Bergamot

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Lately, more and more people have begun to understand just how 'limited—in both variety and nutritional value—our"modern" diets have become. This realization has sparked a new and widespread interest in the culinary and therapeutic uses of herbs ... those plants which —although not well-known today—were, just one short generation ago, honored "guests" on the dinner tables and in the medicine chests of our grandparents' homes. In this regular feature, MOTHER examines the availability, cultivation, and benefits of our "forgotten" vegetable foods and remedies ... and—we hope—helps prevent the loss of still another bit of ancestral lore.

The house we bought in the Ad-irondacks; yielded many garden bonuses— including a lilac bush, some raspberries, rhubarb, and a grapevine—but my husband and I weren't able, at first, to identify a big stand of handsome purple flowers growing in the weedy, damp back yard.

Luckily for us, these "mystery" plants were wild bergamot (Monardo fistulosa), and they turned out to be our biggest bonus "crop" of all!

JUST PLAIN PRETTY

Even If the plant had nothing but Its beauty to recommend it, wild bergamot would still be worth growing. The narrow tubular flowers, which bloom from July through September, range from maroon to magenta to lilac In color ... and resemble a somewhat disheveled chrysanthemum atop a two—foot high, erect stalk.

Since the herb is a member of the mint family, it has its relatives' square, hollow stem ... shallow, dense root system ... and paired leaves, which are tinged with reddish-purple on their "under" surfaces.

The pretty plant—though not choosy as to where it grows —does prefer "wet feet" and partial shade. You should know, also, that growing bergamot from seed is a slow process, so it's best to start your crop with root cuttings. Simply divide the roots—at any time from early spring until late fall —remove any woody or blackened portions, and set the runners out 18 Inches apart.

In order to maintain a healthy stand of flowers, this resetting should be done every three years, but—if you feed your plants with compost In the fail—your "patch" can be left in the same spot (and will produce abundantly) for a good bit longer. Also, If you cut the plant back after the first bloom, It will produce an additional "harvest" during the same growing season. (You can purchase bergamot plants—in a variety of colors—from Well-Sweep Herb Farm, Dept. TMEN, 317 Mt. Bethel Road, Port Murray, New Jersey 07865. Send 50c for the firm's catalog.)

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