large enough to harvest leaves, or in the case of fruit, until the 
seed is ripe enough to gather and dry. 
Plants for kitchen use are best grown in rows or in small beds 
by themselves, and well labelled, as this will avoid confusion in 
seasoning. For some of us avoid the use of hyssop, as we would 
the Plague (or the skunk, of which its fragrance reminds us!), yet 
to the uninitiated the growth and leaves of hyssop may be easily 
anting makes easier cultivating, 
=— 
confused with tarragon. Such p 
also. A safe rule for gathering herbs 1s to harvest when the plant 
is in bud (essential oil is diminished in flowering), and after the 
dew has dried—never on a rainy day. Dry the herbs in the shade 
and store them in tin or air-tight glass containers out of the light. 
An airy yet hot attic is practically perfect for drying most herbs. 
Lacking such, you may dry them in a warm oven or in a kitchen. 
Some may follow the old style of hanging sage, basil, and thyme 
in bunches, from the beams, where they may be quickly and easily 
reached for a pinch or two when the goose needs stuffing, or the 
tomatoes a bit of fragrance, and the clam chowder calls for a hint 
of thyme. 
Whatever use is made of them, herbs should be handled with 
care, for like dynamite, they can prove deadly, in taste at least, if 
not used delicately. Some cooks prefer mixed herbs for seasoning, 
others like to experiment with simple, single flavors at a time. until 
it is found which combinations suit a family’s palate best. Definite 
— 
amounts are therefore usually hard to give in a recipe, but always, 
too little is better than too much. 
CuLtINary Herp List 
1, ALEHoor (Nepeta glechoma or N. hederacea). Field balm 
is another name for this little creeping ivy used as a tonic and to 
flavor ale. Painters have been said to use a “concoction of Ground 
Ivy asa preventive of lead colic.” It is a creeping perennial ground 
cover often found about old farmhouses where it has become 
naturalized. 
2. ANGELICA (Angelica Archangelica). Both the flowering and 
leaf stalks may be cut while still green (in July) for crystallizing 
in syrup for decorative and flavoring use in confections. Angelica 
is used also to flavor gin, Muscatel wines, and liqueurs (e.g., Ver- 
