4097 Half-Thyme by Dipper
This was another welcome visit to
Dipper’s herb garden, in which ‘half of the herbs are to be
picked from the
rows. The other half have been planted among the down clues.’
In the answers to across clues the
first half of a herb was omitted and in down clues the second half was
omitted
from the clue. The herbs were ORIGAN, CIVE, BETONY, BORAGE, SAGE,
CICELY, MINT,
SORREL, HYSSOP, DILL and PURPIE.
Clashing letters had to be resolved to reveal PATERSON’S CURSE, any of various naturalized European herbs regarded as harmful to livestock.
Letters omitted from across answers
and extra letters in down clues are shown in [ ]
Across
1 Chronicler wrongly harried
phraseologist after losing contentious deals (15)
HIST[ORI]OGRAPHER Anagram HARRIED PHRASEOLOGIST less
Anagram DEALS
9 Passage from main road leads to
single lane exit (5)
AISLE A1 + S(ingle) L(ane) E(xit)
11 Community’s dutiful
conduct
primarily replaced by right to hold court (7)
SO[CI]ETY PIETY replacing P with SOC
13 Joins priest in periodic protest
(7)
RAB[BET]S ABBÉ in (p)R(o)T(e)S(t)
14 Faces up to being on the far
side of river in Barry (7)
BRAZENS R (river) in BAZ (Barry) + ENS
15 Look eager about introduction of
night flying (8)
AIR[BOR]NE AIR + N(ight) in BORE
16 A sound material for thatching
(4)
ATAP A + TAP
18 Dividing line is base minus
unknown angular unit (9)
STERA[DI]AN RADIX less X in STEAN
20 Shattering contents of Dali
vase. It makes you spit (6)
[SA]LIVA Anagram (d)ALI VAS(e)
21 East German confusing a
naturalist, having lost rat unexpectedly (8)
LUSATIAN Anagram A NATURALIST less Anagram RAT
23 Bundled female copper out of
office into cells. Quite the reverse (11)
FAS[CIC]ULATE
26 One of two constellations
initially recorded in America (4)
URSA R(ecorded) in USA
29 National Guard acquiring
revolutionary artillery: everything that’s needed for battle (9)
[MI]LITARIA RA reversed in MILITIA
31 Prominent feature of
discontinued porcelain (4)
CHIN CHIN(a)
32 Religious school punished
erudition to some extent (5)
HEDER Hidden
34 Frequently changing heart to
chide naughty girl (10)
OF[FEN]DRESS OFTEN changing central letter + DRESS
36 Hard to incorporate a little
tempered martensite (7)
[SOR]BITE BIT in SORE
37 Slips Chinese into elite unit
(5)
SHANS (slips = counterfeit coins) HAN in SS
38 Safe capturing terribly shy old
sea creature (8)
P[HYS]ETER Anagram SHY in PETER
39 Sit motionless under cape after
utterly losing energy in an indolent state (15)
[PUR]POSELESSNESS
Down
1 Returning note about unfinished
plot for book (6)
HERBAL BRE(w) in LAH reversed
2 Displaced Arabs, abandoned by
king, becoming dwellers in Yemen (4)
SABA Anagram ARABS less R
3 Dislocated toes and even parts of
ulna consisting of bone (6)
OSTEAL Anagram TOES + (u)L(n)A
4 Agents r[ely] on records (4)
REPS R + EPs
5 Distillation of cobalt spirit
proving
eminently soluble (8)
PORISTIC Anagram CO + SPIRIT
6 Giant [gan]net soaring up to edge
of escarpment (4)
ETEN E(carpment) + NET reversed
7 Reaches Ke[nt] on board railway special (5)
KE in RY + S
8 With bellicose attitude, inclined
to favour changing leader (7)
MARTIAL PARTIAL wit first letter changed
10 Start off mauling Byzantine
tongue (6)
LINGUA Anagram (m)AULING
11 Hurriedly leave ca[ve] in spring
(5)
SCAPA CA in SPA
12 Gambling game embracing ur[ge]
for money (4)
EURO UR in EO
17 Turn and [rel]ease fizzy white
wine (8)
SAUTERNE Anagram TURN + EASE
19 Tack around hems of taglioni in
fine fabric (7)
BATISTE T(aglion)I in BASTE
22 Before leaving, tie flan[nel]s
around middle of horse’s leg (6)
STIFLE Anagram TIE + FL(an)S
24 Garnishes [pie] with bacon
cubes, just after being cut (5)
LARDS LARDONS less ON
25 Men besieging fringes of
desolate young soldiers (6)
CADETS D(esolat)E in CATS
27 At one time follows sew[age] in
three different directions (6)
ENSEWS SEW in ENS (3 directions)
28 Player starts to trump hearts
with unusual insight (5)
THESP T(rump) + H + ESP
30 Fancy Ae[sop] coming back after
fish (4)
IDEA ID + AE reversed.
33 Repeat part of Purce[ll] chorus
(4)
ECHO Hidden
34 Half of jug. Most of jug. All of
jug (4)
OLPE (ga)OL + PE(n)
35
Ir[ony] involved in beginning to
Europeanise eastern country (4)
EIRE IR in
E(uropeanise) + E