5 comments about Mastering Herbalism: A Practical Guide.

1. Mastering Herbalism: A Practical Guide by herbal expert Paul Huson is a marvelous compendium of useful information concerning herbs of all kinds. Countless practical uses for herbs are covered, from recipes for flavorful jams, soups, and teas to creating homemade perfumes and incenses to all-natural medicine. Mastering Herbalism is also packed with gardening tips for growing one's own herbs. Illustrated with line drawings and enhanced with four appendices, a glossary, a select bibliography, and comprehensive index, Mastering Herbalism is simply a "must" for any cook or gardener looking to put a little extra spice in their life!



2. I first read this book about 4 years ago. I had the oppertunity to read a first edition hardcover volume filled with its owners personal notes. This is truly one of the great herbals in print and I highly reccomend it to anyone seeking the information on the metaphysical properties of herbs.



3. I found this book in my home years ago, among the dusty tomes we had collected. As a child, I found this book helpful for the simple things such as what are the best herbs to use when I'm cooking chicken, as well as what tea I should drink when I have an upset stomach. Now that i am an adult, I recognize that it is much more useful than I ever recognized. This book is like an encyclopedia of herbs, book of remedies, a recipe book, a gardener's manual and a witchcraft book all rolled into one.
   
   A "must have" for anyone interested in herbs.



4. This book was one of the first I bought to learn more about the use of herbs in Witchcraft and Magick. My copy is much love and I adore it. I have since then bought a pile of books on magickal herbalism, they have been stacked up in the hope that one day I will find a book that takes the work done by Paul Huson in this volume to the next level. There are books on my pile by most of the modern writers on Witchcraft, but none of them come close to rivalling this book. They all fail to grab my interest and to be honest most seem to me, to be a rewrite of this classic work.
   
   The correspondences are given in tables which are clear and easy to use. The lovely old illustrations throughout gives the book an extra level of charm. The recipes and charms are magickal and they work.
   
   A great no-fluff, practical, useful and great guide to magickal herbalism - which should be on the bookshelves of all self-respecting witches, wiccans, magickians and pagans who work with herbs. Those who don't have it yet and who are not yet in love with it, should get a copy now - otherwise you will continue to miss out big time.



5. This book is a cornerstone of my library. This book covers the uses of herbs since ancient egyptian times into the modern. Ancient recipies for healing, health, perfumery, and of course incenses are included. There is also a large section regarding the use of herbs in cooking.
   
   There is practical, concise info regarding herb propogation and how to maintain a garden.
   
   Over time the price of this book waxes and wanes, depending on availability, so if you can find it at a reasonable price, go ahead and pick up a copy. . .you won't be dissapointed.

1 comments about The Herb Gardener: A Guide for All Seasons.

1. I am fairly new to all of this herb gardening stuff but this is one of the nicest books I have come across so far. It has alot of nice pictures and diagrams. My favorite parts of the book are the garden ideas/diagrams it shows. It shows a wagon wheel garden, knot gardens, etc. As well as gives potting ideas and helps. In the back is an index of herbs with descriptions and colorful pictures. The pictures do a good job of showing you what the herb looks like. It also have basic garden information on composting etc. I also like that it helps you plan a year round garden. Nothing worse than a garden that only blooms one season! I think anyone who needs help with herb gardening, or anyone in a rut, should check this book out. I really enjoyed it!

5 comments about Greenhouse Gardener's Companion: Growing Food and Flowers in Your Greenhouse or Sunspace.

1. I am pouring over this reference. Mr. Smith is not only informative about all things greenhouse, he also provides insight into all aspects of gardening from composting and propagating to seed starting techniques. Further, the book contains 'cheat sheets' as to when to start seeds, transplant, and how best to condition the greenhouse atmosphere. Great sense of humor. A+



2. While this book is useful, I found it a little to general. I expected more detailed guidelines. Also, not as many illustrations and diagrams as I would like.



3. This book is a weath of information - well written and a joy to read. I have visited the solar greenhouse at the Cheyenne WY Botanic Gardens. It was great to see the information from the book in actual use. Now if only I had a greenhouse!



4. I just purchased my first greenhouse and wanted a good reference book. This is it! An excellent resource which is easy to read and use. Love it!



5. Very good book, very comprehensive, great for beginners (like me). There is a ton of information in here.

No comments about Lavender: Growing & Using Lavender for Fragrance, Mood & Body Care.

5 comments about The Weiser Concise Guide to Herbal Magick.

1. Judith Hawkins-Tillirson is the incarnation of the "Wise Woman." Her knowledge and experience of all things magical and herbal make her one of the most respected and revered figures in modern occultism.



