HERB - Happy Holidays

[Mike C. Baker]

Mike C. Baker
>>No, no, no. That doesn't work at all.
>>Half the fun can be from the synergies created by COMBINING
>>two (or more) personal libraries.
>So what you're saying is that his brand new copy of Vegetius
>can also be *our* copy? :)
>
>BTW, "Vegetius: Epitome of Military Science" by N. P. Milner
>(translator; Liverpool Univ Pr; ISBN: 085323910X; Dec 96) is the book.
>It's an annotated translation of the only text on war to survive
>from the late Roman era. The reason I mention it here is that
>there's at least a small bit on the health and nutritional care
>for soldiers in it, which may be of interest to the herbalist.

Heck, that's of interest to most SCA folk at least incidentally, 
I would hope.  Even more for some of us who have _broad_
interests within the timeframe.  My interest being piqued, 
may I inquire as to how much money my very own copy might 
blow next month's book budget out of the water?

>>I may not have gotten my own copy for Christmas, but was
>>privileged to inspect my (otherwise *very* mundane) mother's
>>copy of _Green Pharmacy_ (Rodale Press, James Duke PhD)
>>Highly recommended
>Oh, I'm so glad you mentioned this. I've been meaning to ask if
>anyone had read and possibly liked this book. I've been thinking
>about getting it, but I find that I'm more and more picky
>about the herb books I get. There are only so many times you can
>read the same information over and over. Most herb books have
>a pitifully small about of historical information and do little
>more than describe a plant. I think the thing that really bugs
>me is that so many of them are the same. I've started looking for
>the books that stand out in some way, either because they detail
>more current research on the plants or because they have better
>(footnoted or referenced) historical information.

This one is definitely far more current research / modern usage
than it has any use for "in period" documentation.  We're talking 
discussions on how things have worked for him, his "herbal-resisting"
wife, and suchlike for the anecdotes.  The biographical material 
covers his work in Panama and South America, plus how it 
had career effects, etc.etc. etc.

There is little to no "field identification" provided.  The presumption 
that I obtained in my quick scan was that most moderns would be 
using material obtained from health-food stores, herbal shops, 
and the common grocery store.

>Is Duke's book organized by plant or condition? Some books are
>starting to organize the information in them based on what
>people have wrong with them rather than a simple encyclopedic
>reference of plants (which everyone does and few do well).

Organized by condition, with a 1 to 3 "leaf rating" as to how 
efficacious each of the entries is thought to be.  For the 
remedies that I recognized or have used myself in the past,
the rating system appeared to be accurate to my eyes.

SCA: Amr ibn Majid al-Bakri al-Amra (Steppes, Ansteorra)
"Other": Kihe Blackeagle (the Dreamsinger Bard)
My opinions are my own -- who else would want them?
e-mail: kihe at ticnet.com OR kihe at rocketmail.com


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