Jean M. Roberts : The Book's Delight

  "By late summer, the garden begins to whisper a different language. The flowers fade, the seeds harden, and beneath the green leaves the roots begin gathering their strength." There is something melancholy about late summer. The days are still warm, but the light has changed. The evenings arrive sooner. Goldenrod glows beside the road. Elderberries darken in the hedges. Seeds cling to dried flower heads, waiting for autumn winds to carry them away. For the medieval herbalist, this was not simply the end of summer. It was a time of gathering. The frantic abundance of spring had passed, and the wise woman began looking for the plants that would carry her household through the darker months. Some of these herbs are familiar. Others have almost disappeared from our modern medicine cabinets. And those forgotten plants are the ones I find most fascinating. Agrimony — The Little Herb of the Hedgerow Agrimony ( Agrimonia eupatoria ) doesn't demand att...