Virtual Herbstalk

Virtual Herbstalk
< DATES TBD >

IN SOLIDARITY
THIS EVENT -- ORIGINALLY SCHEDULED FOR
JUNE 6 & 7 -- WAS POSTPONED

Just as you are, we are anguished by the persistence of racism and injustice in our country, and we are standing in solidarity with our Black brothers and sisters.

We are postponing our virtual event(s) to a later, more appropriate date.

Thank you for your support. We truly hope to gather with you before too long, and we'll stay in touch about future events.

We hope you'll join us in solidarity by listening to, learning from, and donating to the Black community:

Black Lives Matter Boston
Minnesota Freedom Fund
Black Visions Collective
Reclaim The Block
Color of Change
NAACP Legal Defense Fund

Free Online Classes

Join us on Facebook and Instagram from 10 am - 5 pm for online virtual classes. Our classes will feature a variety of holistic, herbal, and healing-based seminars.

To view, simply go on the Herbstalk Facebook page between the appropriate times, or head to our Instagram account to watch live.

Check out our class schedule below for more details.

In between classes, you'll hear messages from our wonderful partners, too!

Virtual Marketplace

Shop our vendors' online shops below, and browse their incredible array of handmade products. Many of our vendors are offering discounts for all purchases this weekend using the coupon code HERBSTALK2020.

You can see more details about their products and hear messages from our vendors on our social media throughout the whole weekend.

To tune in, visit our Instagram account and click on the “live” story to view short clips from vendors all weekend.

Herbstalk Vendors
Shop Online All Weekend

Please visit these wonderful businesses to support their work!
Many of our vendors are offering discounts
using the coupon code HERBSTALK2020.

Discounts from participating vendors range from free shipping to 20% off their products.

Tune into our Instagram account @herbstalk
to hear messages from these inspirational businesses all weekend!

Thank you to our amazing partners
for making Herbstalk events possible!

Because of their generous support Herbstalk is able to offer free
and low-cost herbal education. Check out their offerings here:

Virtual Class Schedule
Dates TBD
Please check back!

Be sure to tune in from 10am to 5pm on our Facebook page
and Instagram account to view these free classes.

< Recordings will be available to watch later if you miss anything! >

Watch the following classes on our Facebook page

11:00 AM
Home Nursing Skills
with Katja Swift & Ryn Midura
< Watch on our Facebook page >

It’s not just coronavirus, there’s a lot going on right now! Between the usual circulating strains of flu, some spring colds, and the stirrings of allergy season, plenty of folks are feeling rough. But it’s up to all of us to reduce strain on the medical system right now, so it’s more important than ever that we learn some herbal home nursing basics. These skills can help us to deal with minor issues on our own, so the health care workers can focus where they’re really needed.

12:00 PM
North African Indigenous Traditions
with Leila Bihkak Gutierrez
< Watch on our Facebook page >

Join Jaia on this exploration of ancestral wisdom through her North African indigenous folklore, mythology & mysticism. Many of us are embarking on a journey of cultural empowerment as we reconnect to our ancestral legacy. Through this class, highlighting her Amazigh indigenous roots and how her ancestors influenced many cultures of the region, Jaia aims to leave you feeling empowered to break free from patriarchal constructs and to conduct your own research in an enlightened manner as you embrace the wisdom your DNA carries.

1:00 PM
Herbs for Seasonal Allergies
with Hannah Jacobson-Hardy
< Watch on our Facebook page >

Seasonal allergies got you down? Herbal remedies have been used for hundreds of years to prevent and relieve allergies. Learn which plants can be made into remedies for giving you relief during allergy season.

2:00 PM
Medicinal Garden Tour
with Lindsay Chimileski
< Watch on our Facebook page >

Join in for a tour through medicinal garden beds, lovingly cultivated by naturopathic physicians and students. Dr. Lindsay Chimileski will walk with the herbs and share their historical medicinal uses. We may see elecampane, althea, belladonna, hawthorn, melissa, yarrow, nettles, tussilago, motherwort, bloodroot, eleuthero, teasel, chelidonium, goji berries, wormwood, purslane, plantain, balloon flower, astragalus, valerian, passion flower, hops, artichoke, rue, datura, saint johns wort, echinacea, spearmint, ziziphus, albizia and more.

3:00 PM
Tick Bite Protocol
Jade Alicandro Mace
< Watch on our Facebook page >

Addressing tick bites, which are the vectors for potential infection, is an important part of Lyme Disease and co-infection prevention. In this class Jade will share her herbal protocol including herbs to use directly on the bite, internal herbal support, and dietary recommendations as well.

