Lady Lavender

Although lavender was occasionally used to flavor food, its primary use remains to scent and to soothe. Modern aromatherapy tests have proved that the perfume does have a sedative effect. So the old custom of placing lavender sachets in the linen closet had a double benefit. The odor permeating the sheets repelled bugs and lulled insomniacs into dreamland.

It also led to the cliche "laid up in lavender" being used to describe anything placed in careful storage. That phrase eventually came to apply also to persons in hiding or goods in pawn.

Lavender stoechas not only smells like rosemary; its oil was used in much the same way, as a stimulant, an antiseptic for minor wounds, and as a rub for sprains and rheumatic or paralyzed limbs. In small amounts, lavender will also relieve flatulence. But please keep in mind that, in large doses, the oil becomes a narcotic poison.

For such a genteel herb, lavender had a somewhat equivocal reputation. In the Language of Flowers, it stands for distrust. This may derive from an old belief that poisonous snakes made their home in the plant.

Gerard too seems to have had his doubts about lavender, adding to his earlier recommendation, "But when there is abundance of humors, it is not then to be used safely. . .For by using such hot things that fill and stuffe the head, both the disease is made greater, and the sick man also brought into daunger. . ."

Of course, a hint of "daunger" only adds to a lady's allure. And this particular female is still considered to be in a class above the rest!

Photos are courtesy of Cathe Gordon. Visit her site at http://www.aheb.com/garden/lavender.html to see over thirty varieties of lavender, including white, pink, and yellow-flowered types.

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