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Herbs are plants with savoury or fragrant properties whose leaves or seeds are used for medicinal purposes, flavouring and garnishing dishes, in perfumes; they do not include vegetables and other micronutrient-rich plants. Herbs are plants that have a variety of applications, including culinary, medicinal, and spiritual. Herbs and spices are usually distinguished in the kitchen. Herbs are the dry or fresh leafy greens or blooming sections of a plant, whereas spices are often dried and made from seeds, bark, roots, and fruits.
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Key Terms: Herbaceous Plants, Non-Woody Plants, Annual Herbs, Biennial Herbs, Perennial Herbs, Traditional Use, Medicinal Properties, Flavouring Agents
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What are Herbs?
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The term "herb" is a combination of the Latin word "herba" and the ancient French word "herbe." Today, herb refers to any plant component, including fruit, seed, stem, bark, flower, leaf, stigma or root, and non-woody plants.
Previously, the name "herb" solely applied to non-woody plants, such as those found in trees and bushes. Herbs are little plants with a delicate stem and a green colour. These plants have few branches compared to other plants and are readily detached from the soil. Herbs include grass, mint, and wheat, to name a few.
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Difference Between Herbs and Other Kinds of Plants
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Herbs are different from other woody plants. Woody plants have a thick woody stem, and herbaceous plants have a thin, sensitive, green stem.
Herbs are annual, biennial, or perennial and cannot resist extreme environmental conditions, whereas woody plants continue to develop throughout their lives.
Herbaceous plants have cellulose stems, which are less stiff than lignin stems. As a result, they degrade quickly, whereas woody plants have lignin-based stems that offer a robust, rigid structure that protects the stems from injury.
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Classification of Herbs
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Herbaceous plants are characterised as plants with non-woody vascular stems. Within a year, the stems reach full height and produce blooms, before dying back in the winter and reappearing in the spring for a repeat performance.
In a temperate zone, the above-ground growth of such plants dies back in the winter, but subterranean plant elements like roots, bulbs and other sections may survive. Annual, biennial, and perennial herbaceous plants are divided into three categories. They are categorised according to the plant's lifetime.
Classification of Herbs
An annual herb is an herbaceous plant that has a single growing season to complete its life cycle. Summer annuals thrive in the warmer months of the year. On the other hand, winter annuals germinate in the cold seasons and survive the winter. Herbaceous perennials and biennials may have stems that die at the end of their growing season, but other sections of the plants may live on from year to year.
Herbs are commonly cultivated in pots, gardens, and even inside. They offer several nutritional and physiological advantages. Some plants have therapeutic characteristics that can help with a variety of diseases. They have been shown to boost immunity, relieve pain, improve digestion, and even alleviate anxiety. As a result, they play a crucial role in our overall health since they contain adequate nutritional benefits, vitamins, and minerals to be included in our diet.
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Various Types of Herbs
There are 27 types of herbs. Some of which are as follows.
- Parsley
- Mint
- Dill
- Basil
- Sage
- Rosemary
- Thyme
- Cilantro/coriander
- Fennel
- Bay leaves
- Lemongrass
- Oregano
Benefits and Uses of Herbs
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During the prehistoric period, herbs were employed for flavouring and medicinal purposes. The usage of medicinal plants is seen to be risk-free, as there are no or only minor side effects. Herbaceous plants have a variety of advantages and purposes, which are listed below.
- Many herbs are utilised as blood purifiers to help transform or improve a long-term condition by removing metabolic poisons. 'Blood cleansers' is another name for them. Certain herbs boost a person's immunity, lowering the risk of illnesses like fever.
- Antibiotic characteristics are also found in several botanicals. Turmeric can help in fighting germs, dangerous organisms, and bacteria from growing. Turmeric is commonly used as a home treatment for wounds and cuts.
- Traditional Indian medical practitioners offer antipyretic herbs such as Chirayta, black pepper, sandalwood, and safflower to decrease fever and the heat produced by the disease.
- Some herbaceous plants are used to neutralise the stomach's acid production. Marshmallow roots and leaves are some examples. They function as antacids. These herbs help to keep the healthy stomach acid required for optimal digestion.
- Plant medicines were reported to be used by Indian sages to treat poisons from animals and snake bites.
- Cardamom and coriander, for example, are well-known for their flavour. Other fragrant herbs, such as peppermint, cloves, and turmeric, give the food a pleasing scent and enhance the flavour.
- Certain cough syrups contain ginger and cloves. They are recognised for their expectorant properties, which help mucus thin and expel from the lungs, trachea, and bronchi.
Medicinal Herbs
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Things to Remember
- Herbs are the fresh or dried leafy green or blooming sections of a plant, but spices are often dried and made from other parts of the plant, such as seeds, bark, roots, and fruits.
