CULINARY HERBS ^J 



Uses. — Occasionally the leaves and young shoots 

 are eaten either cooked or as an ingredient in salads. 

 The roots, too, have been esteemed in some 

 countries, even more highly than the parsnip, which, 

 however, largely because of its size, has supplanted 

 it for this purpose. But the seeds are the impor- 

 tant part. They find popular use in bread, cheese, 

 liquors, salads, sauces, soups, candy, and especially 

 in seed cakes, cookies and comfits. The colorless or 

 pale yellow essential oil distilled with water from 

 the seeds, which contain between 5% and 73^% of 

 it, has the characteristic flavor and odor of the fruit. 

 It is extensively employed in the manufacture of 

 toilet articles, such as perfumery, and especially 

 soaps. 



Catnip, or cat mint (Ncpcta cataria, Linn.), a pe- 

 rennial herb of the natural order Labiatse. The popu- 

 lar name is in allusion to the attraction the plant has 

 for cats. They not only eat it, but rub them- 

 selves upon it purring with delight. The generic 

 name is derived from the Etrurian city Neptic, in the 

 neighborhood of which various species of the genus 

 formerly became prominent. 



Like several of its relatives catnip is a well-known 

 weed. It has become naturalized in America, and 

 is most frequently observed in dry, waste places, 

 especially in the East, though it is also often found 

 in gardens and around dwellings throughout the 

 United States and Canada. 



Description. — Its erect, square, branching stems, 

 from 18 to 36 inches tall, bear notched oval or heart- 

 shaped leaves, whitish below, and during late sum- 



