originally posted: September 27, 2002 | by chelsie

The American Horticultural Society estimates there are three hundred species of Iris. Most are native to the Northern Hemisphere and can be found from wetlands to mountains. Linnaeus made a good choice when he named the genus--Iris species come in every color of the rainbow except true red. [Click here to read more...]

originally posted: September 20, 2002 | by chelsie

"Arsmart bringeth forth stalks a cubit high, round, smooth, jointed or kneed, dividing themselves into sundry branches: whereon grow leaves like those of the Peach....The flours grow in clusters upon long stems...after which commeth forth little seeds...of a hot and biting taste, as is all the rest of the Plant...." (John Gerard, The Herbal, 1633 ed.) [Click here to read more...]

originally posted: September 13, 2002 | by chelsie

The plane-tree of Greek, Roman, and Hebrew legends was simply called Platanus. Botanically, this plane-tree is known as Platanus orientalis Linnaeus. The meaning of its ancient name is lost. [Click here to read more...]

originally posted: September 6, 2002 | by chelsie

In the Old Testament, Amaziah, a priest, accuses Amos of conspiracy against the royal house of Israel. "Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet's son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit: And the Lord took me...." (Amos 7: 14, 15 KJV) [Click here to read more...]

originally posted: August 30, 2002 | by chelsie

"Nine days then I was swept along by the force of the hostile winds on the fishy sea, but on the tenth day we landed in the country of the Lotus-Eaters, who live on a flowering food, and there we set foot on the mainland....My men went on and presently met the Lotus-Eaters...they only gave them lotus to taste of...any who ate the honey-sweet fruit of lotus...wanted to stay...feeding on lotus, and forget the way home." (Homer's Odyssey, Book IX, 800 BCE, trans. Richmond Lattimore) [Click here to read more...]

originally posted: August 23, 2002 | by chelsie

No one is certain of the derivation of the botanical name, Osmunda. It appears the use of royal fern (Osmunda regalis Linnaeus) to treat wounds and deep bruises dates from at least the time of the Jutes, Angles, and Saxons. [Click here to read more...]

originally posted: August 16, 2002 | by chelsie

The carob (Ceratonia siliqua Linnaeus) is also known as St. John's bread for John the Baptist. Biblical texts state John fed on locusts and wild honey in the wilderness. The pods when first gathered are ripe, but still green and ill-flavored. When allowed to dry, the pods take on a sweet, chocolaty taste. The seeds are usually not eaten. [Click here to read more...]

originally posted: August 9, 2002 | by chelsie

John Gerard (The Herbal, 1633 ed.) wrote: "Herbe Robert bringeth forth slender weake and brittle stalks, somewhat hairie, and of a reddish colour, as are oftentimes the leaves also, which are iagged and deepely cut...of a most loathsome stinking smell. The floures are of a most bright purple colour; which being past, there follow certaine small heads, with sharpe beaks or bils like those of birds...." [Click here to read more...]

originally posted: August 2, 2002 | by chelsie

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium Linnaeus) was used from the time of the ancient Greeks to treat wounds especially those received in battle. The modern common name comes from the Middle English name, yarowe. This name derived from the Old English gearwe and the Old High German garwa. The closely related Anglo-Saxon name was gearuwe meaning healer. [Click here to read more...]

originally posted: July 26, 2002 | by chelsie

The carrot (Daucus carota Linnaeus) is the perfect example of centuries of selection. The wild plant has a woody bitter tap-root. The domestic has an orange edible root. Native to Eurasia and Africa; it was probably cultivated long before the Greeks. In John Gerard's time (1597), there were two domesticated varieties; one with a yellow tap-root, the other with red. [Click here to read more...]

originally posted: July 19, 2002 | by chelsie

Saxifrages are generally regarded as rock garden plants for their ability to thrive among stonework. There are an estimated 300 species of Saxifraga native to temperate, alpine, and subarctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Many of the species are found in rocky soils. Saxifraga is the feminine of the Latin, saxifragus, meaning "breaking rocks". [Click here to read more...]

originally posted: July12, 2002 | by chelsie

Aristotle in The History of Animals (350 BCE, trans. D'Arcy Wentworth Thompson) wrote "Wild goats in Crete are said, when wounded by arrow, to go in search of dittany, which is supposed to have the property of ejecting arrows in the body." [Click here to read more...]

originally posted: July 5, 2002 | by chelsie

Dittany (Dictamnus albus Linnaeus) is a perennial native to warm temperate climates from southern Europe to northern China. This beautiful plant is in the Rutaceae or citrus family known for their essential oils. John Gerard (The Herbal, 1633 ed.) called it Fraxinella (like an ash), "Bastard Dittanie is a very rare and gallant plant...garnished with leaves...like the leaves of the Ash tree, but blacker, thicker, and more full of juice, of an unpleasant savor...loathsome...almost like the smell of a goat...." [Click here to read more...]