![Garden of herbs](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/Garden_of_herbs.jpg)
In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding
vegetables
Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the flowers, fruits, stems ...
and other plants consumed for
macronutrients
A nutrient is a substance used by an organism to survive, grow, and reproduce. The requirement for dietary nutrient intake applies to animals, plants, fungi, and protists. Nutrients can be incorporated into cells for metabolic purposes or excre ...
, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and
garnishing food, for medicinal purposes, or for fragrances. Culinary use typically distinguishes herbs from
spices
A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for flavoring or as a garnish. Spices are ...
. ''Herbs'' generally refers to the
leaf
A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ste ...
y green or
flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...
ing parts of a plant (either fresh or dried), while ''spices'' are usually dried and produced from other parts of the plant, including
seed
A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiospe ...
s,
bark,
root
In vascular plants, the roots are the organs of a plant that are modified to provide anchorage for the plant and take in water and nutrients into the plant body, which allows plants to grow taller and faster. They are most often below the su ...
s and
fruit
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering.
Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...
s.
Herbs have a variety of uses including culinary, medicinal, aromatic and in some cases, spiritual. General usage of the term "herb" differs between culinary herbs and
medicinal herb
Medicinal plants, also called medicinal herbs, have been discovered and used in traditional medicine practices since prehistoric times. Plants synthesize hundreds of chemical compounds for various functions, including defense and protection ag ...
s; in medicinal or spiritual use, any parts of the plant might be considered as "herbs", including leaves, roots, flowers, seeds, root bark, inner bark (and
cambium
A cambium (plural cambia or cambiums), in plants, is a tissue layer that provides partially undifferentiated cells for plant growth. It is found in the area between xylem and phloem. A cambium can also be defined as a cellular plant tissue from w ...
),
resin
In polymer chemistry and materials science, resin is a solid or highly viscous substance of plant or synthetic origin that is typically convertible into polymers. Resins are usually mixtures of organic compounds. This article focuses on n ...
and
pericarp
Fruit anatomy is the plant anatomy of the internal structure of fruit. Fruits are the mature ovary or ovaries of one or more flowers. They are found in three main anatomical categories: aggregate fruits, multiple fruits, and simple fruits. Aggr ...
.
The word "herb" is pronounced in
Commonwealth English
The use of the English language in current and former member countries of the Commonwealth of Nations was largely inherited from British colonisation, with some exceptions. English serves as the medium of inter-Commonwealth relations.
Many r ...
, but is common among
North American English
North American English (NAmE, NAE) is the most generalized variety of the English language as spoken in the United States and Canada. Because of their related histories and cultures, plus the similarities between the pronunciations (accents), v ...
speakers and those from other regions where
h-dropping
''H''-dropping or aitch-dropping is the deletion of the voiceless glottal fricative or "''H''-sound", . The phenomenon is common in many dialects of English, and is also found in certain other languages, either as a purely historical developmen ...
occurs. In botany, the noun "herb" refers to a "plant that does not produce a woody stem", and the adjective "herbaceous" means "herb-like", referring to parts of the plant that are green and soft in texture".
Definition
![The Herb Garden - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/The_Herb_Garden_-_geograph.org.uk_-_1629279.jpg)
In
botany
Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...
, the term herb refers to a
herbaceous plant
Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent wood, woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennial plant, perennials, and nearly all Annual plant, annuals and Biennial plant, biennials.
Definition ...
,
defined as a small,
seed-bearing plant without a woody stem in which all aerial parts (i.e. above ground) die back to the ground at the end of each
growing season.
Usually the term refers to
perennials
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also widel ...
,
although herbaceous plants can also be
annuals (plants that die at the end of the growing season and grow back from seed next year),
or
biennial
Biennial means (an event) lasting for two years or occurring every two years. The related term biennium is used in reference to a period of two years.
In particular, it can refer to:
* Biennial plant, a plant which blooms in its second year and th ...
s.
This term is in contrast to
shrubs and
tree
In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...
s which possess a woody stem.
Shrubs and trees are also defined in terms of size, where shrubs are less than ten meters tall, and trees may grow over ten meters.
