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Judith Hann 2010/12 Herb Society President

Council are delighted to announce that our 2010/12 President is Judith Hann. More familiar to some in the world of Science & Technology, Judith has been a member of the Society for some time now and a regular contributor to our journal Herbs. Judith is passionate about herbs and runs a successful cookery school Hann's Herbs from her home in the Cotswolds.

Read how Judith came to be such a fan of culinary herbs and her hopes for her 2 year presidency here 2010/12 Herb Society President.

Latest Members Area Additions

Medical Herbalist and Society member Zoe Hawes has a wonderful book just out entitled Wild Drugs: A Forager’s Guide To Healing Plants you can read a full review of this excellent book here. Zoe has given us permission to include an extract from the book in the members area, we've chosen her guide for harvesting plants for people new to foraging to wild plants for medicine making, read it here Wild Drugs: Harvesting Plants.

Dr Brain Morris has been a regular contributor to the Society's journals in the past and he's given permission to add some of his articles from back issues to the website. The first to be added is his look at the man who pioneered the use of chemicals and minerals in medicine. Paracelsus: Magus & Medic.

Anna Parkinson continues her Eat Your Greens series of articles by looking at the Elder and shares some unusual uses and a tried and tested family recipe for Elderflower Cordial Elder, Fragrance & Fertiliser.

See our sample article page for tasters of these articles.

A Year With James Wong - Review & Recipes

James Wong, the UK's most popular ethnobotanist will be back on our screens in March with a new series. To coincide with the series there is a new book containing over 100 new recipes, you can read a full review of the book and order your copy via Amazon here.

NB: Herb Society members can find three recipes and photos from James new book in the Members Area, the recipes we’ve included are the Oats & Almond Moisturizing Body Cream, Honeysuckle & Jasmine Jelly for Sore Throats and Wood Polish, all containing honey or beeswax.

Honey and Herbs: Bringing Sweetness And Creativity Into The Kitchen Part 3

As part of our Bee Aware! campaign we're bringing you articles on bees, honey and herbs on the web. This month we bring you the 3rd and final part of Sarah Head's Honey & Herbs series, this month looking at Elixirs & Electuaries.

"Electuaries are medicines made with honey or jam, sometimes made into a paste first. Ancient healers, such as Avicenna and Galen used honey as a medium for delivering potentially unpalatable herbs. The electuaries could be very complex mixtures. Galen’s Theriac electuary was made from a combination of sixty-four ingredients while the ancient Ayuvedic tonic, Chyawanprash, contains up to eighty...."

Herb Society Bee Aware! Campaign 2010

The decline of the Western honeybee population has been noticed by gardeners and commented on widely by journalists with various reasons being given from overuse of pesticides to destruction of habitat.   It has been shown that pesticides affect how bees communicate and their ability to get back to the hive.  Add to that the fact that they are vulnerable due to a weak immune system which means they cannot withstand more than three challenges, and the outlook is pretty bleak.  The trouble is, at the moment no-one really knows why bees are disappearing at such an alarming rate so we at the Herb Society have decided to join the debate and raise awareness so our focus this year is our BEE AWARE! campaign. 

Members Electronic Newsletter Launched In January

Our new electronic newsletter Herbal Delights launched in January. If you're a member of the Society and haven't sent us your current email address it isn't too late to be added to the email list. Please ensure that you also let us know your membership number or if you don't have that your address so we can track you.

This monthly electronic newsletter contains the latest Society news, herbal tips, occassional offers, recipes, event updates, and a selection of herbal articles and information from the world of herbs.

Have Your Visited Our Online Shop?

We now have a new online shop where we're selling many more herb goodies than we've previously sold online. As well as back issues of our Journal, you can now buy a selection of creams, gels, soaps, essential oils, books, gifts and coming soon herb seeds. Now when you buy something from us at a show or event, you can make further purchases of that product online.

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Latest Companies To Join Our Members Discount Scheme

Several new companies have recently joined the scheme to offer discounts to members. The latest to join are Amiya Natural Beauty, Culberry Nursery (10%) and Scented Geraniums (15%), they join Teapigs, who are offering members a 15% discount when they order from their online shop. Hooksgreen Herbs Ltd (10%) and Nicholson's Herb Farm (10%) have also joined the scheme offering members a 10% discount. Plus several American companies such as Nichols Garden Nursery (10%) and Richters Herbs (10%) have joined the scheme offering discounts to our US members. You can find out more about the discount scheme and access the discount codes in our Members Area.

