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The Herb society of America Frankenmuth mid-Michigan unit
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Established 1983 |
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The Herb Society of 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. This is also the mission of the
Frankenmuth Mid-Michigan Unit of HSA
We meet at the Frankenmuth Farmers Market 534 N. Main Street, Frankenmuth, Michigan 1.989.652.9540 |
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Meetings…
You are welcome to come to a meeting to see what we are all about. We meet the second Monday of every month … 6:30 pm at the Frankenmuth Farmers Market 534 N. Main St. Frankenmuth, MI.
December our Annual Christmas Party date and time announced at a later date….
January is our Board Meeting time and date announced at a later day….
We have a program at each meeting. Topics related to the study of herbs/gardens; from history, to propagation, to uses, and beyond.
If you plan on attending please contact:
Susan Traubenkraut
frankenmuthherbsociety@gmail.com |
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Botany & Horticulture ………. Mary Nuechterlein Garden ……………………….. Liz Stearns Library ……………….……… Mary Nuechterlein Newsletter ………………….… Marianne Dafoe Publicity ……………………... Joy Gajewski Membership …………............. Pat Wearmouth Ways & Means ………………. Gloria Rodammer Audrey Palmreuter Bev Bassett Education …………………….. Susan Traubenkraut |
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Chairwoman……………………Cyndy Bellaver Vice Chairwoman………………Gloria Rodammer/ Bev Bassett Treasurer………………………..Marianne Dafoe Recording Secretary…………….Joy Gahewski Corresponding Secretary………..Audrey Palmreuter Historian………………………...Heidi Enge
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Executive Board |
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Standing Committees |
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Monthly Meetings 2024
NO MAY MEETING June 10 July 8 August Membership Tea September 8 October 14 November 11 December Membership Christmas |
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Frankenmuth-Mid Michigan Unit
Unit’s Website www.frankenmuthherbsociety.org
Unit’s Email frankenmuthherbsociety@gmail.com
Our members are available for speaking engagements. Contact person: Susan Traubenkraut 1.989.652.9540 |
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Frankenmuth Historical Museum Frankenmuth Mid-Michigan Herb Garden 613 S. Main Street Frankenmuth, Michigan |
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Meeting Monday, June 10th 6:30pm MSU Saginaw Valley Research Farm 3775 S. Reese Rd, Frankenmuth, MI
Program: Elly Maxwell Entomologist From Dow Gardens Speaking on Pollinators
Hostesses: Susan Traubenkraut Renee Schoenknecht |
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2024 Herb of the Year |
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Home |
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The Herb Society of America Frankenmuth Mid-Michigan Unit April 2024 Volume: XXXVII Issue: VII |
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Chairman's Corner
Wow!
What a fantastic luncheon our unit hosted!
Thank you to everyone who contributed to our incredibly special day, the H.S.A., Frankenmuth Mid-Michigan Unit’s, 40th Herbal Spring Luncheon! Not every unit can say they have hosted 40 years of Herbal Luncheons, let alone quite successfully.
would like to thank everyone for all their hard work. Thinking about our unit and the different contributions each member makes, made me think, “We are all pieces of a puzzle.” In our unit, each member is a unique puzzle piece, and only when we come together does the big picture become clear. We make a superb team.
Now is our time to plan. We need to think ahead if there are certain herbs we would like to harvest, for preparing herb mixes, making herbal jellies, herbal vinegars, or blending herbal teas. Also herbs for crafting pot-pourri, tussie mussies, lavender wands, etc.
But before we get into all of that, relax, put your feet up, grab a cup of tea, and be sure to take time to smell the daffodils, the lilacs, and just dream. Enjoy Springtime!
Always…
Yours in service,
Cyndy
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Dates of Interest
May 17&18, 2024 Southern Michigan Unit Plant Sale at Cranbrook Gardens No May meeting June 10th meeting at MSU Building 6:30pm (info above) |
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RECIPES/HERB OF THE MONTH/GARDEN TIPS Members of unit available for speaking (info & forms below)
Dill and Chive Peas
1 package (16 ounces) frozen peas 1⁄4 cup snipped fresh dill 2 tablespoons minced fresh dill 1 tablespoon butter 1 teaspoon lemon pepper seasoning 1⁄4 teaspoon kosher salt Cook peas according to package directions. Stir in remaining ingredients; serve immediately.