The word herbaceous is derived from Latin ''herbāceus'' meaning "grassy", from ''herba'' "grass, herb".
Another sense of the term herb can refer to a much larger range of plants,
with culinary, therapeutic or other uses.
For example, some of the most commonly described herbs such as
sage
Sage or SAGE may refer to:
Plants
* ''Salvia officinalis'', common sage, a small evergreen subshrub used as a culinary herb
** Lamiaceae, a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint or deadnettle or sage family
** ''Salvia'', a large ...
,
rosemary
''Salvia rosmarinus'' (), commonly known as rosemary, is a shrub with fragrant, evergreen, needle-like leaves and white, pink, purple, or blue flowers, native to the Mediterranean region. Until 2017, it was known by the scientific name ''Rosmar ...
and
lavender
''Lavandula'' (common name lavender) is a genus of 47 known species of flowering plants in the mint family, Lamiaceae. It is native to the Old World and is found in Cape Verde and the Canary Islands, and from Europe across to northern and easte ...
would be excluded from the botanical definition of a herb as they do not die down each year, and they possess woody stems.
In the wider sense, herbs may be herbaceous perennials but also trees,
subshrubs,
shrubs,
annuals,
lianas,
fern
A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes exce ...
s,
mosses,
algae,
lichens,
and
fungi
A fungus ( : fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms. These organisms are classified as a kingdom, separately from ...
.
Herbalism
Herbal medicine (also herbalism) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. With worldwide research into pharmacology, some herbal medicines have been translated into modern reme ...
can utilize not just stems and leaves but also fruit, roots, bark and gums.
Therefore, one suggested definition of a herb is a plant which is of use to humans,
although this definition is problematic since it could cover a great many plants that are not commonly described as herbs.
History
Ancient Greek philosopher
Theophrastus
Theophrastus (; grc-gre, Θεόφραστος ; c. 371c. 287 BC), a Greek philosopher and the successor to Aristotle in the Peripatetic school. He was a native of Eresos in Lesbos.Gavin Hardy and Laurence Totelin, ''Ancient Botany'', Routle ...
divided the plant world into trees, shrubs, and herbs.
Herbs came to be considered in three groups, namely
pot herb
Leaf vegetables, also called leafy greens, pot herbs, vegetable greens, or simply greens, are plant leaves eaten as a vegetable, sometimes accompanied by tender petioles and shoots. Leaf vegetables eaten raw in a salad can be called salad gre ...
s (e.g. onions), sweet herbs (e.g. thyme), and salad herbs (e.g. wild celery).
During the seventeenth century as
selective breeding
Selective breeding (also called artificial selection) is the process by which humans use animal breeding and plant breeding to selectively develop particular phenotypic traits (characteristics) by choosing which typically animal or plant m ...
changed the plants size and flavor away from the wild plant, pot herbs began to be referred to as
vegetable
Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the flowers, fruits, stems, ...
s as they were no longer considered only suitable for the pot.
Botany and the study of herbs was, in its infancy, primarily a study of the pharmacological uses of plants. During the Middle Ages, when
humoral theory
Humorism, the humoral theory, or humoralism, was a system of medicine detailing a supposed makeup and workings of the human body, adopted by Ancient Greek and Roman physicians and philosophers.
Humorism began to fall out of favor in the 1850s ...
guided medicine, it was posited that foodstuffs, possessing their own humoral qualities, could alter the humoral temperaments of people. Parsley and sage were often used together in medieval cookery, for example in
chicken broth
Broth, also known as bouillon (), is a savory liquid made of water in which meat, fish or vegetables have been simmered for a short period of time. It can be eaten alone, but it is most commonly used to prepare other dishes, such as soups, ...
, which had developed a reputation as a therapeutic food by the 14th century. One of the most common sauces of the age,
green sauce
Green sauce or greensauce is a family of cold, uncooked sauces based on chopped herbs, including the Spanish and Italian ''salsa verde'', the French ''sauce verte'', the German ''Grüne Soße'' or ''Frankfurter Grie Soß'' (Frankfurt dialect) ...
