The new course dates have now been published for 2023. To apply for a place please click through to the form below.
This extended course is an amazing opportunity to embark on a journey of personal exploration, whilst deepening your connection to plant medicine, nature and the seasonal changes.
"I don’t think you could find such inspiring, passionate, and knowledgeable teachers anywhere. I have enjoyed an exciting year which has gradually brought me to a greater understanding of medicinal plants, my self in relation to them, and the environment they grow in. I now have the confidence to use them, the desire to learn more and hopefully the rest of my life to do so!" – Josephine
This extended course is an amazing opportunity to embark on a journey of personal exploration, whilst deepening your connection to plant medicine, nature and the seasonal changes.
"I don’t think you could find such inspiring, passionate, and knowledgeable teachers anywhere. I have enjoyed an exciting year which has gradually brought me to a greater understanding of medicinal plants, my self in relation to them, and the environment they grow in. I now have the confidence to use them, the desire to learn more and hopefully the rest of my life to do so!" – Josephine
This course will run over 7 full weekends (over 120 hours of teaching) from March to November, including an overnight trip as part of the July weekend away.
Each weekend we will visit particular ecosystems to harvest herbs, including meadows, river banks, conifer and deciduous woods, moorland and the coast. We will meet seasonal plants and learn how to identify them and use them medicinally. These weekends will usually consist of a day in nature and making medicines around Bristol and a day field trip to visit surrounding wild areas like the Forest of Dean, Somerset, The Cotswolds, and South Wales. The July weekend will be an overnight trip to the North Devon coast.
On this course you will learn how to identify and harvest native herbs in their natural habitats. There will be also be an emphasis on developing your knowledge of their medicinal uses and your medicine making skills. We will spend time tasting the fresh herbs, and expand and deepen your understanding of them. Every weekend will mix factual and practical learning as well as spending meditative time with the plants and the natural environment. We will cover diverse subjects such as building physical resilience with herbs, digestion, emotional health, immunity, and longevity.
As well as numerous herbs, we will also cover other wild medicines such as trees, seaweeds, mushrooms.
Between the weekends we will encourage you to keep up with the learning so that you develop a deep knowledge of at least 5 native medicinal plants that you have chosen as your allies.
Course outline and months:
23rd and 24th March
Medicinal Trees will be our first weekend which will focus on all the local medicinal trees that we use, harvesting the bark, and collecting sap and resins to make medicine.
20th and 21st April
Spring Blooms and Bitter Greens will be our second weekend covering spring herbs, juicing, herbal vinegars, honeys and oxymels. We will discuss digestion, and liver function.
15th and 16th June
Aromatic Medicines will be our third weekend and will look at all those herbs high in essential oils and their effect on our emotional and physical health. We will make aromatic hydrosols and tinctures from the herbs we have harvested.
6th and 7th July
Coastal Flowers and Seaweeds will be the fourth weekend spent by the North Devon coast, staying overnight. It will cover the coastal medicinal flowers and native seaweeds.
14th and 15th September
Roots & Fruits will be our fifth weekend and will look at the uses of different roots and fruits around Bristol and a trip to the Welsh coast. We will explore the therapeutics of immunity and adaptogens whilst making tonics, syrups and oxymels.
19th and 20th October
Medicinal Mushrooms will be our sixth session and will cover the medicinal uses of local fungi, mushroom forays into local woods to harvest medicinal species and make medicine.
15th and 16th November
Entheogens. For the final weekend, we will look at all the plants that have historically been used for spiritual practice, focusing on our native ones. We will also continue our journey of making medicine from medicinal mushrooms and review everything we’ve learned throughout the course and share our personal reflections.
By the end of the course you will feel confident in harvesting different types of native medicinal plants and have developed your medicine making skills. You will know more about how to use the medicines you’ve made to improve your health and wellbeing. You will have connected to a variety of ecosystems and learned how to explore your personal connection to the plants. Most importantly we hope you will have enjoyed yourselves.
As part of this course we will be spending a lot of time outside in all weathers, including walking some distances and sitting or lying on the ground. The day lengths vary slightly but are usually from 10am to around 5 pm. We are rarely near toilets so it will be wild weeing. It is important to consider this when choosing whether you would like to join this course.
Each weekend we will visit particular ecosystems to harvest herbs, including meadows, river banks, conifer and deciduous woods, moorland and the coast. We will meet seasonal plants and learn how to identify them and use them medicinally. These weekends will usually consist of a day in nature and making medicines around Bristol and a day field trip to visit surrounding wild areas like the Forest of Dean, Somerset, The Cotswolds, and South Wales. The July weekend will be an overnight trip to the North Devon coast.