4:00 PM
Intro to Herb Gardening
with Jenny Hauf
< Watch on our Facebook page >

Are you longing for an herb garden filled with beautiful and aromatic plants well-suited to both your teapot and the wildlife in your neighborhood? No matter what space you have, whether it's a backyard, windowsill, or fire escape, this class will help you to plan an herb garden gorgeously suited to your space.We'll also be discussing a few of the easiest herbs for beginner gardeners, such as aloe, tulsi, and calendula.

5:00 PM
Finding Light in Litha: How to Create a Special Celebration from Home
with Marissa Ranahan
< Watch on our Facebook page >

During this class, we'll go into an in-depth overview of the holiday Litha, as celebrated during the Wheel of the Year. We'll discuss the different herbs involves in Litha, their spiritual meaning, and how you can use them to connect to the spiritual holiday. We'll also explore fun ways to connect to the earth during this holiday, including altar tips, crafts and creations, and how to connect with the sun.

Watch the following classes on Instagram Live @herbstalk

10:00 AM
Circling Together
with Steph Zabel
< Join on Instagram and follow @herbstalk and @steph_zabel >

In this brief guided meditation we will join together to create an energetic space for our community. We will connect in with our hearts and with the spirit of the Earth, and we will set intentions for a harmonious future for all of life on our beloved planet.

10:30 AM
Creating and Maintaining Your
Sourdough Starter
with Grace Chang
< Join on Instagram & follow @herbstalk and @icultureculture >

Join Grace Chang on this live feed and learn how to create a sourdough starter from scratch. She will also teach on how to maintain and "wake up" your starter for maximum effect in your baking and culinary ventures. Grace will field any questions you may have as time permits. If you would like to get a jump start with a sourdough starter kit, you can order one at http://icultureculture.wixsite.com/store. With the kit, your new starter will be revving and ready to go in a couple of days.

11:30 AM
Fermented Herbal Sodas
with Brittany Nickerson
< Join on Instagram and follow @herbstalk and @thymeherbal >

Wild fermented and naturally carbonated herbal sodas, sweetened with unprocessed sweeteners, are outrageously easy to make and totally delicious. Fermented herbal sodas contain beneficial bacteria that nourish the digestive system, support absorption of nutrients, build immunity, and help create overall systemic balance. In this class, Brittany will demonstrate how to make your own herbal sodas and give you lots of recipe ideas to try out at home.

12:30 PM
A Community Discussion on Natural Products
with Joye Williams
< Join on Instagram and follow @herbstalk and @joyefullynatural >

Join Joye of Joyefully Natural in an interactive discussion around natural personal care products. Come ready to share your views, opinions, and experiences on today’s growing natural products industry. Are natural ingredients in your personal care products important to you? How do you learn about natural products in today’s environment? Together we can learn from each other’s experiences and perceptions so that we can better navigate and align with our goals in this self-care journey.

1:30 PM
Spring Green Vinegar
with Maggie Haaland
< Join on Instagram and follow @herbstalk and @maggieruth >

Come learn how to make an infused vinegar with wild spring greens that you can forage in your neighborhood. Maggie will talk about the nutritive magic of greens and share some spring wellness practices, as well as how the medicine of sour is a beloved ally for this time of the year.

2:30 PM
Dyeing with Nettle
with Amy Lou Stein
< Join on Instagram and follow @herbstalk and @craftworksomerville >

Amy Lou Stein is constantly exploring the glory of the plant world in all its facets. Through her studio “Craftwork Somerville” she curates and teaches classes on natural dyeing, herbalism, fiber crafts, the zodiac and more. Please join her as she walks you through the process of natural dyeing with nettles and a few other easily found plants.

3:30 PM
Plant Medicine + Meditation to Restore Your Nervous System
with Nicole Lebreaux
< Join on Instagram & follow @herbstalk and @nicolelebreaux >

In this interactive class you will learn meditation practices + breathing techniques to help bring peace and relaxation into all parts of your being. Also meet plant medicine allies that have an affinity towards supporting your nervous system.

4:30 PM
Plant Allies for Resiliency
with Irischa Valentin
< Join on Instagram and follow @herbstalk and @delatierrabotanicals >

In this mini-workshop, we learn to remember and re-learn the plant beings that uphold our resilience. We learn from the plants/herbs that support our ability to protect ourselves in challenging times.