Ukrainian Dill Potatoes 2 pounds small new potatoes 2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more 3 cloves garlic 1⁄4 cup unrefined sunflower oil 1⁄2 cup finely chopped fresh dill tasteofhome.com Measure 2 pounds new potatoes: if they’re about an inch in diameter, leave them whole. If they’re larger, cut into 1- inch chunks, making sure all the potatoes are roughly the same size to ensure even cooking. Place the potatoes in a large pot and add enough water to cover by about 2 inches. Add 2 teaspoons kosher salt, cover, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to low and gently simmer with the lid ajar until the potatoes can be pierced easily with a fork, being careful not to overcook them, 12 to 15 minutes. Meanwhile, finely grate 3 garlic cloves on a microplane or run through a garlic press and place in a small bowl. Add 1⁄4 cup sunflower oil and stir to combine. Finely chop fresh dill until you have 1⁄2 cup. Drain the potatoes and return to the pot. Add the garlic oil, dill, and a pinch of kosher salt. Gently toss to combine. Taste and season with more salt as needed. More Dill recipes on The HSA website under Herb of The Month
From the Desk of Horticulture Chair Mary Nuechterlein More on The Herb of the Year Yarrow Source: Pond, Barbara. A Sampler of Wayside Herbs: Rediscovering Uses For Familiar Wild Plants. Greenwich House (New York), 1974.
Yarrow (Achilles Millefolium), Composite Family; Flowers: white, rarely purplish pink; Blossoms: June to September; Height: 1 to 2 feet. Common yarrow traces its Latin name, Achillea Millefolium, to Greek mythology. Before the siege of Troy the centaur Charon, knowing its healing virtues, gave Achilles the knowledge to heal warriors hurt in battle. Although the plant was named for Achilles, the centaur was not forgotten, bachelor buttons and hawkweed belonging to another group of plants are often called “centaureas.” The designation Millefolium, meaning “a thousand leaves,” refers to the finely cut foliage. Common yarrow was once called Wound-wort or knight’s milfoil for its reputation as an important first-aid treatment. Centuries later, herbal doctors still had faith in its healing powers, recommending its use as a tea to induce the perspiration so favored to cleanse the system and cure a bad cold. When the whole plant was boiled and strained, the resulting liquid was one of hundreds of prescriptions for baldness. At one time it was used in Sweden to replace the hops in beer. The yarrow … now grows wild, but several others are listed in seed catalogues. Large yellow varieties such as cloth of gold and coronation gold keep their color in dried arrangements. A small relative, A. Tomentosa, is best suited to rock gardens. Parents may wish to keep a few plants on hand. When dried and tucked under a young girl’s pillow, the aromatic herb will bring her dreams about her future husband. When in due course the young man has been thus identified, the young bride should carry yarrow to the wedding to insure seven happy years.
Achillea Millefolium, Officinalis, Millefolium, Achillea filipendulina, A. Ptarmica, A Source: Park’s Success with Herbs
Yarrow (Achillea species) Compositae family Native to Europe and Asia. ‘Milfoil’ is said to be the herbalist’ name for common yarrow, because the leaves are cut into innumerable parts. It is known to herb gardeners as the ‘wild’ or white-flowered yarrow and more likely to be found along the roadsides than in our gardens. The leaves may be hairy with a gray look or bright green as in the Achillea Millefolium variety, ‘Rosea’. That one is the variety called ‘Red Beauty’, or Cerise Queen’ or ‘Rose Beauty’. It causes exclamations of delight from all who set its bright colors against the glossy green foliage. Its only draw-back to the flower arranger is that the color fades to gray when it dries. Otherwise it is a pleasant plant, though spreading as a clump, the flowers develop in mid-summer. As there is no species Officinalis in the genus, we can assume that all of the yarrows have much the same medicinal properties. Certainly all of them are showy, with stems from 6 inches up to 4 feet tall bearing flat 2 to 6 inch wide clusters of small flowers that last a long time in blossom. If cut back there may be, sparse second flowering. The fern-leaf yarrows are more stiffly erect and seldom wander out of their original clump as do the Millefolium types, Achillea filipendulina, ‘Coronation Gold’, has rigid stems three feet tall, with green leaves which are toothed on the edges. The flowers are the largest in convex umbels of gold, needing no staking. The same species in variety ‘Moonshine’ is shorter with silvery gray fronded foliage, not over 2 feet in bloom, but constantly flowering without fading. Foliage and flowers cut well and the hardy plant makes a wonderful subject for the herb garden as well as the perennial border. A. Ptarmica (meaning sneeze-producing) has glossy green foliage, on 2 foot stems, topped by white rayed flowers in heads resembling pearl buttons. The toothed, linear leaves on not very strong stems need support of twigs or brushes when the plant begins to bloom. It is an old-fashioned favorite for its fragrance, though sniffing can lead to sneezing. CULTURE: There is scarcely another genus that lends itself to all of the uses of Achilllea, has such beautiful species, varieties and is hardy a far north in the U.S. and Canada. It may be grown from seed