The Sensory Herbal Handbook 

An absolutely amazing book. I love herbs and this is one of the better herbal books that I have read or own. Simple to read and understand it's a book to treasure and use over and over again.

Herbs have been sourced as a form of therapeutic healing by humans for thousands of years by different cultures and countries, such as China and India with their respective Chinese and Ayurvedic herbal medicine.

Fiona Heckels and Karen Lawton, are the names behind The Seed Sistas, they are herbal medicine specialists and political-eco activists from the UK. With over two decades of clinical and teaching experience, they impart their knowledge to their students and readers. The Seed Sistas are strong advocates of native plant medicine for holistic healing and have initiated the introduction of community native medicine gardens.

The Seed Sistas provide foundational knowledge about Sensory Herbalism that is based on Western Herbal medicine tradition and explain how this differs from Modern Western Herbal medicine. They also teach the basic tools of sensory herbalism such as observation and interpretation, to optimise the reader’s interaction with nature.

Heckel and Lawton’s book is essentially a guide to help herbal medicine enthusiasts and novices learn how to harmoniously co-exist with nature in accordance to the four seasons and the elements of nature such as earth and water. They aim to teach the reader to understand the powerful abilities of medicinal plants in assisting an individual to improve physical and mental wellbeing by attaining homeostasis.

For people who appreciate the New Age culture there is a component of their book that has a discourse on paganism in relation to nature and healing.

Beautiful photographic images of nature and illustrations by Belle Benfield, elegantly accompanies the poetic and creative style of their well written and easy to read prose.

Heckel and Lawton conclude by imploring the reader to share their new found knowledge of herbs with others and to make well informed decisions about their health. The Sensory Herbal Handbook is recommended for herbal medicine students or individuals who are curious to learn more about the healing properties of medicinal plants.

I am so happy to be able to read such a great book about herbs and their uses. Having a mother who used herbs, plants and holistic medicine throughout my childhood is something that I have always remembered and still use today. This book explains how to use herbs for health and well-being. It is for the experienced and the novice. Using the plants that are growing in your area is a great way to know what you have and what's it is used for. The herbs can be used for mental and physical illnesses. The seasons are an important part of using herbs. My mother made sure that we had a certain plant to eat during the spring. The greens tasted good and she used it to " build our blood up for the coming year". I can't stress enough how great this book is. Having it on your bookshelf for a resource is a must. Just make sure you know what plants you are harvesting are to be sure they are not poison and that they are edible. Many herbs that are inedible can be used for any other purposes. Thanks to the Seed Sisters for all the information. I'm a nurse and I find this book timely and very interesting. I will be buying several copies for friends when it comes out. I received this book from Net Galley and Watkins Publishing for a honest review. I voluntarily read this book.

This is a lovely book with great illustrations. It takes a very experiential approach to helping the reader learn about herbs. Perhaps a little too experiential for me - it had never occurred to me to give a plant personality characteristics; write a poem about it; ascribe it an element or a zodiac sign to it. These many layers and this level of exploration does mean that the herbs and their uses are remembered. More importantly it has practical recipes and advice: I am drinking a plantain, nettle and elderflower tea for my hay fever as I write this.

The Sensory Herbal Handbook is a passionate and experiential guide to a number of herbs that can be found in wild in the UK or grown within your own garden. These range from the popular rosemary to spicy horseradish to magical elder, with more besides. The authors apply a sensory approach to working with herbs — that is, using all of our senses to experience these plants and their wild medicines — along with some more magical influences (e.g. elemental correspondences and zodiac signs).

As both a witch and a flower essence practitioner, I both applaud and enjoy this approach, and feel it to be more well-rounded and holistic than just simply botanical or magical outlooks; by combining all the different ways we can work with our green allies, the Seed Sistas give us a completely approachable and unique guide to exploring and interacting with Nature. he science behind plants and human anatomy is fascinating and we are also given folklore, health benefits, rituals, poems, and recipes. The reader is encouraged to explore herbs and other plants with all their senses, and the inclusion of additional resources and a comprehensive index round off this book.

I received an e-ARC from the publisher, Watkins, through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I have only touched the surface of this book and love it. I am training to be a herbalist and this book will help me to develop my knowledge and understanding of herbs and their use in health and well-being. The book continues all types of things including theory, identification of plants, poems, rituals and recipes. This is a book I can see me buying a hard copy of to keep to hand.