"Louisiana Herb Journal introduces 50 medicinal herbs found in the state, and features details of identification, habitat, distribution, healing properties, and traditional uses. The book includes local plants that can gently support whole health, correct minor imbalances, strengthen immunity, improve nutrition, and ward off more serious health conditions. It places these plants in a context of the culture, values, and ecological bounty and threats in which they grow. Journal sections on each plant describe the author's experience of the herb and include other natural features such as animals that share use of the plants, and natural and cultural history of plant use. A guidelines section for harvesting and preparing the herbs follows journal sections. Along with providing plant information, the book reflects on the potential value of medicinal herb identification and use in addressing current challenges to the environmental and economic stability and health of the state. It encourages recognition of the natural wealth of Louisiana, awareness of how daily choices can impact personal health and the state's ecological future, and suggests stewardship of wild plants that may be at risk. Louisiana Herb Journal is an herb book, but it's also a celebration of the distinct nature of the state and its residents. It encourages readers to develop an intimate relationship with this luxurious and challenged land. Whether living in rural areas or in cities, becoming familiar with local medicinal plants can act as a daily reminder of the innate groundedness of our life on earth - of how intimately and intrinsically we are linked to a place. We co-participate in our home. We take care of what we know, and love, and use. As environmental challenges become more prominent in the future of the state, approaches to healing can no longer be limited to aspects of strengthening human health, but must take into account the health of the planet and, more intimately, of the places where we live. Louisiana Herb Journal is a small step in that direction"--