2. Herbalist and occultist Judith Hawkins-Tillirson offers both lore and practical instructions in the magickal use of plants in The Weiser Concise Guide to Herbal Magick, an easy-to-follow manual examining the mystic properties of plants ranging from mugwort, mandrake, and nightshade to olive, coconut, tiger lily, orchids, palm, and more. Chapters align different plants with corresponding planets of the solar system, and offer useful advice on preparing herbs for magick, gardening, and tips, tricks, and techniques for the successful performance of magick. "For magicians and astrologers alike, Water is the passive, receptive, magnetic element. Water acts as a physical Akashic record; it receives and holds all the energies exposed to it. This natural receptivity is the source of the psychic ability so often found in Water folk, and also of their infamous moodiness - those tides that Dion Fortune described are always moving." An excellent resource for anyone interested in exploring the wonders and benefits of herbal magick.



3. This book was full of surprises. It is so wonderfully written that I am going to let some quotes from the book do the telling. It is very unusual to find a book that presents tons of useful information that doesn't read like an encyclopedia; the author's wonderful use of the English language instead makes it read more like poetry! Here's a typical paragraph: 'We find that the entire Corpus Hermeticum is late anitquity's densely saturated, intellectually sophisticated, and magically erudite Neoplatonic stew. As it happens, this savor and complex broth was, at the outset, a 'stone soup', to which many profound and recondite thinkers added a turnip here, an onion there, a handful of parsley, simmer 600 years or so and bing!' Nothing more to add, except Thank You Judith Hawkins-Tillerson.



4. Two things immediately leap to mind on reading this book:
   
   1) Judith has read _777_ so *you don't have to*. The importance of this cannot be overstated.
   2) Do not, under any circumstances, skip the footnotes. They're hilarious. Yes, *really*.
   
   In a book this short, what you get is necessarily a whirlwind tour, but it's a well-focused whirlwind. Highly recommended, and a delightful read. Not many works both instruct and entertain as well as this book does.



5. The Weiser Concise Guide to Herbal Magic is a well written resource for the
   ledgends of herbal use in magic.
   I found this book to have several unusual herbs not normally mentioned in herbal referance books.

2 comments about Growing and Selling Fresh-Cut Herbs.

1. I gained a lot of insight from this book and have been marking pages and referring to it constantly. I even followed the pattern mentioned for building raised beds and it is working out great. I would have liked to see more about growing organically.

   It is definitely a great source for growing your own herbs. Highly recommended.




2. It's obvious Sandie Shores put a lot of effort, time and heartfelt advice into this reference book, and it contains a lot of useful advice for the beginning grower.
   
   I've been referring to this book for several years now; I have grown herbs for many years and built a greenhouse business around it. I would like to comment on a few shortcomings of this book, in hopes that those individuals choosing to go into the culinary herb growing field will refer to additional sources of information, rather than relying strictly on this one source.
   
   - One major problem is Ms. Shores' lack of emphasis toward maintaining *healthy* plants and how this effectively prevents disease and pests to begin with. She instead talks about how to deal with pests and diseases. The more I study disease and pest control, the more I find increased emphasis on maintaining healthy plants as the best defense. Growers are now becoming aware of techniques that increase brix in plants which is a natural pest fighter, and improving and restoring healthy soil conditions through organic practices and remineralization, or even adopting simplified and effective hydroponic techniques (e.g., VertiGro). Some of these effects can be sought through the use of Sonic Bloom, mineral dust, OceanGrown, composting, and using a TDS meter to measure solids in your water supply. I have found that by greatly increasing the plant's health I have been able to effectively fight disease and pests rather than resort to time-consuming and redundant spraying which only makes me feel like I'm sometimes fighting a losing battle.
   
   - I have found contradictory or missing information compared to other resources. I had to discover through another reference that I was overwatering my bay laurel trees; there is no mention in her book that they require less water than other plants. In fact, there is no mention on how much water to give bay laurel at all.
   
   - She says mint doesn't do well in containers--I have personally found that is the only way to grow them (otherwise they are too much work) and they do very well. Refer to "Bountiful Container" by McGee and Stuckey on how to successfully grow mint in containers.
   
   - There is no mention of White Dalmatian Sage, the best sage for culinary use.
   
   - Ms. Shores claims that French Tarragon must be allowed to go dormant in the winter. However, "Bountiful Container" describes a method where you can continue to grow it through the winter.
   
   - Ms. Shores says oregano is a slow grower; McGee and Stuckey say it's a rapid grower. I think it depends on the growing environment, but it can be a rapid grower given the proper conditions.
   
   - There is no mention of fusarium oxysporum under the basil section, an untreatable, devastating fungus that can potentially wipe out your entire sweet basil crop and persist in the soil for up to 12 years. I had to find a short description of it under the soil-borne diseases section. I feel this is such an important aspect to growing basil, a very popular culinary herb, that there should have been a lot more emphasis on becoming aware of and identifying this disease. Shane Smith's book, Greenhouse Gardeners Companion, says it's believed that fusarium oxysporum now infects most of the world's supply of basil seeds. He recommended buying fusarium-resistant (Nufar) seeds and named the sources where you can buy them.
   
   - This book lacks a simplified reference to identifying plant problems. I tried looking up black spots on the basil leaves in this book but could not find any advice. Greenhouse Gardener's Companion has an excellent reference chart for looking up this kind of information.
   
