The exclusion of a few others requires brief explanation, for they are often found in recipes and the herb gardener may wonder why they are not discussed in detail like the admitted forty. The reasons for their exclusion are the following:

Bay (Laurus nobilis). A subtropical tree, the unadulterated leaves of which are readily available.

Carnation (Dianthus caryophyllus). A plant, which for proper growth needs several months in a greenhouse.

Strawberries (Fragaria). A garden fruit, unless you collect the smaller and tastier varieties from the wild.

Violet (Viola odorata). The florist's violet, the only one of value as a flavor, needs special conditions and a hotbed or greenhouse.

Watercress (Nasturtium officinale). Can only be grown by those having cool spring or brook water; also, it is available fresh, throughout the year, from markets.

The exclusion of many others will bring a pang to some, but because a desperately tried lady made tea out of New Jersey tea (Ceanothus americanus) during the Revolution or that the Mormons made Mormon-tea from an Ephedra is no reason for cluttering up the modern herb garden with either plant. Scores of such plants have had to be excluded, hoping thereby to make this book of real use to those who want a list of real culinary herbs.

Perennial herbs will not usually flower from seeds the first year, so you must plan well ahead if you grow your own perennials. Many will prefer to start with well-rooted clumps and this, of course, is far easier-and more expensive. Which- ever procedure you follow it will often be necessary to seek the seeds or plants of these herbs outside the regular seedsman or nurseryman. Specialists in herbs will be found in the list at Chapter One.

Balm (Melissa officinalis) Mint Family (Labiatae)

This lemon-scented herb from southern Europe smells so like the citrus fruit that it is often called Lemon Balm. It will become a bushy, crinkly-leaved plant, 1-2 feet high in a year or two, but makes only a few leaves the first year from seed. Space them 16-18 inches apart because they will ultimately need space and, like other perennials, should not be moved unless necessary.

After the first season the tops, including the small, white flower-clusters, may be clipped back several times during the summer, cutting off 3-5 inches of the top each time and drying* them quickly. When the plants get too bushy and crowded, they should be dug up and divided into smaller clumps for replanting, which ought not to be necessary more than once in three or four years.