The Herb Society of America Great Lakes District

The Herb Society ofNewsletter America is dedicated to promoting the knowledge, use and delight of herbs through educational programs, research and sharing the experience of its members with the community.

Linda Wells, HSA Great Lakes District Spring 2011

Membership Delegate Message: First a howling blizzard woke us, Then the rain came down to soak us, And now before the eye can focus - Crocus. ~Lilja Rogers

Spring is coming, even for those of us still not beyond winter’s reach. My Spring Beauties are blooming and that, for me is hope in a bud.

Fast forward to June & the HSA Educational Conference and Annual Meeting in Pittsburgh, June 23-25, 2011. The theme of Ed Con this year is Building Herbal Bridges. For those of us who were in Pittsburgh some years ago, we know it will be another horticultural delight. The call is on the HSA website, check it out and plan to attend. W. PA Unit Chairman Ella Gibson has included a few enticing tidbits about what’s in store for us in Pittsburgh in her report for this issue.

There will not be a Great Lakes District Gathering this summer because the Educational Conference and Annual Meeting

1 is in our district. Our next Great Lakes District Gathering will be August 3-4, 2012 in the metro-Detroit area. We will meet at the VistaTech Center of Schoolcraft College in Livonia MI.

There are some items of interest for you:  The Festival of Flavor and Fragrance will be moved to the opening reception of the Educational Conference and Annual Meeting.  The HSA Calendar project is in the works. Contest entry details are on the HSA website under ―What’s New.‖  HSA Headquarters pathway bricks are for sale on the HSA website under the ―Support‖ tab.  Hot news from HSA Headquarters: The USPS will be issuing .29 Herbal Stamps on April 7, 2011 at the American Stamp Dealers Association. Here’s the link to order the stamps- https://shop.usps.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10 052&productId=10007334&langId=-1.  HSA’s Green Bridges leader, Kathy Schlosser has passed along another terrific article on maple trees: http://www.sciencedaily.com /releases/2011/03/110330131316.htm.

Great Lakes District Unit Chairmen

Central Ohio Michiana Johanna Knox Deborah Teuteberg 5000 Deer Forest Place 3447 Michael Ln Westerville OH 43081 269.2771492 614.899.1545 [email protected] [email protected] Southern Michigan Delaware County Ohio Carol Czechowski Dody Stanley 2433 Mulberry Sq 4180 S Old State Rd Bloomfield Hills MI 48302 Lewis Center OH 43035 248.332.9824 740.548.7522 [email protected]

Frankenmuth Mid-Michigan Western Pennsylvania Marianne Dafoe Ella Booth Gibson 1895 South Beyer Rd 29 Newgate Rd Saginaw MI 48601 Pittsburgh PA 15202 989.652.8828 412.301.0032 [email protected] [email protected]

Grosse Pointe Western Reserve Sue Ternes Bonnie Porterfield 1380 Oxford Rd 7580 Andover Way Grosse Point Wds Mi 48236 330.650.1533 313.882.8019 Hudson OH 44236 [email protected] [email protected]

2 HSA Headquarters and Member Delegate

The Herb Society of America Great Lakes District Member Delegate 9019 Kirtland Chardon Rd Linda Wells Kirtland OH 44094 588 Cherry Ct 440.256.0514 Birmingham MI 48009 [email protected] H 248.647.1165, C 248.840.9154 [email protected]

News from the Units:

Central Ohio Unit, Susan Liechty reporting Herbs, Honey and Health May 14, 2011 – 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm

Keynote Speaker – Michelle Bommarito will present ―Feeding Your Mind, Body and Spirit‖ using herbs and grains. Michelle is a Food Network Cake Challenge winner and graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education and is accredited in Culinary Arts. She travels extensively for her presentations and demonstrations.

Dawn Combs of Mockingbird Meadows will speak on the health benefits of honey and other bee products, produced at her farm in Marysville, Ohio. Dawn is a Community Herbalist and artisanal honey producer.

Registration: $20.00 - Includes: Light snacks and beverages, vendors and raffle. Pre-registration is required - Limited seating available

Held at: Copper Lodge (FOP bldg) 6800 Schrock Hill Ct. (close to Schrock Rd & Cleveland Ave) Columbus, OH 43229

Hosted by: *Central Ohio Unit of The Herb Society of America *Delaware County Unit of The Herb Society of America *The Fairfield Herb Society *Gahanna Herb Society *Gardens at Gantz Farm Volunteers *Herb Thyme *Licking County Herb Society

Contact Susan Liechty at 740-524-0200 or Mary Lewis at 614-837-5177 or [email protected] for further details and registration form.

