May is by far my most favourite month of the year. The season is bustling with all the colour and vigour of new life; flowers opening to show their sunny faces and the green of the grass so intense it’s hard to believe it’s real. In just one week my lawn  has suddenly ...

Every winter at herb school, I share my love of trees with my students. Along with being majestic, trees function as the respiratory system for entire planet; they are essential for our every breath of life; plus they provide food, shelter, clothing, transportation (boats,...

Naturally fermented (cultured) pickles produce the most delicious sour flavour thanks to the naturally occurring good bacteria.  The pickles float in a cloudy brine that is delicious. Many are known to drink this brine for the flavour and beneficial bacteria. When we had sore stomach’s...

Making a herbal tincture is the process of soaking plant material in a menstruum (that is, a solvent) to extract the medicinal components into the said menstruum to use for medicine.  A menstruum can be...

I’ve just returned from a luxurious week-long break of camping out  & teaching natural medicine at the California Women’s Herbal Symposium.

I’ve never been to the symposium before, and wow, what a treat! It was completely different from what I expected. I met...

I love the month of March.  I love the dramatic intensity of the weather this time of year brings. The sudden rain followed by the sudden break of sunshine; the cleansing wild winds followed by stillness; the noticeable lengthening of daylight past Equinox; the cheerful twittering of birds;...