A beautiful setting in Salisbury was the site of our June meeting. A wall of windows looked out on a garden and a bird feeder where a Baltimore Oriole was busy getting his lunch. We also were feeding on an assortment of fancy sandwiches. The ladies are very inventive with their fillings and different types of bread.

Dessert is the part we always look forward to. Ice cream sundaes with all the fixings works for me every time.

Our leader decided we should exercise some part of our bodies, so she chose our brains. In keeping with the season of gardening (lately in the rain), she challenged us with a couple of tests about plants and herbs. The first was 10 multiple-choice questions about plants. I did pretty well on that one, considering I guessed at most of the answers.

The second was on herbs. I was OK with the garlic, basil, parsley, and oregano, but when it came to lovage, borage, berganot, and woodruff, I was lost. They sounded like last names to me. See if you can answer these two questions. (The answers are below, but don’t peek!)

To add a cucumber flavor to a dish, use this herb, which has attractive edible flowers: A. Lovage, B. Calendula, C. Angelica, D. Borage.

To add a celery flavor to a dish use this herb: A .Lovage, B. Chervil, C. Angelica, D. Borage.

The tests provoked a lot of discussion and some of us realized we had to read up on plants and herbs.

We had planned a trip to Tarbin Gardens in June, but both dates were rained out.

We are taking the summer off and will resume regular meetings in September when our topic will be “Number, Please.”

Have a good summer and, for those who have gardens, a bountiful harvest.

Answers: Borage for cucumber flavor, and Lovage for celery flavor.