We subscribe to the adage – be a lifelong learner. So much to learn so little time. Often when we are putting together a new class, an article for Green Living magazine or even a Blog, we will do some research about a topic. Granted we use the internet but sometimes there is so much to sort through, so often we turn to our personal library. Over the years we have collected quite a stack of books related to herbs. Most of them have been thoughtful buys, some recommended by other herbalists and maybe, just maybe, one or two we have wondered later why we purchased them. Because April is National Library week, we’d like to share some of our book finds and favorites.
The Complete Herb Book by Maggie Stuckey, copyright 1994. This is the first book we purchased. It has an abundance of information in an inexpensive paperback. Out copy is literally falling apart due its use and abuse over the years. Books like this with lots of general information are fairly easy to find. We have two or three others but this one is our favorite.
There are two nationally known herbalists that Erin admires and trusts so consequently she has at least one of each of their books. Medicinal Herbs- A beginners Guide by Rosemary Gladstar, copyright 2012. This book is exactly as described and covers the Know, Grow and Use of 33 herb plants that can be used medicinally. We frequently show this book during classes and recommend it to students when they are looking for a good book to add to their library.
The other book is Wild Remedies - How to Forage Healing Foods and Craft Your Own Herbal Medicine by Rosalee De Le Floret and Emily Han, copyright 2020. It is focused on herbs and wild plants through the seasons, which is how we live life. We also have Rosalee’s book Alchemy of Herbs, 2017. Erin had completed a yearlong study with a local herbalist, and had done quite a bit of reading and research on her own before she purchased these books. Sometimes you know a little and want to know a lottal and that’s a good time to invest in a good book or two on a more specific subject.
There are two nationally known herbalists that Erin admires and trusts so consequently she has at least one of each of their books. Medicinal Herbs- A beginners Guide by Rosemary Gladstar, copyright 2012. This book is exactly as described and covers the Know, Grow and Use of 33 herb plants that can be used medicinally. We frequently show this book during classes and recommend it to students when they are looking for a good book to add to their library.
The other book is Wild Remedies - How to Forage Healing Foods and Craft Your Own Herbal Medicine by Rosalee De Le Floret and Emily Han, copyright 2020. It is focused on herbs and wild plants through the seasons, which is how we live life. We also have Rosalee’s book Alchemy of Herbs, 2017. Erin had completed a yearlong study with a local herbalist, and had done quite a bit of reading and research on her own before she purchased these books. Sometimes you know a little and want to know a lottal and that’s a good time to invest in a good book or two on a more specific subject.
Speaking of specific subjects – how about pets. Because we own dogs (and have forever) and at one time had a cat or two, and some horses and chickens and cows and rabbits - oh, my! We are interested in keeping animals healthy and well using the same techniques we subscribe to for people. As we began to make herbal products for pets (dogs and cats), we wanted to be more knowledgeable about herbs for them. We have two books written by a real veterinarian. Herbal Dog Care by Dr. Randy Kidd copyright 2000 and the other of course is his Herbal Cat Care copyright 2000. Dr. Kidd uses a holistic medicinal approach which includes herbs, so the information in his books is based on many years of actual veterinary practice.
Often we check books out from the library and give them a good try before we buy. This is a good way to be sure you are getting what you want. But sometimes we are in a situation where there isn’t a lot of time to decide about a book. So there have been a few books that we look at now and wonder why we purchased them. Once after giving a presentation at the Mother Earth News Fair, we stopped by the big book sale area. We found a book about Druids and herbalism. Being of Irish ancestry we thought – well who knows for sure what we thought as we handed across our hard earned dollars for that book. Sometimes we can’t pass up a bargain on a used book so we have a couple of those that we haven’t found to be all that helpful maybe because they are too similar to other titles we own. A couple are general information, The New Age Herbalist – How to Use Herbs for healing, nutrition, body care and relaxation, edited by Richard Mabey, copyright 1988 and Herbs – The Little Guide, edited by Geoffrey Burnie, copyright 2000. This last one is a compact and small book with lovely pictures - a good starter for someone who is brand new to herbs. Purchased on a bit of a whim to add to our already goodly sized collection, its not one we turn to regularly.
A few of our favorite plant ID and botany books - these are more Erin's realm as she teaches basic botany and plant ID to college students.
There are a couple of other general guides that we do like. One is Your Backyard Herb Garden by Miranda Smith, copyright 1997. We all have our favorite herbs and Miranda has picked 50 to discuss growing them and how to use them in cooking, crafts, companion planting and more. It is colorful with excellent photos, drawings and tables. We especially liked the information on the growing of each herb. The other one is The Rodale Herb Book – How to Use, Grow and Buy Nature’s Miracle Plants, An Organic Gardening and Farming Book; edited by William Hylton, copyright 1974. We have the 14th printing from 1978 which was purchased at the Hockinson Rummage sale a few years ago for 50 cents. Although not as ancient as Culpepper, the 17th century herbalist and physician, it does mention him several times. It too is a wealth of information. The only bit of information that we found somewhat outdated and not to our liking was about comfrey. Sometime during 2001, the FDA outlawed the sale of supplements containing comfrey, which would be for internal consumption. We and other herbalists are always very cautious about consuming comfrey, so would not support all the ideas in this book regarding comfrey. This would also be a caution when buying older volumes at too good of a price. Despite herbs being used for centuries the information about them changes all the time so it is best to keep up to date.
Keeping updated often means checking for new information and in this day and age it requires research on the internet. We do our share of internet research, too but with some restraint and careful cross reference of several websites, especially those associated with well recognized authors or institutions. However, our research typically begins with a book from our collection and goes from there. We’ve learned a great deal from other people (family, friends and customers), presentations and classes, and of course books. In praise of the Library, library week and books, we encourage everyone to look beyond the internet.
Where to Find Books:
We mentioned the library, and our local library is Fort Vancouver Regional Library. We also have a couple of local bookstores we’d like to recommend:
Literary Leftovers - 813 W Main St #105, Battle Ground, WA; a fantastic family owned bookstore that features mostly used books
Waucoma Books - 212 Oak St, Hood River, OR; another family owned business with a focus on new books, they can also easily order anything they don’t readily have on hand.
Keeping updated often means checking for new information and in this day and age it requires research on the internet. We do our share of internet research, too but with some restraint and careful cross reference of several websites, especially those associated with well recognized authors or institutions. However, our research typically begins with a book from our collection and goes from there. We’ve learned a great deal from other people (family, friends and customers), presentations and classes, and of course books. In praise of the Library, library week and books, we encourage everyone to look beyond the internet.
Where to Find Books:
We mentioned the library, and our local library is Fort Vancouver Regional Library. We also have a couple of local bookstores we’d like to recommend:
Literary Leftovers - 813 W Main St #105, Battle Ground, WA; a fantastic family owned bookstore that features mostly used books
Waucoma Books - 212 Oak St, Hood River, OR; another family owned business with a focus on new books, they can also easily order anything they don’t readily have on hand.