The Herb Society Book Shelf

Hedgerow Medicine by Julie Bruton-Seal

I first heard about this new book back in February and knew that I wanted to get my hands on it. Julie Bruton-Seal, is a practicising medical herbalist, and together with her co-author, and partner Matthew Seal, they have put together a book that will delight the beginners to the world of homemade remedies from the hedgerows as well as the experienced. This colourful and richly illustrated book shows you how to improve your health in the same way that our ancestors have done for centuries, using local wild plants and herbs.

Recipes include Conker Tincture, Dandelion Flower Oil, Blackberry Oxymel, Burdock & Dandelion Toffee, Meadowsweet Ghee, Rosebay Willowherb Syrup, Sweet Cicely Aperitif, Wood Betony Ointment and many other easy to follow recipes made with wild herbs and flowers.
This book is one that I will turn to time and time again and I heartily recommend it for anyone interested in the history, use and creation of homemade herbal remedies.

Review by Debs Cook

Synopsis - "There are clear instructions about which plants to harvest, when, and over 120 recipes showing how to make them into teas, vinegars, oils, creams, pillows, poultices or alcohol-based tinctures. Julie and Matthew explain which ailments can be treated, and what benefits can be expected. As well as being packed with practical information on using 50 native plants, Hedgerow Medicine also gives a fascinating insight into the literary, historic and worldwide application of these herbal remedies."

Herb Society Members Discount - Until the end of July 2008 Members can get a £2.50 discount off the RRP of £16.99 by ordering direct from Merlin Unwin Books. So Herb Society members will pay £14.49 plus the standard p&p charge of £3.50. To order the book from Merlin quote the Herb Society and mention the discount when you place your order. Please note the discount is not available if you order online via the Merlin Books website but it will apply to orders received by phone/post/fax.

Make Your Own Essential Oils & Skin Care Products by Daniel Coaten

This informative book is a LILI (Low Impact Living Initative) publication and is designed to compliment the course that LILI runs on making your own essential oils. It describes the tools and methods needed to make your own essential oils, distilled waters, tinctures and making skin care products using them. The back has a useful resource section showing you were all the equipement can be obtained, tincture ration chart, and a cream recipe variation table. It describes the chemistry of emulsification and gives a list of recommended raw materials as well as lists of materials to avoid e.g. paraben and borax. A useful and informative book that will take the guess work out of making your own oils and will help you understand the science behind it all.

Synopsis - There are many books available on using essential oils - now there is one on how to make your own. This book accompanies a residential weekend course, and a distillation kit to carry out the procedures outlined in the book. Making your own essential oils can be a fascinating hobby, or for the professional aromatherapist, a way of ensuring that your products are fresh, unadulterated and organic. The book also describes how to make creams, lotions, balms, gels, tinctures and other skin-care products from the essential oils and distillate waters you have produced.

Review by Debs Cook

Herbal Remedies: How To Make, Use & Grow Them by Sorrell Robbins

This informative book is a LILI (Low Impact Living Initative) publication and is deigned to compliment the course that LILI runs on Herbal Medicine. It begins with a short history of herbal medicine, deals with making a large array of home herbal remedies from teas to herbal honeys, flower essences and capsules. Theres a guide to which herbs are best to treat each body system and information on 44 different herbs which includes contraindications, preparations and dosage. The books also covers how to make herbal medicines, herb gardening and gathering, storing and drying herbs.

Synopsis - Learn about identifying and harvesting medicinal plants. Make a range of simple medicines including: ointments, salves, syrups, oils, compresses, infusions and decoctions. Includes sections on body systems, explaining which herbs are useful for a range of ailments; as well as the herbs themselves - explaining how to obtain, prepare and use them.

Review by Debs Cook

Tree Speaker by Sally Startup

When this book arrived for review, I wondered what on earth it was all about, Sally had seen the request for books for he Herb Society library and sent me a copy of this book that she'd written. Tree Speaker is aimed at readers of 12 and up and its a wonderful environmental fantasy that will strike a cord with herb lovers young and old.

There is a mixture of real world herbs and imaginary ones in this book perfect for children who are curious about herbs and their uses, and need to be reminded of the wonder and dangers that herbs can bring.
I really enjoyed reading this book and if you like to drift away in forests and glades, visit healers cottages and help preserve the green spaces around you, you'll love it to. A highly imaginative tale with a delightful herbal edge.

