More Info on HerbsSimilar Undetermined MusicSearch Artistopia
Biography
about|culinary, medicinal, and spiritual herbs|the technical botanical usage|herbaceous plant|other usesIn general use, herbs (pronounced IPAc-en|'|?r|b|s by some U.S. speakers, or IPAc-en|'|h|?r|b|s by other English speakers''Cambridge Advanced Learners' Dictionary & Thesaurus , Cambridge University Press: headword "Herb" http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp? key=36755& dict=CALD& topic=types-of-plant Online versionWells, Professor John, Longman Pronunciation Dictionary , Longman Education, March 2000, ISBN 0-582-36467-1) are any plants "with leaves, seeds, or flowers used for flavoring, food, medicine, or perfume" or parts of "such a plant as used in cooking".Citation |year=2005 |editor-last=McKean |editor-first=Erin |editor-link=Erin McKean |title=The New Oxford American Dictionary |edition=2nd |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-517077-1 (as encorporated into Mac OS X 10.6) (In Botany|botanical use, the term "herb" is employed differently, for any non- woody plant|woody flowering plant , regardless of its flavor, scent or other properties, and thus includes only graminoid|grass-like plants and forb s.)
Herbs have a variety of uses including culinary, medicinal, and in some cases spiritual usage. General usage differs between culinary herbs and medicinal herb s. In medicinal or spiritual use any of the parts of the plant might be considered "herbs", including leaf|leaves , root s, flower s, seed s, resin , root bark, inner bark (and Vascular cambium|cambium ), berry|berries and sometimes the pericarp or other portions of the plant. Culinary use of the term "herb" typically distinguishes between herbs, from the leafy green parts of a plant (either fresh or dried), and spice s, from other parts of the plant (usually dried), including seeds, berries, bark , root and fruit .
Culinary herbs
Culinary herbs are distinguished from vegetable s in that, like spices, they are used in small amounts and provide flavor rather than substance to food .
Many culinary herbs are perennial s such as thyme or lavender , while others are Biennial plant|biennial s such as parsley or Annual plant|annual s like basil . Some perennial herbs are shrub s (such as rosemary , Rosmarinus officinalis ), or tree s (such as bay laurel , Laurus nobilis )& nbsp;– this contrasts with Herbaceous plant|botanical herb s, which by definition cannot be woody plants. Some plants are used as both herbs and spices, such as dill weed and dill seed or coriander leaves and seeds. Also, there are some herbs such as those in the mint family that are used for both culinary and medicinal purposes.
Medicinal herbs
main|Herbalism Plants contain phytochemical s 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 ) or of kava ( Piper methysticum ) 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. One herb-like substance, called Shilajit , may actually help lower blood glucose levels which is especially important for those suffering from diabetes. Herbs have long been used as the basis of traditional Chinese herbal medicine , with usage dating as far back as the first century Common Era|CE cite web |url= http://www.acupuncturehemelhempstead.com/chineseremedies.html|title=Chinese Herbal Medicine |accessdate=2007-12-19 and far before. Medicinal use of herbs in Western cultures has its roots in the Hippocratic (Greek) elemental healing system, based on a quaternary elemental healing metaphor. Famous herbalist of the Western tradition include Avicenna (Persian), Galen (Roman), Paracelsus (German Swiss), Nicholas Culpeper|Culpepper (English) and the botanically inclined Eclectic physicians of 19th century/early 20th century America ( John Milton Scudder , Harvey Wickes Felter , John Uri Lloyd ). Modern pharmaceuticals had their origins in crude herbal medicines, and to this day, many drugs are still extracted as fractionate/isolate compounds from raw herbs and then purified to meet pharmaceutical standards.
Some herbs are used not only for culinary and medicinal purposes, but also for psychoactive and/or recreational purposes; one such herb is cannabis .
Sacred herbs
Main|Sacred herbs Herbs are used in many religion s. For example, myrrh ( Commiphora myrrha ) and frankincense ( Boswellia spp) in Christianity , the Nine Herbs Charm in Anglo-Saxon paganism , the neem tree ( Azadirachta indica ) by the Tamils , holy basil or tulsi ( Ocimum tenuiflorum ) in Hinduism , and many Rastafari movement|Rastafarians consider Cannabis (drug)|cannabis ( Cannabis sp) to be a holy plant. Siberia n Shaman s also used herbs for spiritual purposes. Plants may be used to induce spiritual experiences for rites of passage, such as vision quest s in some Indigenous peoples of the Americas|Native American cultures. The Cherokee Native Americans use Salvia apiana|white sage and Cedar wood|cedar which? |date=July 2010 for spiritual cleansing and Smudge stick|smudging .
