In this beautifully illustrated book that' s Song of Achilles meets Secret Life of Trees, readers will discover the plants cultivated by the Greek Gods– many of which can still be experimented with today– for a myriad of uses.
In Greek mythology, plants were used for tools, intoxication, warfare, food, medicine, magic, and rituals. When Prometheus stole fire from the Olympian gods and gave it to mankind, he hid it in a stalk of giant fennel. Ancient Greeks waiting to question the oracles were given cannabis as part of their cleansing rituals. A quince fruit started the Trojan war. The goddess Demeter was so distraught when Hades kidnapped her daughter that she caused winter to blanket the earth, killing all plants.
Mythic Plants focuses on how the ancient Greeks used plants in their lives and loves and conquests— some of which we can still use.
Includes tips throughout for bringing these ancient plants into your garden.
Inhaltsverzeichnis
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction
Intoxicants
Barley
Cannabis
The Flying Herbs
The Grape
Mandrake
The Poppy
It’s All in the Dosage
Aconite
Dittany
Medicinal herbs
Pennyroyal
Poison Hemlock
Yarrow
A Culinary Odyssey
The Acorn
Asphodel
The Cornelian Cherry
The Fig
The Lotus
Silphion
Shape Shifters
Laurel
The Linden
Moly
The Mulberry
The Pine
Plant Metamorphoses
Gifts of the Gods
Fennel
Ivy
The Rose
The Oak
The Olive
Three Trees
Divine Trickery
The Apple
Myrtle
The Narcissus
The Pomegranate
Love Potions and Libido Killers
The Chaste Tree
Lettuce
Myrrh
The Quince
Epilogue
Appendix – Ancient Authors