, was made with parsley and often sage as well. In a 14th-century recipe recorded in
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
"for lords, for settling their temperament and whetting their appetite" green sauce is served with a dish of cheese and whole egg yolks boiled in watered down wine with herbs and spices.
Reproduction
Perennial herbs are usually reproduced by stem cuttings, either softwood cuttings of immature growth, or hardwood cuttings where the bark has been scraped to expose the
cambium
A cambium (plural cambia or cambiums), in plants, is a tissue layer that provides partially undifferentiated cells for plant growth. It is found in the area between xylem and phloem. A cambium can also be defined as a cellular plant tissue from w ...
layer. A cutting will usually be approximately 3 to 4 inches in length. Plant roots can grow from the stems. Leaves are stripped from the lower portion up to one half before the cutting is placed in growth medium or rooted in a glass of water. This process requires high humidity in the environment, sufficient light, and root zone heat.
Uses
Culinary
![Thyme-Bundle](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ea/Thyme-Bundle.jpg)
Culinary herbs are distinguished from
vegetable
Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the flowers, fruits, stems, ...
s in that, like spices, they are used in small amounts and provide
flavor rather than substance to
food.
Herbs can be perennials such as
thyme
Thyme () is the herb (dried aerial parts) of some members of the genus '' Thymus'' of aromatic perennial evergreen herbs in the mint family Lamiaceae. Thymes are relatives of the oregano genus ''Origanum'', with both plants being mostly indigen ...
, sage or lavender, biennials such as
parsley, or annuals like
basil
Basil (, ; ''Ocimum basilicum'' , also called great basil, is a culinary herb of the family Lamiaceae (mints). It is a tender plant, and is used in cuisines worldwide. In Western cuisine, the generic term "basil" refers to the variety also k ...
. Perennial herbs can be shrubs such as rosemary (''Rosmarinus officinalis''), or trees such as
bay laurel
''Laurus nobilis'' is an aromatic evergreen tree or large shrub with green, glabrous (smooth) leaves. It is in the flowering plant family Lauraceae. It is native to the Mediterranean region and is used as bay leaf for seasoning in cookin ...
(''Laurus nobilis'') – this contrasts with
botanical herbs, which by definition cannot be woody plants. Some plants are used as both herbs and spices, such as
dill
Dill (''Anethum graveolens'') is an annual herb in the celery family Apiaceae. It is the only species in the genus ''Anethum''. Dill is grown widely in Eurasia, where its leaves and seeds are used as a herb or spice for flavouring food.
Growth ...
weed and dill seed or
coriander leaves and seeds. There are also some herbs, such as those in the
mint family
The Lamiaceae ( )
or Labiatae are a family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle or sage family. Many of the plants are aromatic in all parts and include widely used culinary herbs like basil, mint, rosemary, sage, savory, ...
, that are used for both culinary and medicinal purposes.
Emperor
Charlemagne
Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first ...
(742–814) compiled a list of 74 different herbs that were to be planted in his gardens. The connection between herbs and health is important already in the European Middle Ages--''
The Forme of Cury
''The Forme of Cury'' (''The Method of Cooking'', from Middle French : 'to cook') is an extensive 14th-century collection of medieval English recipes. Although the original manuscript is lost, the text appears in nine manuscripts, the most fa ...
'' (that is, "cookery") promotes extensive use of herbs, including in salads, and claims in its preface "the assent and advisement of the masters of physic and philosophy in the King's Court".
Teas
Some herbs can be infused in boiling water to make
herbal tea
Herbal teas, also known as herbal infusions and less commonly called tisanes (UK and US , US also ), are beverages made from the infusion or decoction of herbs, spices, or other plant material in hot water. Oftentimes herb tea, or the plain term ...
s (also termed tisanes).
Typically the dried leaves, flowers or seeds are used, or fresh herbs are used.
Herbal teas tend to be made from aromatic herbs,
may not contain
tannin
Tannins (or tannoids) are a class of astringent, polyphenolic biomolecules that bind to and precipitate proteins and various other organic compounds including amino acids and alkaloids.
The term ''tannin'' (from Anglo-Norman ''tanner'' ...
s or
caffeine
Caffeine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant of the methylxanthine class. It is mainly used recreationally as a cognitive enhancer, increasing alertness and attentional performance. Caffeine acts by blocking binding of adenosine to ...
