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Herbs are rooted in our history, used for centuries to make dyes, for medicinal and culinary purposes, decoration and sometimes, simply for their aromatic appeal.

Brush against pineapple sage and the very fragrance "gives you a lift," says Beryl Feldman, as though she is drawing in the herb's perfume at just the mention of it.

The Rehoboth resident should know. An 11-year member and former head of the Herb Society of America's New England branch, she is a collector of herbs and is also in charge of the society's fragrance garden on the grounds of Elm Bank in Wellesley, home of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society.

Feldman puts out about 50 trays of herbs every year for the society's annual herb plant sale, which this year will be held at Elm Bank on May 12.

The New England branch is actually the founding unit of the Herb Society of America, started in 1933 by seven women who formed an educational group dedicated to the study and use of herbs. The society now includes 44 units and counts nearly 3,000 members in the United States, Canada and other countries. Its mission is to promote the knowledge, use and enjoyment of herbs through educational programs, research and sharing experiences with the community. There are about 100 members in the New England branch, hailing mostly from Massachusetts.

The branch's 8,000-square-foot teaching herb garden at Elm Bank is open to the public and is now in its fifth year. It contains beds of fragrance, dye, culinary, native American and medicinal herbs, edible plants and flowers, and a Colonial theme garden, among other features. Planters and benches feature fragrant herbs that visitors are encouraged to touch and smell.

In addition, there is a bed reserved for the "herb of the year," which this year is lemon balm. The section will contain a number of lemon herbs, including lemon thyme and lemon grass, as well as the balm.

Those herbs will also be available through members at the annual sale. Feldman is in charge of the members' plants for the sale.

Her own collection, from which she plucks for the plant sale, constitutes an aromatic array.

In her greenhouse, which is unheated, she tends to varieties of rosemary. There are also lavenders and mints, thyme and salvias, sage (both regular and with ornamental flowers), eucalyptus, lemon and peppermint.

"There's a lot of scented herbs," said Feldman, who has lost count of exactly how many plants she has. "I just have whatever's around."

And if there's a new variety, "I have to have it," she said.

Feldman believes interest in herbs is growing, primarily because of the flavor they can add to dishes and the health benefits they offer compared to alternatives like salt.

Even scented geraniums can be used in a cake recipe, Feldman said. Recipes incorporating herbs are available through the society at the plant sale and garden. And because the herbs are fresh, you use less. Many herbs are easy to grow. "Some of them do the best in (lousy) soil," Feldman said.

Any herbs that grow in zones 7 or 8 seem to survive in this area. Of course, an herb like rosemary needs to winter inside.

While herbs are associated with taste and smell, their beauty should not be overlooked, Feldman said. Lavandula stoechas has an interesting flower, looking like it has dark wings; or there's a Kew red in the same family, named for its red blossoms, she said.

Gilbert Moore, head of the society's flower show committee - the society's submission won a silver medal in the recent Boston show - said learning about the culture of herbs is another aspect of their appeal.

"As a gardener, herbs are by definition useful things," said Moore of Providence, R.I. He said he started out gardening herbs, "like everyone else, for flavoring, and with things that I knew."

Then he found more unique and interesting plants and read about their uses in the past and the lore that envelopes some, including what was used by "white" and "black" witches. "Then, it becomes a challenge to grow them, but they're beautiful too," he said of the more unique plants.

He notes that one of the sections of the teaching garden contains Ecumenical herbs and plants, like lotus and basil, mentioned in Biblical and other religious writings.

"It's the beauty and then there's the intellectual interest too," Moore said.

SUSAN LaHOUD can be reached at 508-236-0398 or at slahoud@thesunchronicle.com.