Personal Statement

I am a student of herbalism, mostly self-educated but always learning from friends and other herbalists. It’s a dream of mine to attend a formal school of herbalism. I take nature walks and document my findings over time in a journal dedicated to what I know. Sitting with the plants and listening to them is my preferred method of learning. I’m partial to the idea of knowing a few plants very well, rather than just a little about many. I mostly aim to cultivate a deep familiarity with local plants in my area. It’s helpful to know where to find the herbs I use instead of relying on shops to supply them, and nice to be able to know the uses of nearby plants that often meet the same needs as anything I might wish to find from other places. Some of my favorite herbs and plants are those I grew up with, feel most familiar with, and can use for many purposes: rosemary, lavender, dandelion, rose, lemon balm, angelica, comfrey, calendula. These familiar friends are what mostly show up in my medicine cabinet. I’m fascinated with in-depth study of each one... the more I learn, the more I feel there is left to find out. I’ve come into contact with many strong plant medicines that have deeply changed me as a person, and have written a fair bit on psychoactive plants and fungi.