sown outdoors in spring and summer or started in flats indoors, at temperature in the medium of 78-80 degrees F. Fine seed should merely be pressed down in the medium and allowed light to promote germination. It may take 2 weeks to produce seedlings but they will be blooming plants in 4-5 months. After that, propagation is by divisions of the roots in early spring. The fern-leaf types do not creep about the garden so need care in lifting to take off-shoots from the base in early spring. ‘The Pearl’ is a form with double flowers which increases the intensity of the truly opaque white. In addition to being very hardy, the Achilleas do not require rich soil; indeed the gray-leaved forms actually suffer from too rich loam. All types should be set 12 to 18 inches apart for reason of air circulation, so that foliage is not kept wet for long periods by crowding. The creeping root stocks should be lifted every three years and reset; that is A. Millefolium types. A. Tomentosa, or Wooly Yarrow, is thought a good rock garden plant, as it blooms with showy heads up to 12 inches above its silvery carpet of foliage. They are yellow in small convex clusters. Zones 3-9 are the limits of this species which is recommended as a ground cover for light sandy soil. It needs full sun as do most of the others, though A filipendulina will tolerate partial shade. USE: Aside from their horticultural value, the Achilleas have a long medicinal and legendary history. The yellow species may be hung upside down to dry for winter arrangements. The blossoms should be fully out before picking as the color effect is somewhat diluted if the whole inflorescence is not at its peak. Individual segments of these heads are used to decorate wreath’s made of Artemisias or Ambrosia. Too bad the cerise and red forms of the flowers fade to dull gray on drying. But golden shades in abundance are found among the other species and pearly white of the Sneezewort. It is aromatic in foliage as are all the others. There is one all green, glossy foliage plant whose leaves have toothed edges, that is called “Mace” in England. It has more cream-colored flowers than to those of “The Pearl”. Mace has been lately introduced into this country. We have had it in our garden for some years, kindness of Britain’s leading authority on herb gardening, Mrs. M. M. M. Hooper of Stoke Lacy Herb Gardens, in Herefordshire; she has placed some plants with our daughter-in-law (who is her daughter), in her garden on the Thames River, near New London, Connecticut. It seems to be perfectly hardy in northwestern Connecticut, in two locations at our daughter’s home (on a hilltop near Litchfield) and in the Falls Village valley. “Mace”, Achillea decolorans, has to be grown from divisions. The leaves have been used as flavoring in soups and salads. It is also cultivated in New Zealand and from Gillian Painter of Auckland we have the following Folk Charm that applies to the Achillea: “I will pick the smooth Yarrow that my figure may be more elegant, that my lips may be warmer, that my voice may be more cheerful, may my voice be like a sunbeam, may my lips be like the juice of the strawberries …” The Herb Garden Displayed.
The Herb Society of America, Frankenmuth Mid-Michigan Unit 2024-25 Speaker Registry
The following is a list of unit members who have submitted their names as possible lecturers and/or demonstrators available to address meetings, workshops or symposia.
Education Chair, Susan Traubenkraut, 989.652.9540.
Cyndy Bellaver, 1.989.652.9242 Fairy Gardening Herbal Vinegars Tussie Mussie/Language of Flowers
Marianne Dafoe, 1.989.652.8828 Basic Culinary Herbs for Beginners Blending Herb Teas Container Gardens Herbal Vinegars Scented Geraniums, Pelargoniums
Elaine Kimmerly, 1.989.652.9648 Basic Culinary Herbs for Beginners Children’ Gardens Christmas Herbs Container Gardens Growing & Using Herbs for Use & Delight Herbal Vinegars Now That I Grew It...What Do I Do With It Theme Gardens Colonial Herbs
Gloria Rodammer, 1.989.871.3608 Herbs For Advent Container Gardens Basic Herbs
The Herb Society of America, Frankenmuth Mid-Michigan Unit Conformation Of A Speaking Engagement
Group Requesting Speaker: ________________________________________________________________________________
Date: __________________________ Time: __________________________ Location: ______________________________________________________________________________ Name of Speaker: _______________________________________________________________________ Title of Presentation: _____________________________________________________________________ Brief Description of Presentation: ___________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________________ Time Allotted for Program: ________________________________________________________________ Speaker’s Fee, if applicable: _______________________________________________________________ Special Needs: ___Bio of Speaker ___Projector ___Screen ___Microphone ___Table ___Other _______________________________________________________________________
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Yarrow Achillea |
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SPECIAL NOTE:
Our June 10th meeting will take place at the MSU Saginaw Valley Research Farm, 3775 S. Reese Road, Frankenmuth. The time stays the same, 6:30 pm. |
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Fee, plus expenses Negotiable for each Speaker |