Our Teachers

<< Listed in order of the above class schedule >>

KATJA SWIFT & RYN MIDURA
CommonWealth Center for Holistic Herbalism
@commonwealthherbs

Katja & Ryn are a wife-and-husband team who founded the CommonWealth Center for Holistic Herbalism in 2010. They offer online and in-person instruction in foundational, advanced, and clinical herbalism, as well as holistic business building, movement skills, and wilderness first aid. Learn more and take a free mini-course at commonwealthherbs.com!

STEPH ZABEL
Flowerfolk Herbs and Herbstalk
@steph_zabel

Steph Zabel is a mother, gardener, herbalist, facilitator of community and student of the wisdom traditions. In 2011 she created Herbstalk; her vision with this work is to inspire as many people as possible to embrace herbalism in their daily lives. Steph draws upon her Celtic heritage and the earth-based spirituality of her ancestors. It is her joy to help others remember the beauty of the natural world, the wisdom of the heart, and our inherent connections to both Earth & Spirit.

LEILA BIHKAK GUTIERREZ
JAIA DEVI
@jaiadevi

Jaïa Devi is a global citizen. Indigenous to North Africa, she was born in Colombia, raised in Morocco, she has then bloomed in Canada and more recently in the United States of America. She carried on her studies of the healing arts, earth based spirituality and mental health. Jaïa bridges her understanding of the mind, body & soul connection in her practice through a non dogmatic and accessible approach. Deeply rooted in trauma theory, Jaïa Devi cultivates an authentic and non-competitive space for growth.

GRACE CHANG
I Culture Culture
@icultureculture

With her pastry, culinary and architecture background, Grace Chang strives to use the totality of her experience to create delectable fermented foods and beverages and solid sustainable design. She hopes to be fermenting from various cultures with her startup Culture Culture and she'll show you some kits and products after the workshop, so stick around.

HANNAH JACOBSON-HARDY
Sweet Birch Herbals
@sweet_birch_herbals

Hannah is a community herbalist and founder of Full Moon Ghee and Sweet Birch Herbals in Ashfield, MA. Hannah offers herbal consultations, custom made formulas and teas, workshops, and a wide variety of products for sale, including Full Moon Ghee at the Farmer’s Market in Northampton. Learn more about where to find ghee at fullmoonghee.com or contact hannah@fullmoonghee.com

BRITTANY NICKERSON
Thyme Herbal
@thymeherbal

Brittany is an herbalist, author, health educator, and cook. She combines knowledge of nutrition and a passion for using food as medicine with her training in Western, Ayurvedic and Chinese herbal medicine. She teaches at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and is the organizer of the Northampton/Amherst Herbal Meet-up group. She is the author of Recipes from the Herbalist’s Kitchen, The Herbal Homestead Journal, Sacred & Mysterious, Cooking for Winter Health Wellness, and Spring Cleaning.

LINDSAY CHIMILESKI
Hawthorn Holistic Health
@hawthornholistichealth

Lindsay is a naturopathic physician, acupuncturist, registered herbalist, professor, naturalist, lifestyle coach, writer and public speaker. She is an expert in local plant identification and continues to explore more in the world of mushrooms. She is an adjunct faculty member at the University of Bridgeport College of Naturopathic Medicine. In her spare time, she enjoys nature, greenhouses, hiking, and practicing yoga.

AMY LOU STEIN
Craftwork Somerville
@craftworksomerville

Amy Lou Stein is constantly exploring the glory of the plant world in all its facets. The color, smell, structure and spirit of flora everywhere—in the backyard, forest and field—inspire and deepen her love of plants. Through her studio “Craftwork Somerville” she curates and teaches classes on natural dyeing, herbalism, fiber crafts, the zodiac and more

JADE ALICANDRO MACE
Milk and Honey Herbs
@milkandhoneyherbs

Jade Alicandro Mace weaves a love of bioregionally abundant herbs and kitchen medicine into her work as a community and clinical herbalist. Through her Patreon community she offers monthly online classes and plant study groups, and she teaches an online kitchen herbalism course each winter as well. She draws on the wisdom and traditions of her Sud Italian (Campania, Sicily) and Greek ancestral lineages and makes her home in the rolling hills of western Massachusetts in Nipmuk territory.

MAGGIE HAALAND
@maggieruth

Maggie is a folk herbalist, gardener, pond swimmer and natural dyer living in western Massachusetts. She has studied with Steph Zabel, Jade Allicandro Mace, and Bryonie Wise over the past 8 years of plant exploration. She believes deeply in the power of vulnerability and community, and through her work seeks to nourish connection with ourselves, the natural world, and each other. She's very grateful to consider Herbstalk one of her heart homes.

