. Here are the various herbs and their horticultural characeristics; but here, as well, are their antecedents, their ancient lore, and their curious habits.
Women and Their Gardens, A History from the Elizabethan Era to Today. Catherine Horwood, Ball Publishing, 2010.
Horwood brings to life the care with which Thomasin Tunstall sent her hellebores to John Parkinson fo rhis new plot in the Coven Garden in the 1620s, and the passion of Lady Mary Coke in designing her garden at Notting Hill House in George IIIs reign. She salutes the determination of intrepid plant collelctors from Lady Amherst who brought the glorious Clematis montana to England, to the Victorian widow who protected a euphorbia inside her hatbox on its journey home. From these triiumphs to the battles fought against male-dominated institutions, from the horticultual pioneers to the bringers of change in society's attitudes, this book is a celebration of the best species--gardening women.
Secrets of Saffron: The Vagabond Life of the World's Most Seductive Spice. Pat Willard, Beacon Press, Boston, 2001.
Guided with wit and assurance by acclaimed food writer Pat Willard, we roam the rich landscapes of history and personal memory. We dine in the heavenly gardens of Persia; bathe with Alexander the Great; are served golden swans at the medieval court of France. With Willard's help we also discover the quiet comforts of saffron, from soups that have eased illness to pieds that defy death, until we arrive at last in the present day at a small garden in Brooklyn. Told in sumptious prose, complete with fabulous ancient and mondern recipes.
Gardening Through the Ages, An Illustrated Hsitory of Plants and Their Influence on Garden Styles--from Ancient Egypt to the Present day. Penelope Hobhouse, Simon & Schuster, NY, 1992.
Against a background of scholarship, Penelope Hobhouse focuses on the plants themselves and the interest they have aroused. She explores the perennial interaction between what plants are available and the ideas of the people who grow them. She demonstrates that plants, however inspiring, remain the raw material of the garden maker's talent, and explores the extent to which gardeners are creatures of their age. Beautiful photos throughout the 328 pages make this readable academic tome a pleasure.
Southern Her Growing. Madalene Hill and Gwen Barclay, Shearer Publishing, 1987.
A comprehensive guide to growing 130 herbs in the conditions peculiar to the American South including her Texas home. Hill gives details on what to plant, when to plant it, and how to take care of it in addition to pointers on propagating, cultivating and harvesting your herbs. She includes ideas for using the herbs and some of their history. She and her daughter Gwen also offer a variety of easy to follow recipes. Full color photos make this book extra special. Madalene was a long-time member of the Herb Society of America, Inc. and served as President.
Scent: A Natual History of Fragrance. Elise Vernon Pearlstine, Yale University Press, 2022.
In this wide-ranging and accessible new book, biologist-turned-perfumer Elise Pearlstine turns our human0centered perception of fragrance on its head and investigates plants' evolutionary reasons for creating aromatic molecues. Following themes of spirituality, wealth, power, addiction, royalty, fantasy, and more, she uncovers the natural history of scented substances and their intersection with human culture and civilization.
Herbs and The Earth. Henry Beston, David R. Godine, Publisher (Boston)--A special edition published for members of The Herb Society of America, Inc. Original publication 1935. This edition, 1990.
More than a gardening book, this is a singular example of a man thinking about what he grows, and into these conjectures weaving the fabric of the past. Here are the various herbs and their horticultural characeristics; but here, as well, are their antecedents, their ancient lore, and their curious habits.
Women and Their Gardens, A History from the Elizabethan Era to Today. Catherine Horwood, Ball Publishing, 2010.
Horwood brings to life the care with which Thomasin Tunstall sent her hellebores to John Parkinson fo rhis new plot in the Coven Garden in the 1620s, and the passion of Lady Mary Coke in designing her garden at Notting Hill House in George IIIs reign. She salutes the determination of intrepid plant collelctors from Lady Amherst who brought the glorious Clematis montana to England, to the Victorian widow who protected a euphorbia inside her hatbox on its journey home. From these triiumphs to the battles fought against male-dominated institutions, from the horticultual pioneers to the bringers of change in society's attitudes, this book is a celebration of the best species--gardening women.
Secrets of Saffron: The Vagabond Life of the World's Most Seductive Spice. Pat Willard, Beacon Press, Boston, 2001.
Guided with wit and assurance by acclaimed food writer Pat Willard, we roam the rich landscapes of history and personal memory. We dine in the heavenly gardens of Persia; bathe with Alexander the Great; are served golden swans at the medieval court of France. With Willard's help we also discover the quiet comforts of saffron, from soups that have eased illness to pieds that defy death, until we arrive at last in the present day at a small garden in Brooklyn. Told in sumptious prose, complete with fabulous ancient and mondern recipes.
Gardening Through the Ages, An Illustrated Hsitory of Plants and Their Influence on Garden Styles--from Ancient Egypt to the Present day. Penelope Hobhouse, Simon & Schuster, NY, 1992.
Against a background of scholarship, Penelope Hobhouse focuses on the plants themselves and the interest they have aroused. She explores the perennial interaction between what plants are available and the ideas of the people who grow them. She demonstrates that plants, however inspiring, remain the raw material of the garden maker's talent, and explores the extent to which gardeners are creatures of their age. Beautiful photos throughout the 328 pages make this readable academic tome a pleasure.
Southern Her Growing. Madalene Hill and Gwen Barclay, Shearer Publishing, 1987.
A comprehensive guide to growing 130 herbs in the conditions peculiar to the American South including her Texas home. Hill gives details on what to plant, when to plant it, and how to take care of it in addition to pointers on propagating, cultivating and harvesting your herbs. She includes ideas for using the herbs and some of their history. She and her daughter Gwen also offer a variety of easy to follow recipes. Full color photos make this book extra special. Madalene was a long-time member of the Herb Society of America, Inc. and served as President.
Scent: A Natual History of Fragrance. Elise Vernon Pearlstine, Yale University Press, 2022.
In this wide-ranging and accessible new book, biologist-turned-perfumer Elise Pearlstine turns our human0centered perception of fragrance on its head and investigates plants' evolutionary reasons for creating aromatic molecues. Following themes of spirituality, wealth, power, addiction, royalty, fantasy, and more, she uncovers the natural history of scented substances and their intersection with human culture and civilization.