Open Herbalism Question

[jarandhel]

This is primarily directed towards stardansr and orthaevelve, since I forgot to ask it during their workshop, but anyone else that would like to chime in should also feel free:

How does one determine if a given author on the subject of herbalism knows their stuff without having to go through each entry on a particular herb individually and cross reference it against 20 other books, especially when the bad books have a tendency to quote each other and might actually have more points of agreement between them than reputable books due to the sheer volume of crap that gets published?

Comments

[xtiandog.livejournal.com]

Maybe check the author? See what kind of credentials/background experience/etc. they have?

[feonixrift.livejournal.com]

I'm in no way an expert at this, however: I look for specific things where I have had huge disagreements, or found them to be extremely valuable finds, in previous texts. For instance, if the description of Anise doesn't mention effects on lungs, that's a mark against the book for me. If it waxes poetic about the efficacy of something that is, for me, a sour tasting placebo, that is also a mark against it. This relies on experience, and is far more personal than overall since effects may differ between people, but tends to lead me toward books with a higher hit rate of effectiveness for me in particular.

[orthaevelve.livejournal.com]

I tend to cross reference new books to authors I have trusted for a long time and that have lots of positive peer reviews and actual schooling. My main favorite for this is James A. Duke, Ph.D. He is my baseline author that I check others against consistently because in my experience he is cautious, intelligent and safe.

With other authors, I check their recommendations against my own experience. For example, I know mint is a carminative and good for stomach cramps and headaches, and intestinal cramps. I also know it makes acid reflux worse. So if a new writer goes on and on about how mint prevents gallstones, I will definitely be raising my eyebrows and putting the book in the "dubious" pile until I check it against one of Duke's books. Then I check it against Grieve's two volume set of "A Modern Herbal", which is hell to plow through but my main other reference.

So I do a lot of cross-referencing, and I also tend to look herbs up in my herbal PDR if I am unsure. Common sense is important too, such as in the case of that idiot who recommended putting castor oil in your eyes to get rid of redness. Dumbass.