Frankenmuth Mid-Michigan Unit, Marianne Dafoe The Frankenmuth Mid-Michigan Unit has a busy Spring/Summer planned. We participated in the Michigan Herb Associates Conference at Michigan State University, offering our selection of new and used books for sale.

The Unit will be hosting our annual luncheon in April. Once again the event has sold out. Our speaker is Chef Nick Seccia and the focus ―From Field to Fork‖.

3 In May and June we will again set up at the Frankenmuth Farmers Market and pass out free lettuce seeds and ideas for making your own herbal vinaigrettes, as well as information on our Unit and The Herb Society of America.

The summer will find us tending our garden at the Frankenmuth Historical Museum, attending the HSA Ed-Con, and visiting member’s gardens.

In our monthly meetings we will be exploring the Herb of the year horseradish, herbal honeys, and herbal teas.

We welcome any members at large who would like to join us for any of our meetings. Our unit newsletter is on the HSA website and provides information on our unit happenings. Frankenmuth/Mid-Michigan Unit chairman

Grosse Pointe Unit, Sue Ternes Since my last letter we have had a very successful November Herb and Holly Boutique Sale. Also, after months of meetings at my home we finally got the new By-laws finished and passed. The old ones were dated 1990 so it was about time.

We are preparing now for our May Herb Sale. The plants are being ordered and workshops organized. This will be a 2-day event with pre-sales taken and orders to be picked up during the sale. This is a lot of work getting all those flats into the building and arranged on tables. Last year we invited some children to help and will probably again this year. The sale is always the Friday and Saturday of Mother's Day weekend.

Soon we will be preparing The War Memorial Gardens for planting. Since they are herbal many perennials will need to be cut back. The gardens around us are so beautiful with flowers; it really gives us a challenge to compete with color. In July and August we will get together for a garden cleanup or a little trip. In September we continue with Fall plans including one which will star "HORSERADISH''

Western Pennsylvania Unit, Ella Booth Gibson As you probably know by now, if you have visited Headquarters' website (http:/www.herbsociety.org) our Unit is hosting the 2011 Herb Society of America Educational Conference and Meeting of Members, Pittsburgh, PA, June 23-25, 2011: "Building Herbal Bridges" (we have a lot of bridges in Pittsburgh). Please visit the website to view the fantastic venues and programs on our agenda. We have been busy as bees organizing and fine-tuning all of the necessary details so that you can look forward to having a wonderful time in the Great City of Pittsburgh. If you have not visited Pittsburgh and our environs recently, you will be in for great and green surprises!

When we learned that horseradish (Armoracia rusticana) was the "Herb of the Year", we were really challenged as to how to present this herb to entice us to grow and to use horseradish. Our Horticulture/Botany Committee kicked off the "Herb of the Year" at our February Unit meeting with presentations to educate us on the description of the species, varieties, forms, cultivars, history, cultivation, harvesting, culinary uses, sources of seeds and/or plants, and medicinal uses (with a disclaimer). At lunchtime we sampled some food, which had been prepared with horseradish. Not only did we learn a lot about horseradish and the presentations enticed us to grow it and taste it using the

4 horseradish recipes, which are in a book we will have at our Marketplace at Ed Con. Our brains were informed and our palates were stimulated. We hope to include you in our horseradish adventure. Be sure to stop by our Marketplace at Ed Con!

Our programs through June 2011 include: Nature Printing; Creative Flower Arrangements; Work Day in the Elizabethan Garden at Phipps Garden Center in Shadyside; Work Day at Old Economy Village Garden in Ambridge (both of these gardens are on our list of tours for Ed Con, among many others); The Kathryn Giarratani Memorial Scholarship Tea; Celebration of National Herb Day with our Annual Plant Sale; a visit to Historic Washington, Pennsylvania to tour the Historic Bradford House and Lemoyne House and Gardens, and last but certainly not the least, The HSA Educational Conference & Annual Meeting, June 23- 25. We have great hard-working committees to organize and implement these events.

All of our members are involved in some manner for planning and implementing The Educational Conference & Annual Meeting. We are so grateful to have Deborah Winter, a member of our Unit, as Chair of the Ed Con Committee. She is a "mover and shaker" and is moving and shaking us to make sure that you will be entertained in the most welcoming manner. We are honored to host this Conference and are looking forward to your involvement in "Building Herbal Bridges".

