What is an herb?
Last week, I was researching one of my favorite cottage garden flowers, the bachelor’s button or cornflower, for an article on Hub Pages. I found many references to it as an herb. I’ve never heard of it used as an herb. That got me thinking: what is an herb? According to Wikipedia, an herb is […]
Wednesday Fun Fact – Anise
Builders of steam locomotives in Britain incorporated capsules of aniseed oil (anise) into bearings so that the distinctive smell would give warning in case of overheating.
A Case of Mistaken Identity
I was so excited last fall to finally be able to purchase a bay laurel. So excited, in fact, that I didn’t examine the plant closely. I took a closer look when I got it home and realized that something wasn’t right. The label clearly said Laurus nobilis, but the leaves looked too round. Bay […]
Wednesday Fun Fact – Coriander
Coriander (cilantro) was brought to North America in 1670, and was one of the first spices grown by the early settlers.