An act of rectification - part 2

Timing is everything. And, I admit, I didn't have time before to continue this epic. I will, I promise, divulge the mysteries of rectification - in time - but first, a little more background.

For a grower, timing really is everything. Us middle-class foodies may snort knowingly about seasonal produce, but there is far more to it than gnawing, pompously, on the tip of a Norfolk asperge. The seasons are our harsh and brutal masters, and there are no second chances.

I like to make marmalade, for instance. When I can. The Seville season lasts no more than two weeks, and if I miss it, I'm done for. It means a year without marmalade - for me, and the rest of my family.

Right now, the poppies are out. My crop failed for years, but this spring I turned the soil and ancient, dormant seeds split into life. With this heat, the heads are as big as a thumb. Slip a few of these into a vodka bottle and you'll have a fine sleeping draft - I know nothing of the legalities, so wouldn't recommend it. Blink, and they're gone to seed - no laud for you.



When harvesting herbs, it is not just the season that counts - there is more. The weather must be clear, bright and scorching hot. The air must be dry. You must pick at the apogee of the day, when the heat and brightness are highest. This brings all the essence to the fore - the scent, the botanicals, the oils, are all concentrated into the leaves.

Some years, the right day never arrives - which is why, in the early June heatwave, I took my chances with the wormwood.
It is not about the weather alone. With herbs, particularly the medicinal or mystical types, the act of picking must be correct. Ancient alchemists would have to harvest in time with rare planetary and lunar alignments. With such stringent rules, and such rare conjunctions of the elements that make the time right, the energy imbued in the process is increased many fold. The more difficult the act, the greater the energy.

In Magic, these processes become even more arcane - the wand must be cut from a virgin hazel with a knife never before used. By making the knife itself, the Magician can increase the energy, and power, and even more if he has mined the ore. It can be endless.

Which is why I had to harvest the Wormwood when I did. It is not about the flavour alone - it is about the energy, the very spirit of the herb, which vibrates through the bottle which will encapsulate it.


As for the process itself? Next time my friends, next time.