SC - Horseradish

[LrdRas]

In a message dated 4/3/98 4:14:07 PM Eastern Standard Time,
melc2newton at juno.com writes:

<< Is rhubarb medieval?  If so, how about some recipes?  I'm planning on
 planting one of these things in my yard (mainly for wine, mmmmmmm...).
 And would love to have proof of it's being "period."
 Beatrix >>

According to Waverly Root in "Food," rhubarb was reached the Western world
from China in the Roman era.  Pliny mentions it in passing, as does
Dioscorides. Ibn-el-Beithar wrote in the 13th century C.E. that rhubarb was
common in Syria and had "like chard, it has fairly thick stalks."  This
suggests that he may have realized it as good to eat and which part was eaten.

However, Europeans imported the root only as a medicinal, having in true
barbaric European fashion eaten the leaves early on with disastrous results.
Leonhard Ruuwolf saw it growing in Lebanon circa 1573-1575 C.E. It was growing
in certain abbeys as a medicinal and planted by a certain Adolf Occo in 1570
bringing it into the lay garden.  Lyte mentions it as growing in English
herborist's gardens as a curiosity in 1578 C.E. Prosper Albinus grew it in the
botanical gardens in Padua at the same time, describing and illustrating it in
his herbal. 

It is not until the 18th century that we see reference to it's use as food.
And even into the 19th century, it was grown not so much for the edible stalks
but rather, in the case of Rheum rhaponticum, for it's edible unopened flower
heads.  R. rhaponticum curiously is the plant grown by Occo, Albinus Gerard
and Parkinson.

So apparently rhubarb was NOT grown as food during the Middle Ages although
it's roots were imported, or rarely grown, as medicine or botanical
curiosities with the exception of the more civilized Persian world where it's
culinary delights most probably were known.

That being the case, IMO, it deserves a place in the garden for it's medicinal
uses along side the many other herbs grown for this purpose.

Ras 
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