Customer Reviews

Rodale's Illustrated Encyclopedia of Herbs

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

No matter how hard I search, I've yet to find the "perfect" book on herb use and herb growing. This book isn't perfect, but it does have some real strengths.

Rodale's ILLUSTRATED ENCYCLOPEDIA OF HERBS is organized in a strange way--everything, and I mean everything--falls into alphabetical order. For example, "Gardening with Herbs falls between "Foxgloves" and "Garlic" and "Growing Herbs" falls between "Grindellia" and "Hawthorn."

The book is printed on semi-gloss paper so it will stand up to use and not crumble in a few years. Each entry contains line drawing illustrations and a few sections of the book are highlighted with color photos.

The plant profiles are succinct, covering topics such as 'history', 'cultivation' and 'uses.' Many entries contain material from other sources such as Maud Grieves' A MODERN HERBAL Vols. 1-2. Some information is repeated without attribution or verification. I always find "They say" and "It is thought" offputting, while I appreciate direct citations of which there are many in this book.

THE ENCYCLOPEDIA covers some topics not readily found in other books. The most useful of these is a compendium discussing the "Dangers of Herbs" (located between "Dandelion" and "Deadly Nightshade." The editors have compiled the FDA listing of "tricky" herbs (could kill or cure depending on use) from PREVENTION magazine, as well as similar ratings from James Duke's CRC HANDBOOK OF MEDICINAL HERBS, Jean Rose's HERBS AND THINGS, and Varro Tyler's THE HONEST HERBAL. You realize on reading this section that everything is relative.

The biggest problem with the misuse of herbal remedies is the misclassification of plants by the practicioner. To be an herbal healer one simply must understand botany. The second biggest problem is conflicting information about what a plant will or will not do based on singular accounts (which could be the result of a misclassification of plants or a misapplication of the plant extract). The third problem is idiosyncratic plant and human interaction. One man's poison can be another man's elixer. As with synthetic drugs, each individual has a unique chemical compostion and the herb in question may or may not be effective, or in some cases may provoke an allergy. Of course, there are some herbs that are downright deadly as every mystery reader knows.

This wouldn't be a Rodale book with out a section on "Pests" and "Pest Control" or the synergistic and conflicting effects of various plant combinations in the garden. This information and the sections on poisonous attributes make the book worth it's cost. All I can say about plant combinations can be summed up to this...plant catnip. You'll have to read the book to find out which kind.

Conservative, alphabetical reference for the most common, useful herbs. Includes history, safety, cultivation, medicinal, and culinary uses for each. Includes special chapters on healing, cooking and gardening with herbs as well as toxicity as compared to caffeine. Color and black & white pictures, highly recommended and often consulted; one of the best.

This book covers all the bases: harvesting, storing, cooking, sachets, medicinal uses.... on and on. I've used mine so much it is falling apart! I bought this book years ago for over $26 and it was worth it then! Its a steal now!

this book is great for experienced herbalist and the beginner. It covers medicinal properties and folklore.You get growing info and culinary suggestions. This book also gives craft ideas and dyeing properties. It lets you know what's safe and what's not.Great reference book to have on hand.

Rodale's Illustrated Encyclopedia of Herbs is the best herb resource I have ever found, and that is saying a lot, since I own over twenty, and have checked many others out from my local library. It is thorough, interesting, more complete than any other text (no herb book can be complete - it would be thicker than a telephone book!), and always enjoyable to read. Reading it as a child was the initial inspiration for my love of herbology. Most entries start with stories about the plant, or a short talk about it's particular history. Some of those stories are better than most I see in print.
If I could, I would give this book a ten star rating. If you are starting out in this field, this is the place to start. This book is my bible

I am a professional horticulturist who provides advice to commercial growers. This is the first book I recommend to anyone who is considering growing herbs commercially. It has been around for a long time and revised a time or two. It is not perfect (the perfect herb book doesn't exist yet), but if you are building a herb library, this book deserves a place there.

Rodale's Illustrated Encyclopedia of Herbs is the best of the bunch. It gives a bounty of information on each of the many herbs listed: origin, uses, cultivation, lore, and much more. The illustrations, both drawings and color photos, are superb. The book does contain errors; it says, for example, that sassafras extracts are carcinogenic. But on the whole this book excels.

This book provides very comprehensive coverage for the price and is well illustrated. The contents include:

- Most herbs you are likely to encounter.
- Growing and propogation methods
- Herbs in cooking.
- Using herbs as dyes.
- Medicinal use of herbs.

The book is in alphabetical order; by English names (great if you don't want to search by latin name). No detailed knowledge of botany is assumed. Herbs fascinate me; see my website for my favorites:

http://mysite.verizon.net/herbgardeners/

This is very much an introduction; but a very useful one that people of all experience levels should be able to benefit from. There are more expensive guides to medicinal or culinary herbs that provide much more detail, this comes at a price. This text wont make you a skilled chef or give you the skills to self medicate but these are beyon it's scope.

This is the most useful book about herbs that I own. It covers everything from medicinal uses to history to cultivation of herbs from A to Z. I refer to it when I can't find the answer elsewhere.

This book has *fabulous* illustrations of the plants it details - something usually lacking from herbal books by way of plant identification. The plant descriptions and suggestions for use, as well as the old lore associated with each one are all very useful, and well formatted for easy lookup.

The only thing it doesn't have is the same thing most herbal books lack: complete and comprehensive information on the dangers of certain herbs - although I understand that the reason is that since this isn't a licensed medical text, they're not allowed to present thier information as actual medical advice, and so some of the precautions fall under that umbrella. As with any book on herbs, the reader must remember that the information, especially the warnings, are not necessarily complete.

That said - this is a really useful book with lots of great information, that you'll be glad to add to your herbal library at home.