The Healing Garden by Nancy Bench

This 83 Page paperback book is in the words of the author 'a simple old wives book' that covers over 125 different herbs with little anecdotes and information on the herbs. It is an introduction to herbs and their uses, a perfect gift for a person new to the world of herbs or just curious.

Review by Debs Cook

The Complete Floral Healer by Anne McIntyre

A useful and informative book covering the many medicinal uses of flowers, my only quibble is really pedantic, but it niggles me when herbs and flowers are incorrectly labelled, and on page 12 it shows what is supposed to be a Madonna Lily (Lilium candidum) and its not, what it is in actual fact is a Bog Arum (Calla palustris).

That minor quibble aside, this book covers a wide range of plants despite being written for the American/Canadian market, describing the healing properties of the herbal remedy, homeopathic preparation and flower essence. There is some informative background about the plants as well with facts and historical information and the history of using flowers in healing.

The photos and illustrations of the flowers are delightful. Anne gives information about the flower and details its herbal, bach flower remedy, homepathic and aromatherapy uses. There are sections in the back of the books listing Australian Bush Flower Remedies and Californian Flower Essences (F.E.S. Quintessentials), with a list of flowers to use for treating common ailments be them emotional or physical. If you want to make your own remedies, or if you just want to know more about the use of flowers in medicine and their healing potential then this is the book for you.

Review by Debs Cook

Healing Drinks: Juices, Teas, Soups And Smoothies by Anne McIntyre

Beginning with detailed listings of 25 key ingrediants this book then goes on to give delicious recipes for healthy drinks and soups, together with research into herbs, vitamins and nutrients. Each recipe is described and featured in photography and the author describes why each drink is so healthy.

With sections on stimulating the immune system, losing weight and boosting the brain, the book also contains a section on drinks for recovering from illness with recipes for everything from arthritis to winter warmers, I can highly recommend the warmimg and invigorating medieval ginger cordial; the romany raspberry cure for diarrhoea, as well as the licorice and mandarin peel tea which I used to great effect to ease heartburn. A brilliant book that will have you wanting to try the recipes even when you're in full health!

Review by Debs Cook

Encyclopedia Of Essential Oils by Julia Lawless

Julia is a leading aromatherapy expert who is a member of the International Federation of Aromatherapists. This encyclopedia contains A-Z listing of 193 aromatic plants. Chapters also cover; the history of aromatherapy and herbalism; how aromatic plants work on your body and mind; how to make your own blends; and uses for oils in the home.

Each oil listed contains the following information about it: common name, Latin name, botanical plant family; synonyms - other common names used; general description - what it looks like; distribution - where it's found; other species - related plants; herbal folk tradition - traditional uses; actions - what it's good for; extraction - how the oil is extracted; characteristics - what the oil looks like, and which other oils it blends well with; principal constituents - what it's made from; and safety information.

In short everything that you need to know about essential oils. There are no colourful photos, just a few line drawings, but what this book lacks in 'eye candy' it more than makes up for with facts and information.

Review by Debs Cook

Bach Flower Remedies : A Step By Step Guide by Non Shaw

This little gem of a book explains how flowers can work on particular emotional states and describes all 38 of the Bach Flower Remedies. It also includes a step-by-step guide to making your own flower essences. I picked this book up after Sarah Head recommended it on the forum, as a beginners guide to the subject its well worth picking up to teach you the basics of Bach Flower Remedies.

Review by Debs Cook

The Encyclopedia Of Bach Flower Remedies by Mechtild Scheffer

This is a comprehensive reference to Bach flower therapy, it includes the latest information on Bach flower remedies, combination remedies, diagnosis, instructions for preparation, body maps, and more. It's illustrated with beautiful full colour colour plates of the Bach flowers and Kirlian photographs of the energy signature of each flower.

Mechtild Scheffer knows her subject and makes the book accessable to the beginner and practitioner alike. She provides therapeutic profiles for each flower remedy and specific instructions for preparing combination remedies to heal more complex conditions. In this book you'll also find information on using Bach flower remedies for treating children and animals.

Review by Debs Cook

The Scented Kitchen by Francis Bissell

I was so intrigued by this book when Jan Greenland mentioned it in her A Rose Scented Kitchen article, I bought a copy via Amazon.
When it arrived I was thrilled, its simply delightful! Full of historical facts and some delicious looking recipes using flowers from the herb garden, flowers covered are carnations, elderflowers, hawthorn blossom, fennel, borage, lavender, marigold, nasturtiums, orange blosson, jasmine, linden, roses, saffron, violets and pansies, in the main chapters.