,
and are not typically mixed with milk.
Common examples include
chamomile tea,
or
mint tea
Maghrebi mint tea (Maghrebi Arabic: , ''atay''; ar, الشاي بالنعناع, aš-šhāy bin-na'nā'; ), also known as Moroccan mint tea and Algerian mint tea, is a North African green tea prepared with spearmint leaves and sugar.
It is ...
.
Herbal teas are often used as a source of relaxation or can be associated with rituals.
Medicine
![In Effigiam Nicholai Culpeper Equitis by Richard Gaywood](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/54/In_Effigiam_Nicholai_Culpeper_Equitis_by_Richard_Gaywood.jpg)
Herbs were used in
prehistoric medicine
Prehistoric medicine is any use of medicine from before the invention of writing and the documented history of medicine. Because the timing of the invention of writing per culture and region, the term "prehistoric medicine" encompasses a wide r ...
. As far back as 5000 BCE, evidence that
Sumerians used herbs in medicine was inscribed on cuneiform. In 162 CE, the physician
Galen
Aelius Galenus or Claudius Galenus ( el, Κλαύδιος Γαληνός; September 129 – c. AD 216), often Anglicized as Galen () or Galen of Pergamon, was a Greek physician, surgeon and philosopher in the Roman Empire. Considered to be one ...
was known for concocting complicated herbal remedies that contained up to 100 ingredients.
Some plants contain
phytochemicals that have effects on the body. There may be some effects when consumed in the small levels that typify culinary "spicing", and some herbs are toxic in larger quantities. For instance, some types of herbal extract, such as the extract of St. John's-wort (''
Hypericum perforatum
''Hypericum perforatum'', known as St. John's wort, is a flowering plant in the family Hypericaceae and the type species of the genus '' Hypericum''.
Possibly a hybrid between '' H. maculatum'' and '' H. attenuatum'', the species can be found ...
'') or of kava (''
Piper methysticum
Kava or kava kava ('' Piper methysticum'': Latin 'pepper' and Latinized Greek 'intoxicating') is a crop of the Pacific Islands. The name ''kava'' is from Tongan and Marquesan, meaning 'bitter'; other names for kava include ''ʻawa'' (Hawaiʻi) ...
'') can be used for medical purposes to relieve depression and stress. However, large amounts of these herbs may lead to toxic overload that may involve complications, some of a serious nature, and should be used with caution. Complications can also arise when being taken with some prescription medicines.
Herbs have long been used as the basis of traditional
Chinese herbal medicine, with usage dating as far back as the first century
CE and far before. In India, the
Ayurveda
Ayurveda () is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. The theory and practice of Ayurveda is pseudoscientific. Ayurveda is heavily practiced in India and Nepal, where around 80% of the population rep ...
medicinal system is based on herbs. Medicinal use of herbs in Western cultures has its roots in the
Hippocratic
Hippocrates of Kos (; grc-gre, Ἱπποκράτης ὁ Κῷος, Hippokrátēs ho Kôios; ), also known as Hippocrates II, was a Greek physician of the classical period who is considered one of the most outstanding figures in the history of ...
(Greek) elemental healing system, based on a quaternary elemental healing metaphor. Famous herbalist of the Western tradition include
Avicenna (Persian),
Galen
Aelius Galenus or Claudius Galenus ( el, Κλαύδιος Γαληνός; September 129 – c. AD 216), often Anglicized as Galen () or Galen of Pergamon, was a Greek physician, surgeon and philosopher in the Roman Empire. Considered to be one ...
(Roman),
Paracelsus (German Swiss),
Culpepper (English) and the botanically inclined Eclectic physicians of 19th century/early 20th century America (
John Milton Scudder
John Milton Scudder (September 8, 1829 – February 17, 1894) was an American physician and practitioner of eclectic medicine. He was a Swedenborgian by faith.
Career
Scudder came to medicine late in life after losing three children to medical c ...
