The Herbarium
Part I · Medicinal herbs
Herb. No. 143
Allspice
Pimenta dioica
Myrtaceae
A Jamaican myrtle berry that tastes of clove, cinnamon, and nutmeg at once — the stew spice of the Caribbean and of winter baking.
Culinary dried berry. A tropical tree — the kitchen crop is purchased.
- Parts used
- Dried unripe berry
- Traditional notes
- Kitchen spice · After a heavy stew · Traditional warming digestive
- Grow · USDA 6b
- Tropical evergreen, USDA 10–12; greenhouse north A nursery plant if you have a conservatory. Most kitchens buy the berry. In work: Jan · Feb · Mar · Apr · May · Jun · Jul · Aug · Sep · Oct · Nov · Dec
- Harvest
- Unripe berries, dried in the sun. A tree takes years.
- A jar is the honest harvest.
- Whole berries keep; ground dust fades.
Safety
Allspice oil as a drink
Lore
The Spanish called it pimienta, pepper, and the confusion stuck in ‘pimento.’ English ‘allspice’ is a 17th-century grocer’s pitch that happened to be accurate. Nelson’s navy was said to use it in the mess. Jerk is a Taino word; the berry is the smoke’s cousin.
The Herbarium — a teaching catalog, not a clinic. Traditional use is history, not a prescription. USDA 6b dates are a week either way, not a promise. Do not eat, drink, or harvest a plant you cannot name.