Western Reserve Unit, Bonnie Porterfield In spite of our very ―wintery winter‖, we continue to learn and be entertained with wonderful programs at our monthly Unit meetings as well as our Horticulture and Culinary meetings. We are however ready to garden again! We are having our Garden Kick off meeting on March 30th and we will be working in our garden, located at the Cleveland Botanical Garden in Cleveland, as soon as the weather allows. If your summer travel plans include passing through Cleveland, take some time to visit our beautiful herb garden and enjoy the fruits of our labor.

Working in our garden goes hand in hand with harvesting our herbs for our Fall Herb Fair. Plans are already in motion for our Fair held at the Cleveland Botanical Garden on Oct. 8, 2011. Each year, the proceeds from our Fair go to maintaining our garden and to scholarships.

We will again be part of the Ask the Gardener Series at the Botanical Garden on June 25 and we will be speaking at their RIPE Festival on Sept. 23-25.

Our website has been up and running for a year now and we invite you to visit us at www.westernreserveherbsociety.org

Good Reads: The first article appeared in the latest edition of the Green Bridges newsletter of HSA. These colorful little birds are native only to Europe and northern Africa. Thanks to Jean Daniels and Kathy Schlosser for this charming and informative read.

Horseradish is the Herb of the Year and I offer a little bit of historical use and humor. For Jews, horseradish is a bitter herb of Passover, & is on the Seder plate as a symbol of the enslavement in Egypt.

Blue Tits Embrace Aromatherapy Matt Walker, Editor, BBC Earth News

5 August 14, 2009

Blue tits use medicinal plants to disinfect their nests, scientists have discovered. The birds line their nests with aromatic plants such as mint or lavender, which kill bacteria.

That creates a more sterile environment for chicks, which in turn grow faster and have a better chance of survival.

However, individual blue tits are quite picky about which plants they use, and it is not clear how they pass their knowledge on to other birds.

A number of European bird species add aromatic plants to their nests. Starlings for instance, usually bring back aromatic plants as part of courtship display designed to attract females. But they stop doing so as soon as the female lays her eggs, suggesting the plants are for display only. On Corsica, blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) also incorporate fresh fragments of aromatic plants including lavender, mint and curry plants into their nests.

We hypothesized that aromatic plants used by blue tits had some anti-parasite properties, because most of these plants, or close species of the same genus are traditional Mediterranean plants with well-known medicinal properties,‖ says Adele Mennarat, a biologist now at the University of Bergin in Norway.

Germ Killer: Mennarat and colleagues from France’s National Centre of Scientific Research based in Montpellier, and the University of Toulouse initially tested whether these plants deterred blow fly larvae that commonly live in tit nests and feed on chicks’ blood, significantly damaging their health.

―Despite repeated attempts we could never find any effect of these plants on blow fly infestation,‖ Mennarat says.

―So we tested the effects of these plants on the bacteria living on birds.‖ The researchers describe their results in the journal of Occologia.

They found that aromatic plants, including Lavender (lavendula stoechas), apple mint (Mentha suaveolens), the curry plant (Helichrysum itlaicum) and Achillea ligustica significantly change the composition of bacterial communities living on blue tit nestlings.

―They reduce the number of different bacterial species, and the total number of bacteria, especially on chicks that are most vulnerable because they are both highly infested by blow fly larvae and carry great amounts of bacteria on their skin,‖ says Mennarat.

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It is unclear exactly how volatile compounds produced by the aromatic plants kill the bacteria.

But, the blue tit chicks living in nests adorned with aromatic plants grew faster and had a higher proportion of red blood cells, which is known to be a strong indicator of a chick’s future chances of survival after fledging.

Mennarat cannot yet be sure but she suspects that living in a disinfected nest enables the chicks to allocate less energy to their immune systems and more to growing physically.

Much remains to be explained, however. No other bird has yet been shown to use aromatherapy in the same way, while related species such as the great tit or coal tit do not even decorate their nests with such plants. So it is unclear how the behaviour originated in blue tits.

Different birds prefer different aromatics regardless of their local availability, the researchers found.

―One of the most unexpected findings we got was that the female blue tits display individual preferences in their use of aromatic plant species,‖ says Mennarat.

―For example, in a territory with big bushes of lavender, for some reason blue tits at this site still collect mint that can only be found far away from their nests. We still don’t know why and how blue tits have such individual preferences.

