Acetaria: A Discourse of Sallets

John Evelyn

Only John Evelyn, the great diarist and gardener of Restoration England, could write an entire book about salad and make it a philosophy. Acetaria walks the kitchen garden leaf by leaf: endive, sorrel, cress and seventy more, each with its temper, its dressing and its place at a civilized table. Along the way come the oil and vinegar debates, the plan of a royal garden, and Evelyn's gentle case that what you grow shapes who you are. The most elegant argument for eating your greens ever printed. Bring it out to the garden bed and start planting.