Finding Contentment

My introduction to herbs

01:36 PM, Saturday, January 5, 2008 .. Posted in Gardening .. 2 comments .. Link

Another one of my goals for the new year (see sidebar) includes learning all about herbs. I want to learn how to grow them, and how to use them for medicinal, culinary and aromatherapy purposes. But the world of herbs is a very big world!

There is so much to learn. It’s going to take me years so I figured I better get started! I found that there are many online distance programs in which I could get a Master Herbalist degree in about three years, which sounds great. The problem is, they cost money – anywhere between $1,500 and $4,000. And that’s money we can’t afford right now.

I researched for days, and finally found one Web site that offers a couple of free courses for beginners. The courses are very short, and just barely touch on the topics. But they are free.

Learning Herbs offers a “Supermarket Herbalism” course that touches on a few medicinal remedies using items you can get at the grocery store. And if you sign up for their free electronic newsletter, you can take the “Home Remedy Secrets” course – which is a lot like “Supermarket Herbalism” but is a little more in depth.

The Web site itself also offers a plethora of information. It is put out by the Gallagher family. The Gallaghers homeschool their two children and are big believers in herbal remedies. They also offer a kit that comes with everything you need to make the herbal tinctures, teas and salves mentioned in the “Home Remedy Secrets” course.

The Ghallagher family

I realize I sound like a commercial, but when I find something really great I like to pass it on. It was great to find a site offering some kind of course for free, even if they aren't in-depth courses like you would find in a school. And I always love to support other homeschooling families!

I also ordered a board game they created called Wildcraft. On their Web site, I learned that “wildcrafting” refers to harvesting herbs and plants from the wild, as opposed to from a garden. The game was delivered right away and the kids and I spent a few hours Friday playing.

Our new Wildcraft game

It was educational, teaching both the kids and I the names of various herbs and on which ailments they can be effective. I also liked that the game wasn’t competitive at all. Everyone had to work together as a team to finish the game.

Alli, Justin and Adam use the Wildcraft game to learn about herbs.

Anyway, this was our first step in conquering our goal of learning all about herbs and how to use them. Prepare to hear a lot more in the coming months!