The researchers are also keen to discover how these personal aromatic preferences are passed on between birds. Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8199000/8199726.stm

The Horseradish Chronicles: The Pain of chrain Michael Arnold Glueck

So the Hebrew School teacher asks little Johnny: "What is the meaning of most Jewish holidays?"

Replies little Johnny: "They tried to kill us. We won. Let's eat."

7 Little Johnny had a point. Most Jewish holidays celebrate deliverance of one kind or another, and most have special foods associated with them. Purim, for example. Evil Haman tried to kill us, so now we eat "Hamentaschen," little cakes shaped like the three-cornered hat he wore until Queen Esther and Uncle Mordechai arranged a terminal neck-stretch on the gallows he'd built for the Jews. Or Chanukah, which commemorates victory over the Syrian King Antiochus at Jerusalem. We eat "Latkes" thin little potato pancakes symbolizing how the Maccabees whipped, pureed, pounded, flattened into little bite-size pieces, and then fried the Hellenes. Or something like that.

I love the horseradish, the "Mahror," the uncut, super-strong variety put out at Passover to symbolize the bitterness of slavery.

Now, the horseradish is a noble root. But like any other mild addiction, it can be worrisome. And not everybody understands when I explain that an item meant to symbolize bondage is also my favorite comfort food. So, in a blatant attempt at self-reassurance, I decided to do some research.

According to "Horseradish Trivia," over the past few millennia, this plant has been used as an aphrodisiac (a matter I pass over in silence), a treatment for rheumatism and lower back pain, and a kind of cough syrup. The Egyptians knew from horseradish. So did the Greeks.

In "The Root Queen's Guide to Horseradish," Judy McCann informs us that the word first appeared in English print in 1597, in a medicinal guide to herbs. The original word may have been "harsh radish," the word "radish" deriving from the Latin "radix," meaning "root." It also goes well with chicken, brisket, and roast beef.

A noble root indeed; But I was still uneasy. So I got in touch with Dr. Phil. Not the TV potentate, but Dr. Phil Gold, a Seattle-based historian and writer.

Not to worry, said Dr. Phil. Horseradish goes deep in Jewish history. Although the Hebrew word is "Mahror," meaning "bitter," the Yiddish term is "chrain." This word is actually Sephardic in origin, and goes back to the Spanish Inquisition, when roving gangs sought out secret Jews who were surreptitiously celebrating Passover. It being too dangerous to bake matzohs, these Spanish Jews emphasized horseradish, because it was easy to dispose of when the bad guys knocked on the door. Hence the proverb: "The chrain in Spain goes mainly down the drain."

Dr. Phil also related an incident from his childhood. As the first-born son of his family, he was expected to fast all day before the Seder, in gratitude that when the Angel of Death slew all the first-born in Egypt the Israelites were passed-over. Not wishing to pass up the delicacies in his high school cafeteria, he adopted a common alternative. Go to the synagogue before dawn, pray with the old men, study with them a bit then symbolically break your fast with the only item more prohibited during Passover than leavened bread. Source: http://www.jewishworldreview.com

8 Recipe: Ignoring my promise about recipes, I couldn’t resist this one which I’ve had served to me at a restaurant in Hamtramck MI, once the largest Polish speaking city in the world thanks to the Dodge brothers who built Dodge Main in 1914 encouraging thousands of Poles and other eastern Europeans to emigrate to southeastern Michigan.

Horseradish Soup

Easter is one of the major religious feasts during the year in Poland. All Easter meals contain lots of eggs, ham, vegetable or potato salad and horseradish sauce. In Silesia (southwestern Poland) one of the most popular dishes is horseradish soup.

2-3 roots of horseradish, 3½ cups grated 2eggs 1 ham hock ¼ lb smoked Polish kielbasa cut into ¼‖ slices 7 cups water Garnish: Two coarsely chopped hard-boiled 2 cups milk eggs and fresh dill. 2 tablespoons flour

Peel horseradish and cut into ¾ ― pieces. Grate finely in blender or food processor with a little water or vinegar.

Simmer a ham hock in 7 cups of water for 1 hour. Reserve the cooking water. Remove ham hock from the pot, cool and separate the meat from fat, bone and gristle. Break meat into bite sized pieces & discard the fat, bone and gristle. Cool the cooking water overnight to make for easy skimming of the fat, which will rise to the surface along with other impurities. Skim off fat and proceed.