   - Very puzzling, at the time of writing this review, her recommended sources for packaging supplies listed in her appendix and her website did not carry the suggested items. I've found other very useful vendors on the web that provide the supplies I needed, like clamshell packages and plastic bags for delivery.
   
   - Sometimes there was confusion whether she was talking about growing in the greenhouse versus field growing, or container growing versus bed growing.
   
   - If you're just starting out and will seek outside funding for your new herb business, the most important step is creating a detailed business plan. Even though there is a chapter devoted to business planning, there's no specific, helpful guidance on how to develop one. And here's some practical advice I've discovered on my own that you also won't find in this book: if you don't have experience as a grower professionally for many years, you won't even be considered for a bank or SBA loan. Smart Money magazine confirmed this with an article of theirs--banks will fund only 2% of new businesses, SBA only 6%, while 50% of new businesses will buy capital expenditures through the use of personal credit cards.
   
   I've stopped producing plants for cutting and instead grow herb and vegetable plants and container gardens to sell directly to the consumer. There is more satisfaction (and more money) in this, and when I discovered that wholesale distributors were selling basil in the middle of summertime for $5.50/lb, I knew I couldn't compete with those prices and pay myself a wage. Ms. Shores' book correctly states you will not get rich selling fresh cut herbs.
   
   Ms. Shores does give excellent, useful advice on building and maintaining a greenhouse, and how to efficiently harvest herbs for packaging and selling.
   
   Other fantastic growing references: "Bountiful Container," "The Green Thumb Garden Handbook," "Secrets to a Successful Greenhouse and Business," "Herbs in Pots," "Fresh Culinary Herb Production," "Basil: An Herb Lover's Guide," and ATTRA on the web.

5 comments about Encyclopedia of Herbs & Their Uses.

1. When it comes to the uses of herbs it gives a brief overview of what one could possibly do with the herb without giving measurements or instructions for preparation. Some of the herbs listed could be lethal in large doses, which is the only reason this concerned me. It does, however, have an exhaustive list of common garden plants, their latin names, and information related to their growing and the zones they would grow best in. I turn to it frequently for growing information and as a starter on my research for further medicinal properties or preparation.



2. If you have an interest in herbs this book is a must-have. It lists even the most obsure plants and gives each a very informative overview that includes both the historical and modern uses. -Linda Fry Kenzle, author of Gathering



3. Best reference book I've ever read. Use this book whenever I see a plant I like and can't identify. Excellent pictorial and historical details. Wonderful tips for gardeners, herbalists and people who just love looking at plants.



4. This book is a definite must have for anyone interested in herbs. "Encyclopedia of Herbs and Their Uses" contains color photos of all entries (or at least all of the ones I have looked up so far), and also lists the different uses of each herb. I thought the layout of the book was very well planned, and I found that the book, in general, was very easy to use. This book meets my needs perfectly.



5. I love this book! Extremely informative. All kinds of information that isn't found on the Internet. It helps my knowledge and growing skills, and my plants are happier because of it! A real find.
   Michelle Preston
   "DIRTY KNEEZ NURSERY"
   (228)861-6862
   Plants,trees,flowers,herbs,& seeds.

1 comments about Kitchen Harvest: Growing Oragnic Fruit, Vegetables & Herbs in Containers.

1. This book is just what I was looking for. It has good tips for organic edible container gardening. The pictures are great and I am inspired to try lots of new things in containers this summer. I'm short on ground space, but I can fill some containers up!

2 comments about Llewellyn's 2008 Herbal Almanac (Llewellyn's Herbal Almanac).

1. I love all my LLewellyn's Almanacs. There's always some info in them that I don't agree with but most of it is well worth savoring.



2. Llewellyn's Herbal Almanac has been a great practical resource for the past fifteen years. Within you'll find moon tables, legends and lore, recipes, and practical knowledge devoted to planting and harvesting by all natural means. You'll discover how to grow herbs in the shade, enhance meals with rosemary, combat high blood pressure, comfort babies, zap blemishes, lend an herbal touch to weddings, and include the kids in fun craft projects.
   
   Chapters include:
   * Soothing Herbal Remedies for Your Baby by Michelle Skye
   * Organic Gardening by Lynn Smythe
   * Natural Cold and Flu Remedies by Karen Creel
   * Hot Flash Herbs by Dallas Jennifer Cobb
   * Mistletoe Mysteries by Patti Wigington
   * Shadowplay: Herbs for the Shady Garden by Elizabeth Barrette
   * Crafts for Kids Unfold Outdoors by Sally Cragin
   * Henna for Hair by AarTiana
   * Nutty Tales for a Pagan's Hearth by Nancy Bennett

2 comments about Planting the Future: Saving Our Medicinal Herbs.

1. This is a MUST HAVE book not only for Herbalists but for all People of this Turtle Isand. As ypou read this book it will not oly scare you but it will also wake you up. It is not up to a few people to save the plants, IT IS UP TO ALL OF US!



2. Planting The Future provides a different focus on the botanical market, featuring works by the herbalists of United plant Savers and discussing strategies to save and preserve medicinal herbs. Chapters provide an A-Z listing of herbs and their history, uses and propagation.