With a chapter that covers in brief things like acacia, chamomile, cowslips and dandelion. The book ends with some recipes to make some delicious floral cocktails. Frances also shows which flowers compliment which fruit and gives practical advice on using flowers in your recipes. Roll on the flowering season, I can't wait to try white peach and elderflower jam, lemon and lavender curd, marigold and orange sponge, jasmine custard and linden flower ice cream amongst other mouth watering recipes from this book. This will wind up being a book I use a lot in my kitchen. Sophie Grigson our 2006/07 president and Jocasta Innes also give this book a thumbs up.

Review by Debs Cook

Cooking With Flowers by Jekka McVicar

I've never read a book by Jekka that I didn't like or come away learning something new about herbs, and this book is definately not a dissapointment! I would never have considered using fuschia, valerian, hollyhock, day lily and salad rocket flowers in an edible form, in fact I've spent years discouraging my salad rocket from flowering doh!

Jekka's recipes are mouth watering and illustrated with beautiful full colour photographs. As well as recipes and tips on using the flowers in cooking, she also gives growing, planting and harvesting information for each plant. Come the flowering season I'll be trying a fair few of the recipes, especially the floral cakes!

Review by Debs Cook

Hatfields Herbal by Gabrielle Hatfield

I already owned another of Gabrielle Hatfield's books "Memory, Wisdom and Healing: The History of Domestic Plant Medicine" and was mightily impressed. So when I learnt she had a new book out I had to add it to my collection. I wasn't disappointed, this book is a delight and full of wonderful folklore and anecdotal information. Really useful if like me, you want to learn more about how herbs were used in the past.

Packed with stories and memorable information, this book is the highly personal, very readable result of a lifetime spent researching folk cures and the science behind them. Outlining the history and uses of over 150 British plants, Hatfield's Herbal offers a fascinating history of what life was once like, a beautifully illustrated, evocative guide to our native plants and a passionate argument why we should better appreciate the riches we already have.

Review by Debs Cook

Edible Wild Plants and Herbs: A Compendium of Recipes and Remedies by Pamela Michael

This is the perfect companion guide for every budding forager.Exquisitely illustrated with full-colour paintings of all the plants and herbs in the book, ranging from dandelion and sorrel to sea beet and samphire, "Edible Wild Plants and Herbs" is both a cookbook and field guide to the identification and use of foodstuffs from the wild. There are almost 400 recipes covering nearly 100 different plant varieties and the illustrations, drawn from life by one of the country's leading botanical artists, show the edible parts of the plants at their peak time for picking.

Jekka's Complete Herb Book - Jekka McVicar

I already have this book in it's previous guise but now the book has had more herbs and recipes added to it. The 2001 Edition contained over 350 varieties of herb to grow and over 200 delicious recipes. Updated and expanded, with over 40 new herbs covered, including daisy, ginger, castor oil, purslane and another 50 recipes.

The book also features many new photographs of herbs taken by Jekka on the farm. For each herb advice is given on its history, cultivation, propagation and harvesting, and the medicinal and culinary uses.

Why Do Violets Shrink? by Caroline Holmes

Ever wondered why tree bark forms? Why we serve mint sauce with lamb? What makes chilli peppers hot? Or if dandelion clocks can really tell the time?

This entertaining and informative book by Caroline Holmes a previous Chairman of the Herb Society, garden historian, consultant, designer, lecturer, writer and broadcaster answers these questions and many more. Answering over 283 questions that the curious gardener and plantsman must ask at some point in their horticultural lives, the secret life of plants that Caroline brings us, is truly inspiring, taking the reader on a journey of curious discovery.

Review by Debs Cook

Seeds - The Ultimate Guide To Growing Successfully From Seed by Jekka McVicar

Having just accquired some witchhazel seeds, reviewing this book came at just the right time. It explains all about breaking seed dormancy and how to sow and hopefully germinate the seeds.
This isn't a new book, it first came out in 2001, but for those people like me who don't already own a copy, it make an excellent reference book for sowing all your seeds. It even provides inspiration for trying something new and tackling growing even those 'difficult' seeds.

For herb enthusiasts there is a whole chapter on herb seeds, but 'herbs' pop up in the perennial section in the form of marshmallow, the trees section has things like hawthorn and in the climbers section you'll find things like passionflower. So just about every herb you will ever grow is covered, with a wealth of information on harvesting and storing seeds, and the all important germination information.

This is a useful and informative book that will be on my bookshelf for a long time to come, and I predict it will get an awful lot of use!

Review by Debs Cook