[Sca-cooks] Required courses for RUM degrees

[kingstaste at mindspring.com]

>(3) Scholar of Botanical Studies - classes centering on SCA Period use of
>Herbal Medicine, Period Herbals, Gardens and Gardening, should include some
>practicums

Perhaps this should be "Scholar of Herbal Studies"?  To me "botanical"
implies all plants; for example, someone might study where and when peaches
were used in period, or when oranges reached the Iberian peninsula.  It
doesn't sound like that sort of thing is what you mean to include in
section (3).
Sandra

Well, actually it is.  If someone wanted to pursue a degree on a specific
food, that would be more Botanical than Food Preparation, and probably too
specific for the Food and Food Pathways (although it could go there, too).
I actually had it as 'Herbal Studies', and changed it to Botanicals to
include more than just herbs.  Gardens and Gardening, for example the study
of the Plan of St. Gall,  would include herbs, but also orchards, medicinal
plants and dietary foods, companion planting, etc.  (Not to mention the 3
different instructors I just listened to talking about the medicinal uses of
Peach Leaves and how they affected the humors.)  There is a lot of
cross-over between herbs, food, and medicine.  Once you start studying
surgery, bloodletting and other types of medical treatment, you are out of
the realm of the culinary, but there isn't a degree offered in Medieval
Sciences, as far as I know at this point.   Anyway, I wanted to make the
study of things vegetable more broadly-termed than just herbs.  Does that
explain my reasoning well enough?  Let me know, because you have a valid
question and it is one I want to make sure is clearly addressed.
Thanks!
Christianna