Herbs and spices, such as rosemary, oregano, sage, and especially pepper can make even the most boring food attractive, exciting, and lively. Enthusiasm and a lust for life, the desire for enjoyment and stimulation, as well as the fear of boredom are therefore typical characteristics in the remedy picture of the plants presented in this issue of SPECTRUM "Spice of life". Our authors show the overlaps and differences in the homeopathically similar but botanically very different families of the Lamiaceae and Piperaceae. The contributions in this SPECTRUM present the application of Jan Scholten's Plant theory, Rajan Sankaran's vital sensation and miasms, and Michal Yakir's ideas on the developmental stages of the plants.

Intrigued by the fascinating theme, Jan Scholten and Michal Yakir agreed to make a personal contribution. This issue of SPECTRUM has therefore the pleasure to chronicle the latest and exciting developments in homeopathic classifications.

In his overview, Jan Scholten explains the significance of the remedy codes and how to use them to navigate his Plant system. With co-author Martin Jakob, he exclusively presents a fine-tuning of his Plant theory. His classification of the Lamiaceae into the subfamilies, Lamioideae and Nepetoideae reveals the fundamental significance of his application of phases and subphases.

Michal Yakir describes her views on the evolution of plants and the their relationship to the development of female and male aspects of human indiv...