In these times when many people are exploring alternatives to our present health  care system, we are seeing a growing interest in using herbal medicine to support and nourish us in our  healing journeys. The herb market is flourishing and we see many new companies and herbal products on the shelves each year, and there is an abundance of information coming off the press to educate us about their uses.

    It is heartening to see people turning once again to this most ancient tradition of healing, but there is a need to take it a step further and reclaim our relationships with the plants themselves, the very heart of herbal medicine. It is a very different experience to seek out your medicine from the forest and the field than to choose a product from a shelf in a store. And lately some of our "herbs" are looking more like drugs and less like plants!

    The Upper Midwest is an herbalist's paradise with an incredible variety of edible and medicinal herbs growing in natural wild gardens. Many of our most useful plants grow in amazing abundance and can be easily identified. Common "weeds" such as dandelions, nettles, and burdock can be used in many creative ways as both food and medicine. Most herbal preparations can be made right in your own kitchen with no special equipment. It is my intent to help people learn about wild foods found growing in local, natural gardens and to demystify the art of herbal  preparation. I believe that seeking out our own foods and medicines directly from the land can be an integral part of healthy living. It also teaches us to be more sensitized to the living creation and to deeply appreciate the incredible giveaway of God's green blessings all around us.