,
Harvey Wickes Felter
Harvey Wickes Felter (1865–1927) was an eclectic medicine doctor and author of ''Eclectic Materia Medica''. He was co-author, with John Uri Lloyd, of '' King's American Dispensatory''.
Works
* ''Biographies of John King, Andrew Jackson Howe, ...
,
John Uri Lloyd
John Uri Lloyd (April 19, 1849 – April 9, 1936) was an American pharmacist and leader of the eclectic medicine movement who was influential in the development of pharmacognosy, ethnobotany, economic botany, and herbalism.Michael A. Flannery, ' ...
). Modern pharmaceuticals had their origins in crude herbal medicines, and to this day, some drugs are still extracted as fractionate/isolate compounds from raw herbs and then purified to meet pharmaceutical standards.
There is a record dated 1226 for '12d for Roses for Baron's Chamber and in 1516 for flowers and rushes for chambers for henry the 9th
Certain herbs contain psychoactive properties that have been used for both religious and recreational purposes by humans since the early
Holocene
The Holocene ( ) is the current geological epoch. It began approximately 11,650 cal years Before Present (), after the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene togeth ...
era, notably the leaves and extracts of the
cannabis
''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: '' Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternative ...
and
coca
Coca is any of the four cultivated plants in the family Erythroxylaceae, native to western South America. Coca is known worldwide for its psychoactive alkaloid, cocaine.
The plant is grown as a cash crop in the Argentine Northwest, Bolivia, ...
plants. The leaves of the coca plant have been chewed by people in northern
Peru
, image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg
, image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg
, other_symbol = Great Seal of the State
, other_symbol_type = National seal
, national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...
vian societies for over 8,000 years, while the use of cannabis as a psychoactive substance dates back to the first century CE in
China and northern
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
.
Indigenous Australian
Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...
peoples developed "
bush medicine" based on plants that were readily available to them. The isolation of these groups meant the remedies developed were for far less serious diseases than the western illnesses they contracted during colonisation. Herbs such as
river mint
The River Mint is a river in Cumbria, England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the ...
,
wattle and
eucalyptus
''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of over seven hundred species of flowering trees, shrubs or mallees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalypteae, including '' Corymbia'', they are commonly known as e ...
were used for coughs, diarrhea, fever and headaches.
Ritual
![Balsamodendron ehrenbergianum00](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d5/Balsamodendron_ehrenbergianum00.jpg)
Herbs are used in many
religion
Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...
s. During the monastic era, monks would cultivate herbs alongside vegetables, while others would be set aside in a
physic garden
A physic garden is a type of herb garden with medicinal plants. Botanical gardens developed from them.
History
Modern botanical gardens were preceded by medieval physic gardens, often monastic gardens, that existed by 800 at least. Gardens of ...
for specific purposes. For example,
myrrh (''Commiphora myrrha'') and
frankincense (''Boswellia'' species) in
Hellenistic religion, the
nine herbs charm
The "Nine Herbs Charm" is an Old English charm recorded in the tenth-century CEGordon (1962:92–93). Anglo-Saxon medical compilation known as ''Lacnunga'', which survives on the manuscript, Harley MS 585, in the British Library, at London.Macleo ...
in
Anglo-Saxon paganism
Anglo-Saxon paganism, sometimes termed Anglo-Saxon heathenism, Anglo-Saxon pre-Christian religion, or Anglo-Saxon traditional religion, refers to the religious beliefs and practices followed by the Anglo-Saxons between the 5th and 8th centurie ...
,
neem
''Azadirachta indica'', commonly known as neem, nimtree or Indian lilac, is a tree in the mahogany family Meliaceae. It is one of two species in the genus '' Azadirachta'', and is native to the Indian subcontinent and most of the countries in Afr ...
(''Azadirachta indica'') leaves,
bael Bael may refer to:
*''Aegle marmelos'', commonly known as the Bael tree
*Bael (demon)
* Bael (wrestler)
See also
* Baal (disambiguation)
* Bail (disambiguation)
Bail is the conditional release of an arrested person prior to their trial, or the mo ...
