The Earthwise Herbal, Volume I: A Complete Guide to Old World Medicinal Plants [Paperback]

Noted herbalist Matthew Wood brings twenty-five years of clinical experience to this comprehensive book on medicinal plants. The first in a two-volume set,The Earthwise Herbalprofiles Old World plants (volume two will treat American plants). Organized alphabetically, the book encompasses all of the major—and many of the secondary—herbs of traditional and modern Western herbalism. Author Wood describes characteristic symptoms and conditions in which each plant has proved useful in the clinic, often illustrated with appropriate case histories. In addition, he takes a historical view based on his extensive study of ancient and traditional herbal literature. Written in an easy, engaging, non-technical style,The Earthwise Herbaloffers insight into the “logic” of the plant: how it works, in what areas of the body it works, how it has been used in the past, what its pharmacological constituents indicate about its use, and how all these different factors hang together to produce a portrait of the plant as a whole entity. Ideal for beginners, serious students, or advanced practitioners,The Earthwise Herbalis also useful for homeopaths and flower essence practitioners as it bridges these fields in its treatment of herbal medicines.Introduction ix
Herbalism and Holism xi
Reductionism and Holism xiv
Different Kinds of Holism xvii
Energetics xix

PART I
The Practice of Traditional Herbal Medicine 1
CHAPTER ONE - Energetics of Traditional Medicine 2
Greek Medicine 2
Ayurvedic Medicine 7
Traditional Chinese Medicine 9
Alchemical Medicine 13
Physiomedicalism 17
Integration: Pharmacology, Taste, and Energetics 20
CHAPTER TWO - Herbal Actions 23
Modern Actions 25
CHAPTER THREE - Putting It All Together: The Art of Herbal Practice 29
“A Key to Galen’s Method of Physick” 30
CHAPTER FOUR - Preparation and Dosage 35
Preparation 35
Dosage 38

PART II
Materls&