encyclopedias

With the wide selection of books on herbal uses confronting the average herbalist or curious reader, how is one to choose which resource is best? The answer is that it is impossible to use only one resource. Chevallier's books come close to being the one resource to use for employing herbs for medicinal purposes, but because the misuse of herbs can be deadly, I rely on a variety of material and crossreference my applications. In other words, if anyone says an herb has proved poisonous, I am careful. ....

ENCYCLOPEDIA OF HERBAL MEDICINE (EHM) by Andrew Chevallier is an update of his book THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF MEDICINAL PLANTS (EMP). EHM covers most of the same plants as EMP, but contains more up-to-date information from various sources conducting research on the properties and uses of herbs, including herbal systems in other parts of the world such as the U.K. and Germany, (i.e. not exclusively reliant on the actions of the FDA or USDA for all it's information).

EHM, as did EMP before it, includes one of the largest selections of plants for medicinal uses. Not all the plants are botonacally speaking "herbs." Black Cherry, for example, is a tree, but like many other trees has constituent parts that may be used for medicinal purposes, and therefore viewed as an "herbal" remedy for certain conditions (chronic dry, irritable coughs!!)--or kill you if you ingest an excess. ....

EHM is not much concerned with the manufacture of floral sachets or assembly of ingredients for pot pourri, or how to lay out your herbal garden for that matter. In fact, my suspician is that the average EHM reader will probably consult the health food store for herbal items, and not grow herbs in the back yard or try to harvest them in the nearest park. ....