(''Aegele marmelos'') leaves, holy basil or ''tulsi'' (''
Ocimum tenuiflorum
''Ocimum tenuiflorum'', commonly known as holy basil, ''tulsi'' or ''tulasi'', is an aromatic perennial plant in the family Lamiaceae. It is native to the Indian subcontinent and widespread as a cultivated plant throughout the Southeast Asian ...
''),
turmeric
Turmeric () is a flowering plant, ''Curcuma longa'' (), of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae, the rhizomes of which are used in cooking. The plant is a perennial, rhizomatous, herbaceous plant native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast ...
or "haldi" (''Curcuma longa''),
cannabis
''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: '' Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternative ...
in
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
, and
white sage
''Salvia apiana'', the white sage, bee sage, or sacred sage is an evergreen perennial shrub that is native to the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, found mainly in the coastal sage scrub habitat of Southern California and Baja C ...
in
Wicca
Wicca () is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religion categorise it as both a new religious movement and as part of the occultist stream of Western esotericism. It was developed in England during the first half of the 20th century and w ...
.
Rastafari also consider
cannabis
''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: '' Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternative ...
to be a holy plant.
Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive region, geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a ...
n
shaman
Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spir ...
s also used herbs for spiritual purposes. Plants may be used to induce spiritual experiences for rites of passage, such as
vision quest
A vision quest is a rite of passage in some Native American cultures. It is usually only undertaken by young males entering adulthood.
Individual Indigenous cultures have their own names for their rites of passage. "Vision quest" is an English ...
s in some
Native American cultures. The
Cherokee
The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, t ...
Native Americans use both
white sage
''Salvia apiana'', the white sage, bee sage, or sacred sage is an evergreen perennial shrub that is native to the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, found mainly in the coastal sage scrub habitat of Southern California and Baja C ...
and
cedar
Cedar may refer to:
Trees and plants
*''Cedrus'', common English name cedar, an Old-World genus of coniferous trees in the plant family Pinaceae
*Cedar (plant), a list of trees and plants known as cedar
Places United States
* Cedar, Arizona
* ...
for spiritual cleansing and
smudging
Smudging, or other rites involving the burning of sacred herbs (e.g., white sage) or resins, is a ceremony practiced by some Indigenous peoples of the Americas. While it bears some resemblance to other ceremonies and rituals involving smoke (e. ...
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Cosmetics
Originally there was always doubt in ancient societies, especially in the sceptical medium of western traditions, as to the efficacity of herbal medicines. The use of
herbal cosmetics dates back to around six centuries ago in the European and Western countries. Mixtures and pastes were often concocted to whiten the face. During the 1940s, herbal cosmetics took a turn with the emerging red lipstick color, with every year gaining a more intense red. Herbal cosmetics come in many forms, such as face creams, scrubs, lipstick, natural fragrances, powders, body oils, deodorants and sunscreens. They activate through the epithelium of sebaceous glands to make the skin more supple. Ayurvedic oils are widely used in India, prized for their natural health-giving properties.
One method and perhaps the best, used to extract natural oils from herbs to make lipstick is
partition chromatography Partition chromatography theory and practice was introduced through the work and publications of Archer Martin and Richard Laurence Millington Synge during the 1940s. They would later receive the 1952 Nobel Prize in Chemistry "for their invention ...
. The process involves separation in watery solution, and then the injection of colour under pressure.
Other
Strewing herbs are scattered (strewn) over the floors of dwelling places and other buildings. Such plants usually have fragrant or astringent smells, and many also serve as insecticides (e.g. to repel fleas) or disinfectants. For example,
meadowsweet (''Filipendula ulmaria'') was sometimes strewn across floors in the middle ages because of its sweet smell.
See also
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Apothecary
''Apothecary'' () is a mostly archaic term for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses '' materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons, and patients. The modern chemist (British English) or pharmacist (British and North Amer ...
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Herb chopper
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Herb farm
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Outline of herbs and spices
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to herbs and spices:
What type of things are herbs and spices?
Herbs – leaves, flowers, or stems used for food, flavoring, medicine, or fragrances. Herbs are typically va ...
References
External links
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§ 182.10 Spices and other natural seasonings and flavorings that are generally recognized as safe, US Code of Federal Regulations
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Food and drink decorations