Customer Reviews

Stalking the Healthful Herbs

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

 

 

The original "Stalking the wild..." editions went out of print some years ago and that was a shame. Nobody but a character like Euell Gibbons could write such a downhome book that passed on folk wisdom and botany in a delightful way.

I actually prefer this book to "Asparagus" because it is a bit more useful. For example, if you live nearly anywhere in middle America, violet leaves pop up in your lawn and garden. They're readily available and easy to find. And he gives uses for cucumber-scented borage, which you can actually plant from seeds. This herb now is a top seller for its healthful oil-rich seeds that contain linoleic acid. If borage doesn't grow in your fields, you can put it in your herb garden. He gives great ideas for violets, borage, mint and other herbs either readily found or available to grow.

Careful however; some of the wild herbs look alike; most dangerously hemlock and parsley, angelica and other members of the carrot family look alike with their feathery fronds. Best to take a course in plant identification at the local community college if you are collecting these.

A hundred years from now, I believe, the Gibbons books will still be regarded as first-rate texts. The science is, if not impeccable, supportive of Gibbons' readable and magnetic approach to edibles. He's a charmer, but not self-consciously so. His charm is in his love for the subject, and his expertise. Too bad Johnny Carson made a bit of a clown out of him, because he was anything but a clown. "Stalking the Wild Asparagus" is the centerpiece of his output; indispensable for anyone with any level of interest in the subject.

I own the original. And am thrilled to see it reprinted. Gibbons was the virtuoso of the herbal heyday, and his stories of nature, and his naturalist outlook, will enthrall you as much as the herbs you'll learn about. He is, and will allways remain, part of this foragers life, even though I never knew him personaly.

My scores are based on the usefulness of this book for foraging medicinal plants.
Overall rating: 4 stars
Number of plants: 3 stars
Treatment lists: 4 stars
Treatment details: 4 stars
Picture types: simple line drawings
Plant identification: 2 stars
Who will find it useful: novices to expert foragers & herbalists, backpackers, hunters, preparedness-minded folk

Notes: Euell Gibbons is one part naturalist, one part poet, and one part comedian. No other wild plant author inspires me to run off into the woods like his writings! This book is filled with detailed nutritional and medicinal information for a wide variety of plants found all over North America. Its recipes for teas, tinctures, ointments, extractions, etc are clear and easy to follow. This book is a must-have for the bookcase of any forager, herbalist, or those aiming for self-sufficiency. The main focus of this book is more along the lines of keeping you healthy followed by treating minor problems such as colds, congestion, upset stomach, insomnia, and the such. It isn't much help major illnesses, cancers, or other life-threatening diseases. This book includes a glossary of the medical terms it uses.

The paperback version of this book is still fairly thick, but still small enough to be brought out to the wilds. Most of the plants he describes are available all across North America. However, he assumes you already know what the plant looks like and where to find it, so novice foragers may need to bring a reference guide such as A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants and Herbs: Of Eastern and Central North America (Peterson Field Guide) along to help them.

If you have read Euell Gibbon's "Stalking the wild asparagus", then you'll love this book like I do. Euell was the original forager, a true expert. A must have for any foraging enthusiast.

This would have been much better with more illustrations. Only about half of the plants that he reviews are illustrated, leading the novice to wonder if the 'weeds' growing in her garden are actually the marvelous chickweed, or something else.

The late Euel Gibbons was an iconic figure whose three books, "Stalking The Wild Asparagus"; "Stalking The Healthful Herbs"; and "Stalking The Blue-eyed Scallop" have been brought back into print for a new generation of appreciative readers by Alan C. Hood & Company. All three of these foraging 'how to' manuals are especially noted as being thoroughly 'user friendly' and packed with a wealth of practical information. These compendiums of information are nicely illustrated with line drawings. All three of these informed and informative titles are still considered to be a seminal trilogy and strongly recommended for anyone seeking to harvest and utilize the natural resources that grow wild in fields, forests, swamps, along the roadsides and in vacant lots -- and free for the taking by those who know where to look -- and when. Although available separately, community library systems in particular would be well advised to acquire all three titles for their collections.

There are a good number of plants discussed in this book and each plant is covered in detail. It even includes recipes though we haven't tried any - yet. It is amazing how many 'weeds' you can eat!

While the plants are shown with drawings, it would have been nice to have photographs.

We would recommend this book.

Euell Gibbons made a very useful guide by publishing this book on more than 40 herbs. It is not only enjoyable to read but contains information on natural remedies, beverages, infusions, recipes and edibility, if aplicable, of the herbs covered. Each plant entry has the common & scientific name, some lore & history of the plant, general description and basic identification accompanied by very raw drawing/sketch, mentions places to look for each plant (includes general habitat and distribution), gives the flowering time and when to take specific parts of the plant, tells of abundant vitamins and/or minerals in each plant, explains what ailments may be cured, provides recipes and other useful tips and information. If you are new to learning how to identify plants then you may find this book to be lacking in some guidance here and I always suggest using more than one book for identifying plants as there is no room for error here. If you are an herbalist, botanist, forager, survivalist or just curious about herbs I highly recommend this book as an addition to your library...I doubt you'll be disappointed!