- Herbs have a wide range of applications, including culinary, medicinal, fragrant, and spiritual.
- These plants are often employed in religious rituals. Basil has been used in rituals since antiquity. Marjoram is supposed to be able to ward off demons. In legend, oregano is a potent herb.
- Herbs are categorised as annual, biennial, or perennial depending on how long they live. Mint, oregano, sage, basil, chamomile, rosemary, peppermint, parsley, turmeric, and thyme are some examples of herbs.
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Sample Questions
Ques. Discuss the importance of herbaceous plants. (3 Marks)
Ans. Herbaceous plants or herbs have various aromatic, culinary, medicinal, and therapeutic properties.
- Natural medicines were employed in Ayurveda procedures. People in India relied on medicinal plants because of the country's rich biodiversity and traditional knowledge of herbal therapeutic applications.
- In the past, such plants were gathered by wandering through the forests.
- Important plants with therapeutic properties are currently carefully cultivated.
- The value of holy basil (tulsi), Adulsa, Jyesthmadh, and other herbs has been recognised across the world.
- Plant extracts are also employed in several allopathic medications.
- Medicines containing hazardous chemicals have negative side effects and should only be taken under medical supervision. As a result, herbal medicines are rising in popularity across the world.
Ques. How are the herbs classified based on their lifetime? (3 Marks)
Ans. Herbs can be classified into three categories- annual, biennial, perennial.
An annual herb is an herbaceous plant with only one growing season in which to complete its life cycle. Summer annuals thrive during the summer months. Winter annuals germinate in the cold seasons and survive the winter. Some examples of annual herbs are Basil, Cilantro and Dill.
The stems of herbaceous perennials and biennials may die at the end of their growing season, but other parts of the plants may live on year after year. Examples of biennials are Parsley and Sage, and perennials are Mint, Oregano and Bay Leaves.
Ques. What distinguishes herbal medicine from today's synthetic drugs? (4 Marks)
Ans. Drugs can be synthetic, but herbal treatments are natural and direct from nature. Synthetic pharmaceuticals block, repress, and obstruct, whereas herbal remedies enhance, support, and moderate. Herbal medications are made from a range of herbal plants, whereas synthetic pharmaceuticals are made by adding additional chemicals to a less concentrated herbal extract.
Synthetic medications are poisonous, but herbal treatments, on the other hand, have detoxing effects by strengthening our immune system. Synthetic pharmaceuticals weaken our immune system and can lead to inflammation. Synthetic drugs are programmable robots, whereas herbal treatments have homeostatic intelligence and reduce inflammation. Hence, herbal medicines have fewer adverse effects since they are less toxic in comparison to synthetic drugs.
Ques. Is every herb plant edible? (2 Marks)
Ans. Although not all herb blooms are edible or appealing to eat, many have a lengthy history of usage as food or beverage additives. Toxic and poisonous flowers exist as well, such as Nicotiana, or tobacco blossom. The majority of our regular table herbs are completely safe to consume.
Ques. What distinguishes herbs from other plants? (2 Marks)
Ans. They come in a variety of shapes, sizes, colours, fragrances, and tastes, but one thing they all have in common is the potential to fulfil at least one, if not several, purposes. Many individuals are terrified of herbs because of their diversity as well as the mystery surrounding them.
Ques. Which herb is the most powerful? (3 Marks)
Ans. Turmeric is the most powerful herb known to humankind. It is a member of the ginger family and is mostly grown in India, China, and Indonesia. It has a variety of medical benefits. Turmeric, for example, includes Curcumin, a powerful antioxidant that increases the body's antioxidant enzymes.
Turmeric is one of the most well-known medicinal plants in the world. Turmeric has anticoagulants, antidepressants, anti-inflammatory, arthritis management, cancer therapy, diabetic treatment, gastrointestinal treatment, cholesterol regulator, painkiller, and steroid properties, to name a few.
Ques. Can herbs be grown indoors? (2 Marks)
Ans. Herbs are frequently grown in pots, gardens, and even inside. They provide several nutritional and physiological benefits. Some plants contain medicinal properties that can be used for treating many ailments. They have been proved to aid immunity, pain relief, digestion, and even anxiety relief. Therefore, they play an important part in our general health since they provide appropriate nutritional benefits, vitamins, and minerals for us to consume.
Ques. Name some of the important characteristics of herbs. (3 Marks)
Ans. Herbs have the following characteristics:
- They are little plants with delicate and fragile stems.
- They have a delicate, fragile, and delicate green stem.
- They have a brief lifetime, only living for one or two seasons at most.
- They are smaller and can grow to reach between 2 and 3 metres tall.
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