Bring the defatted hock cooking liquid to a boil and add grated horseradish. Boil one minute. Lightly beat 2 eggs, add 2 cups of milk and 2 tablespoons of flour, whisking until smooth. Remove pan from heat and slowly add egg mixture to soup stirring vigorously to avoid lumps. Bring to a gentle boil and cook for four minutes to thicken soup, strain the soup and discard horseradish.

Return soup to pot and add the sliced Polish kielbasa and ham to the soup. Heat through and ladle into bowls. Garnish with coarsely chopped hard-boiled egg and dill.

9 Herbs & Weeds: Pulling Garlic Mustard

Garlic mustard, Alliaria petiolata is a highly invasive noxious weed that is threatening our native habitats and cultivated gardens.

Pull plants starting in late winter as soon as the earth is warm enough to allow pulling the whole plant and long root system. Dispose of in a sealed plastic garbage bags, not as yard waste.

Visit the topic: Garlic mustard, Alliaria petiolata at http://greatlakesgardeners.com/community/ for information on identifying and controlling Garlic mustard.

The Herb Society of America, Inc. Board of Directors – Board Highlights February 25-27, 2011 By Webinar Approved 3-2-11

Activities  Met by Webinar for the first time  The president and executive director conducted a board orientation and training session for new board members with the entire board present  The president presented the results of the executive director’s end-of-year performance review; the board happily continued Katrinka Morgan as executive director  Accepted with regret the resignation of Susan Schumann-Skehan as membership chair  Updated operating manual documents to appropriately correct the committee names for the native herb conservation committee and the educational program committee

Status of Motions before the Board  Appointed Diane Poston to complete the membership chair’s unfinished term through June 30, 2013 and welcomed her to the board  Approved 3rd quarter financial reports  Approved an FY12 budget

10  Approved a new financial procedures document for the operating manual  Approved a new procedure for presenting the proceedings of the annual meeting to members— the entire proceedings will be posted on the Web site and an excerpted record of the business portion will be presented for a vote at the annual meeting

Communications  The Herbarist committee has reviewed articles for the 2011 issue of The Herbarist  ―Horseradish Tales‖ is posted on the Web site in ―Members Only‖; will continue to accept additional anecdotes throughout the year of the horseradish (2011)

Development/Finance  Reviewed the status of the annual appeal; continue to accept contributions through March 31st o Presented a direct-appeal letter to units  Discussed budget purpose, philosophy and ways to share HSA’s financial information with members  Reviewed audit report and Form 990 and posted them on the Web site  Reviewed the proportion of HSA dues that can be claimed as a tax exemption - $37.50  Proposed a list and schedule for revenue-enhancing projects  Sales of bricks for the herbal pathways project continue. Members can download the order form, view a proposed design for the pathways and view a list of bricks purchased to date by clicking on the ―Support‖ tab on the Web site

Web site  Donations to HSA can now be securely made online  Forms and information for the calendar contest are available online

Education

 All of the grants committees have received applicants o Received 33 applications for Donald Samull classroom herb garden grants; awarded nine— four for outdoor gardens; five for indoor. (The names of the schools that received grants are posted on the Web site.)  2011 educational conference o Excitement builds for the 2011 educational conference, June 23-25 in Pittsburgh o The Festival of Fragrance and Flavor will be part of the Thursday opening reception and will debut a newly formatted seed and plant exchange and promising plants display o The Call to Meeting brochure will be arriving soon

Botany and Horticulture  Began review and update of herb fact sheets  The essential guides for the herb of the year and the native herb of the year are in progress

Membership  Reviewed the updated membership brochure  Reinstated the ―Each One Bring One‖ project  HSA welcomes the 135 members who have joined since September 25, 2010; bringing the total number of members to 2498

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Awards/Nominations/Elections  Approved the list of recipients for 2011 awards  Application forms for the West District membership delegate election are available from headquarters or online and will be accepted until April 4th. The delegate’s three-year term begins July 1, 2011.

Administration  Developed a comprehensive disaster and emergency plan for headquarters

Great Lakes District Financials, December 31, 2010 Opening Balance: $9,997.72 Expenses: 396.94 Income: 267.71 Ending Balance: $9,868.49

"A garden is a delight to the eye and a solace for the soul."...Saadi*

“Saadi in a Rose Garden,” from a Mughal manuscript of the Gulistan, ca. 1645

*Abū-Muhammad Musli al-Dīn bin Abdallāh Shīrāzī (1184 – 1283/1291?) was a major Persian poet of the medieval period

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Linda Wells, HSA Great Lakes District Membership Delegate 588 Cherry Ct Birmingham MI 48009

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