Lynn Smythe
Strewing Herbs (LINK)
January 7th 2008 18:17
Sweet Flag - A Type of Strewing Herb
Francis Bacon, Essays, Civil and Moral, 1601
Strewing herbs were used along with rushes and or straw as a floor covering throughout Europe from the late medieval to early Renaissance periods (~1000 to 1650 AD). The rushes and straw provided cushioning to the occupants feet, provided warmth in the winter, and helped to absorb excess moisture from rain, sleet, snow, and spilt food and beverages. These plant materials were used to cover the floors of houses before carpets were commonly used as a floor covering.
A variety of herbs were often used along with the rushes and straw in order to exploit their aromatic and insect repellent properties. These herbs were called stewing herbs because they were thrown or strewn upon the floors. The occupants of the house would cause the herbs to be crushed underfoot as they went about their daily business causing the herbs essential oils to be released. Strewing herbs would be used in all areas of the household including the dinning hall, kitchen, and bedrooms.
What are Rushes?
Rush is the common name given to a variety of plant materials which are found in abundance in wet areas of the countryside such as streambeds, riverbanks, swamps and marshes.
Sweet flag (Acorus Calamus) - is a very aromatic plant with iris like leaves. It was a common plant found growing in abundance in wetland-like conditions.
Common rush (Juncus conglomerates) and common bulrush (Scripus ancestries) were also commonly used for floor coverings. They not only helped to soften the tread, but also freshened the air and provided protection against the cold.
During the later medieval through Renaissance periods rushes were replaced in European churches once a year on what was called rush-bearing Sunday. The old layer of rushes would be cleaned out and a new layer added to help keep the church attendants feet warm and dry. Aromatic herbs such as meadowsweet would sometimes be strewn along with the rushes.
History of Strewing Herbs
In the past, pest and odor control could be a rather troublesome problem because of improper personal hygiene and sanitation habits. Public bath houses which were in common usage during the early middle ages began to go out of favor in the later middle ages. It was thought that bathing promoted the spread of diseases such as the plague which lead officials to start closing down the public baths at the end of the 14th century.
The poor peasants who made up the majority of the population no longer had the luxury of public bath houses at their disposal. After this point baths were not an everyday occurrence especially for the peasants who would have to haul their own water from the nearest well, stream, or pond and then heat the water before pouring it into their bathing vessel. The wealthy nobles and members of royalty would have servants at their disposal to perform these mundane chores for them while in the privacy of their own homes. But bathing was still not a very frequent event for the majority of the population at this point in time.
The floors of peasant houses were usually made of beaten earth while the nobility and royal households would more often have floors made of stone, plaster, or wood. Carpets were an expensive luxury item only available to the nobles and royalty and even then they were more often hung on the walls or draped on tables and used as a status symbol rather than used as a floor covering. In lieu of carpets, straw and rushes were commonly strewn upon the floor to provide cushioning and to keep the occupants feet warm and dry. The rushes and straw would also serve to absorb any spilt liquids and food scraps along with hiding and absorbing any domestic animal wastes.
As the strewing herbs were walked upon their volatile essential oils were released into the air. The aromatic essential oils present in the herbs would evaporate rather quickly and the herbs would begin to rot or dry out in a very short time thus the strewing materials would have to be replaced periodically.
The entire article, Strewing Herbs; Ancient Aromatherapy Technique, can be found on the Associated Content website.
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