On this course you will learn how to identify and harvest native herbs in their natural habitats. There will be also be an emphasis on developing your knowledge of their medicinal uses and your medicine making skills. We will spend time tasting the fresh herbs, and expand and deepen your understanding of them. Every weekend will mix factual and practical learning as well as spending meditative time with the plants and the natural environment. We will cover diverse subjects such as building physical resilience with herbs, digestion, emotional health, immunity, and longevity.
As well as numerous herbs, we will also cover other wild medicines such as trees, seaweeds, mushrooms.
Between the weekends we will encourage you to keep up with the learning so that you develop a deep knowledge of at least 5 native medicinal plants that you have chosen as your allies.
Course outline and months:
23rd and 24th March
Medicinal Trees will be our first weekend which will focus on all the local medicinal trees that we use, harvesting the bark, and collecting sap and resins to make medicine.
20th and 21st April
Spring Blooms and Bitter Greens will be our second weekend covering spring herbs, juicing, herbal vinegars, honeys and oxymels. We will discuss digestion, and liver function.
15th and 16th June
Aromatic Medicines will be our third weekend and will look at all those herbs high in essential oils and their effect on our emotional and physical health. We will make aromatic hydrosols and tinctures from the herbs we have harvested.
6th and 7th July
Coastal Flowers and Seaweeds will be the fourth weekend spent by the North Devon coast, staying overnight. It will cover the coastal medicinal flowers and native seaweeds.
14th and 15th September
Roots & Fruits will be our fifth weekend and will look at the uses of different roots and fruits around Bristol and a trip to the Welsh coast. We will explore the therapeutics of immunity and adaptogens whilst making tonics, syrups and oxymels.
19th and 20th October
Medicinal Mushrooms will be our sixth session and will cover the medicinal uses of local fungi, mushroom forays into local woods to harvest medicinal species and make medicine.
15th and 16th November
Entheogens. For the final weekend, we will look at all the plants that have historically been used for spiritual practice, focusing on our native ones. We will also continue our journey of making medicine from medicinal mushrooms and review everything we’ve learned throughout the course and share our personal reflections.
By the end of the course you will feel confident in harvesting different types of native medicinal plants and have developed your medicine making skills. You will know more about how to use the medicines you’ve made to improve your health and wellbeing. You will have connected to a variety of ecosystems and learned how to explore your personal connection to the plants. Most importantly we hope you will have enjoyed yourselves.
As part of this course we will be spending a lot of time outside in all weathers, including walking some distances and sitting or lying on the ground. The day lengths vary slightly but are usually from 10am to around 5 pm. We are rarely near toilets so it will be wild weeing. It is important to consider this when choosing whether you would like to join this course.
Cost
There are three tiers to our sliding scale and guidelines to what that means.
These are very rough guidelines so please pay the tier that you feel comfortable with. No judgement, just get in touch if you have queries. We are striving to keep things affordable whilst making our living.
Top tier £1750
So this is the tier that is appropriate if any of these apply to you: You have a full time reasonably paid job, home/land owner, you are able to afford holidays and other luxuries
Middle tier £1400
So this is the tier that is appropriate if any of these apply to you: low waged or part-time waged or struggling to afford holidays/luxuries.
Low tier £1200
This is the tier for those who are unwaged or struggling financially.
A £300 deposit is required to secure a place on the course.
The deposit is only refundable up to 12th January 2024, after which time the full balance is due. You can either pay the full balance by March 1st 2024, or pay in two instalments, the first one by March 1st 2024, and the second by July 1st 2024. The course fee is non-refundable.
There are three tiers to our sliding scale and guidelines to what that means.
These are very rough guidelines so please pay the tier that you feel comfortable with. No judgement, just get in touch if you have queries. We are striving to keep things affordable whilst making our living.
Top tier £1750
So this is the tier that is appropriate if any of these apply to you: You have a full time reasonably paid job, home/land owner, you are able to afford holidays and other luxuries
Middle tier £1400
So this is the tier that is appropriate if any of these apply to you: low waged or part-time waged or struggling to afford holidays/luxuries.
Low tier £1200
This is the tier for those who are unwaged or struggling financially.
A £300 deposit is required to secure a place on the course.
The deposit is only refundable up to 12th January 2024, after which time the full balance is due. You can either pay the full balance by March 1st 2024, or pay in two instalments, the first one by March 1st 2024, and the second by July 1st 2024. The course fee is non-refundable.
