Listen with Forage Botanicals – Details, episodes & analysis

I'm happy to say the most frequent question I get off the back of my podcast is how do I study as a herbalist? This podcast, and final episode, aims to answer that question for anyone in the UK and gives some online options too.

The information in this podcast was true in 2018. Please check the course websites below to ensure nothing has changed since then. You’ll see from the list I’ve placed below how incredibly varied the courses are now but generally last 3 years. Although this is aimed at people wanting to practice as a herbalist you’ll find that almost every institution offers courses which suit those of you with a casual interest in herbal medicine for home use too.

Visit our website for the full list of courses.

http://foragebotanicals.co.uk/forage-botanicals/how-to-become-a-herbalist

Belle Benfield shares with us her deep rooted connection with Elecampane. She became a herbalist after years of studying on an apprenticeship with Karen and Fi from Sensory Solutions and now works side by side with them.

Elecampane is a root which is harvested in Autumn. I have grown this herb and candied it in the past for coughs but Belle raised other uses with me. Such as, it's amazing ability to kill MRSA! She also spoke about its associations with Helen of Troy and...

• Amparo's website:  www.bellebenfield.com 
• Sensory Solutions' website: www.sensorysolutions.co.uk
• Belle's seed pilgrimmage: https://seedpilgrimage.wordpress.com/

I was lucky enough to visit Cristina in person to record this episode and we had great fun enjoying a cup of Passion flower tea while we chatted. Passion flower is most commonly used to help with sleep and you'll find it in a lot of over the counter sleep tea mixes. But it's got so much more going on than its sedating properties. We talk about where the name comes from, its association with Jesus and how it has a kinda trippy vibe. 

In this episode I talk to Nathaniel Hughes about Mugwort. This wonderful herb is associated with magic and witchcraft. Nathan explains to us why that is as we delve into the world of Mugwort. We look at how it helps us to journey into our dreams and subconscious. How it helps to increase creativity and even helps us create life by treating some types of infertility. We speak about the 3 cauldrons and some other cool traditional Chinese medicine stuff that was new to me. We also got chatting about the virtues of studying herbs slowly and taking the time to get to really know them. 

In this episode we talk about Yarrow with Kathie Bishop. Kathie is a friend of mine who just happened to have written her dissertation on Yarrow! A happy discovery on my part. She taught me about some interesting folklore I didn't know about and we ended up talking a lot about vaginal steaming as Yarrow is so good for some women's health problems. She specialises in the subject of thrush and I really enjoyed talking to her. Hope you enjoy it too. 

In this episode we're talking about Lady's Mantle with Marie Reilly. A fantastic herbalist who knows SO much when it comes to women's health. We talk about her training in western herbal medicine, endobiogenics and Ayurvedic medicine. Marie explains why Vitex agnus cactus isn't always the answer to infertility problems or other hormonal imbalances and what herbs might be better. She helps me understand the causes of PMS among other problems like; thrush, fertility, leucorrhea, and cervical dysplasia. Tune in guys, this is a fact-packed episode on my favourite subject; women's health. 

Links for this episode:

Listen to Herbs course

Marie Reilly's website

In Episode 11 we talk about Cleavers with Katherine Bellchambers. She talks about how to store the fresh juice as ice cubes, save someone from anaphylactic shock and what it takes to make a wise herbalist. I also tell you about how I recovered from short-term adrenal fatigue in the last few weeks and all the amazing upcoming workshops I've got planned.

In this episode we talk about friendly Chamomile. We're all familiar with this herb but Lucy talks about the wonderful medicinal properties it has especially when it's made into a deep infusion. We talk about all sorts in this episode. I know Lucy well so we indulged quite a few tangents such as the politics of herbal medicine. 

This months episode is about the humble but handsome Nettle with Amy Dadachanji. After some technical issue we got really going and thoroughly enjoyed yabbering on about the alchemy of joining herbalist and medicine. Along with the magic of not getting stung by the Nettle. Amy had some great insights on recipes too. 

Here are the links we mentioned:

• The Listen course
• Amy's website
• Stroud community medicine garden
• Summer Seasonal Living course by Stitch + Forage
• Our upcoming herb walk

This month we talk to Samantha Entwisle about Rosehip. Rosehip was collected after world war two as it was a great source of vitamin C when oranges were not available. We talk about rosehip as a supplement and rosehip seed oil's amazing properties for the skin.

• Listen; Mystery Medicinal Herb Subscription
• Samantha's website
• Seeds and Stitches by Hannah Bullivant
• meetup.com for Wild Medicine Walks

Disclaimer: The information given in this podcast should not be used as medical advice. Please consult your medical professional before taking any advice given.