Kay Easton5/5/04 12:02
In article , Sacha
writes
Kay Easton4/5/04 6:48
In article , Sacha
writes
Kay Easton3/5/04 8:19
In article , Sacha
writes
They're herbs, hence herbaceous. ;-)
Explain bay ;-)
But you cut out my next sentence: "They die down in winter like many
herbs (not all)"
Ah, but bay is a herb but not herbaceous ..that is what I was responding
to.
Hence my "not all"...
But you didn't say not all in
They're herbs, hence herbaceous.
.. that was an absolute statement ;-)
My dictionary's definition of bay doesn't give it as a herb; it describes it
as the "laurel tree, species of Magnolia, Myrica" etc. but calls the bay
leaf "a flavouring agent in cooking". So I suppose it is not to be
considered a herb as in herbaceous which again is defined as "herb: a plant
with a woody stem above ground, distinguished from a tree or shrub: a plant
used in medicine: an aromatic plant used in cookery." "Herbaceous -
pertaining to, composed of, containing, or of the nature of herbs; like
ordinary foliage leaves: usually understood as of tall herbs that die down
in winter and survive in underground parts."
So it would appear that you and all of us would be wrong in calling bay a
herb.
I nearly went back and added 'and what about chives?' ;-)
What about them? You've lost me.
They're herbs, but not herbaceous.
Not all herbs are herbaceous.
Chives are used as a herb but are in fact like the leek and onion. But I
had hoped to assist the original poster by describing the actions of such
plants as he asked about.
For the OP the answer is "yes, tarragon does regrow from its roots."
And it is herbaceous because it has a woody stem, dies down in winter and
grows again in spring/summer. And 'not all' plants called herbs follow
that pattern or botanical description. ;-)
--
Sacha
(remove the weeds to email me)