High Street Herbals: The Top 300 Over-The-Counter Herbal Medicinals Available In The UK The Conservation Concerns' by Sue Minter

Just uploaded to the Members Only area is a 16 page list of the top 300 over-the-counter herbal medicinals available in the UK, which details the botanical name, the condition the herb is used to treat, the part(s) used, whether the herb is wild or cultivated and any conservation concerns surrounding the herb.

This research has been done by Sue Minter the Herb Society Chair, who is open to adding more information (or correcting it) from knowledgeable herbalists/producers/growers and conservationists in the interest of sustainable trade. It is believed to be the only information available to the consumer on this subject. Non-Members can view a sample page of this document here. Members will find the full document over in the Members Area.

New Online Herb Society Members Business Directory

We’re excited to announce a new online service to our members who run Herb businesses, which will be of use and benefit to the rest of our members. Members benefit from discount, where applicable, on production of their Herb Society membership card or online by entering the code that will be available in the Members' Area (coming in June). It's easy to get listed in the directory and it's currently FREE. If you're already a Herb Society member and run a herb business, simple visit the Directory page and contact me with the details required to get listed.

Back Issues Of 'Herbs' Now Available To Buy Online

Back issues of our journal 'Herbs', some dating back to 1998, are now available to buy online from our online shop. Will overseas members remember that postage quoted is for the UK only, if you want to purchase any of the journals, email me and I'll get a shipping price to you.

We also have 2 books by Sue Minter our Chairman which are available to everyone, but members get free postage! All proceeds from the sale of these books go direct to the Herb Society.

Leaving The Society A Legacy

Your membership is vital in enabling the Society to maintain and spread information regarding the wide variety of herbs available and how they can be grown and used to great benefit, but there is never enough money to do everything that we would like to do. To enable the Society to meet its aims and continue its work into the future please remember the Society in your will.

There was an oversight with the December issue of the magazine, we said that there was a comprehensive note on how to leave a legacy to the Society enclosed with the magazine. Unfortunately the document didn't get included with the journal so it will be added in the next issue of Herbs. For those of you who wish to read more about it now, you can download the document as a .pdf file here Leaving The Society A Legacy. Please read it and consider how a gift can help.

The Herb Society Is An Amazon Associate!

Want to help the Herb Society raise much needed funds? Do you buy books, DVD's, CD's etc from Amazon? Well from now on, simply use the link to Amazon on this page (found above the 'Members Only' link in the navigation menu) or use a direct link from the book links that are placed around the site promoting new herb books, and the Herb Society will then get 5% of your Amazon purchase!

If you're not sure what to buy for someone, why not give them an Amazon gift certificate? Or use the Wish List facility on Amazon to compile a list of books you'd like and email the list to your loved one to give them a few hints?

What links the Druids, Henry VIII and Hilda Leyel?

We have a new article added to the Herbs In History section, written for us by Linda Harrold DBTh. MURHP. Linda explores the path of Herbal Medicine in Britain covering the Roman Invasion, the Physicians of Myddfai, through to 1927 when Hilda Leyel set up the Society of Herbalists, the 1941 Medicines Bill, and ending with the present day picture. Read the full article here History Of Herbal Medicine In Britain.

Most Important Herb Society News – make your support go further!

The Society has established with HM Revenue and Customs, that Gift Aid can be applied (where appropriate) to Member’s Subscriptions received since 6th April 2003. This will have a dramatic effect on finances, which in turn, will assist in securing the Society’s future as an independent organisation as well as being able to maintain the quality and frequency of it’s publications and services to members. For further details and to download a form visit our Gift Aid page.

Join the Herb Society Today

Explore our web site to find out about all the great things we are doing to promote the wonder of herbs.  Then find out here about the benefits to you of membership.

The Herb Society Garden Virtual Tour

Take a virtual tour of our garden at Sulgrave Manor.

The Herb Society is not qualified to provide medicinal advice.  Useful contacts for such advice can be found on our contacts page. Officers and Council Members of the Herb Society (UK) accept no liability for any harm, damage, or illness arising from the use of plants mentioned or described in articles that appear in this web site. Information on this site is the copyright of the Herb Society unless otherwise stated.  Text or pictures must not be reproduced elsewhere without permission from the Society.