JENNY HAUF
Muddy River Herbals
@muddyriverherbals

Jenny Hauf was raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on a steady diet of Laura Ingalls Wilder, L.M. Montgomery, and the wild shades of green found in her father's and grandparents' gardens. In 2015 she created Muddy River Herbals, an herb farm devoted to bringing a wealth of herbs, biodiversity, and community to the Boston area. Jenny is a writer, ecological landscaper, and educator who has taught workshops about herbs at the Harvard Medical School and elsewhere throughout eastern Massachusetts.

JOYE WILLIAMS
Joyefully Natural
@joyefullynatural

Joye is the founder of JoyefullyNatural, whose mission is to create handcrafted organic herbal remedies and share insight on wellness and self care. Joyefully Natural also serves as an advocate for environmental protection and collaboration with other industries such as food and retail. Her work involves spiritual wellness, with products made in small batches in ritually cleansed spaces. JoyefullyNatural also holds one on one connections to provide custom herbal remedies to meet an individual's needs.

MARISSA RANAHAN
@mindfullymarissa
Marissa has been drawn to the world of aromatics and plants since she was a child. Certified in aromatherapy, Reiki, and meditation, she is also a holistic life coach, and works towards helping others heal while simultaneously getting in touch with their spiritual side. As Herbstalk's Market Manager & Community Engagement Assistant, Marissa draws upon years of experience to oversee vendor relations, event management, and social media outreach.

NICOLE LEBREAUX
Cosmic Earth Collective
@nicolelebreaux

Nicole Lebreux is a community herbalist, yoga teacher, and meditation guide who lives and works in coastal Rhode Island on sovereign Wampanoag land. She specializes in teaching people how to deeply connect with their multidimensional selves and the living world within and around them through simple everyday techniques that are available to all. In her offerings there are no expectations and no judgments. Nicole holds space for you to strengthen your intuition, commune with the earth, and connect with Source Energy whatever that looks like and feels like for you.

IRISCHA VALENTIN
@delatierrabotanicals

Irischa is a community herbalist based in the Wampanoag/Massachusetts territory. Irischa brings her Caribbean culture and connection into her plant-spirit world. She enjoys sharing wisdom about plant-healing medicines through workshops, discussions, and community-centered events. Her belief in social justice & equity drives her herbal work to often marginalized and historically oppressed communities. Irischa studied plant medicine at The Gaia School of Healing and Earth Education, she completed an herbal apprenticeship focused on women’s health (Spiral Path) at Twin Star and studied aromatherapy at The Eclectic Institute of Aromatherapy and Herbal.

Other Ways to Be Involved & Celebrate Herbstalk Together:

~ Comment and ask questions during the classes on Facebook and Instagram

~ Pre-order delicious meals from our beloved food vendor, Farmacy Cafe, for delivery to the Boston area.

~ Make our official Herbstalk beverage, Lavender Linden Lemonade, which we can all drink together:

In a quart-sized jar place 2 tablespoons dried linden and 1/2 tablespoon dried lavender flowers (or more, to taste).
Cut a fresh lemon into quarters, squeeze the juice into the jar, and place the rest of the lemon in with the herbs.
Cover all ingredients with freshly boiled water and let steep for 20 minutes.
Strain out the herbs and add raw honey or maple syrup to taste. Let cool and drink over ice. Enjoy!

~ Sign up for a virtual Gaian tarot reading with Tarot Blessings, who has been offering readings at Herbstalk since the very beginning!

~ Share how you're celebrating on social media! #virtualherbstalk2020

Want to Learn More About Lavender, Our Herbstalk Plant-of-the-Year?

Check out this FREE course offered by the wonderful CommonWealth Center for Holistic Herbalism.

In this course, you’ll learn how to work with Lavender to strengthen digestive health, to work with sports injuries, to manage burns, and of course to boost mood and aid in relaxation. You’ll also learn how to grow your own Lavender and harvest it too!

<< Use the Herbstalk coupon code, "HERBSTALK2020" upon check-out to receive this course for free >>

Thank you, CommonWealth Center!

Help Support Herbstalk's Home: The Center for the Arts at the Armory

If you appreciate these free Herbstalk classes please consider donating a few dollars to the Armory relief fund to help our event venue make it through these challenging times.

The Center for the Arts at the Armory has been our beloved event venue for nearly a decade. We are so grateful for their existence and their ability to hold and support community & cultural events, educational gatherings, and farmers markets.

Like many organizations, they are in a difficult time and are asking for support. If you are able to, please consider making a donation to their COVID19 relief fund so that we can all experience the magic of the Armory again soon.

Without the Armory there is no Herbstalk and we want to see this wonderful organization continue to thrive for years to come. Learn more here.