Herb Mentor Radio

Demetria Clark has written one of the best books on using herbs with kids we’ve seen: Herbal Healing for Children: A Parent’s Guide to Treatments for Common Childhood Illnesses. Demetria is a North American herbalist specializing in herbals for pregnancy, birth, postpartum, nursing, and children. She is a traditional family herbalist. She has worked with families for over 20 years as an herbalist,...

Isla Burgess, DipPE DipTchg DipHerbMed MNZAMH MNHAA, has been an educator for the past 40 years, currently, the Director of the International College of Herbal Medicine, was the founding Director of the Waikato Center for Herbal Medicine in New Zealand, and is a convenor for the International Research Group for the Conservation of Medicinal Plants. Isla is a graduate in Education of the University...

Jim McDonald joins us once again on HerbMentor Radio for a double-length episode focused on herbs for back pain. Jim covers nutrition and bodywork as well as the major categories of how to look at and treat back injuries, such as muscle pain, spasm, inflammatory pain, and nerve pain. Also, lubrication of joints and tissue, fluid stagnation, structural integrity, how to customize a treatment, and m...

Author and naturalist Jon Young takes you behind the scenes of Wildcraft! and LearningHerbs.com in a special episode called “Mentoring Kids & Nature Connection.” Why are relationships with nature more important than information? What is Nature Deficit Disorder? Does your child have it? What is the number one secret to nature's connection? How do you share curiosity with kids? What are “kid tra...

J.T. is a Seattle-based herbalist and mom. She’s an old friend of mine who started the same herbal apprenticeship that I did in 1998 before my son Rowan was born. Since she started learning about local plants and how to use them, J.T. has come up with creative ways of gathering herbs and using them to nourish her family. Like myself, J.T. is a family and community-centered herbalist. Not only does...

Karta Purkh (K.P.) Singh Khalsa, L.M.T., N.C.T.M.B., D.N.-C., R.H., C.C., is one of the foremost herbal experts in the field today. He is one of the very few practitioners with over thirty-five years of experience in the natural healing field. He is a senior editor for The Harvard University Natural Standard and a professor at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and Bastyr Univer...

Todd Caldecott is a Medical Herbalist and practitioner of Ayurvedic medicine, author of the textbook Ayurveda: The Divine Science of Life, Food as Medicine: The Theory and Practice of Food and an editor of a text on Nepalese ethnobotany called Ayurveda in Nepal. Todd teaches and practices in the Vancouver, BC area in Canada. He also works as a consultant in the natural products industry. Todd was...

Phyllis Light is a fourth-generation herbalist and healer and has worked with herbs and in natural health for over 30 years. Her studies began in the deep woods of Northern Alabama, and now Phyllis lectures in herb schools, universities, medical schools, hospitals, and health conferences. In addition to Traditional Folk studies, Phyllis has studied Traditional Western Herbalism, Nutrition, Exercis...

Roy Upton, RH, DAy has been working and practicing professionally as an herbalist since 1981. Trained in ayurvedic, Chinese, and western herbal medicine traditions Roy is the founder, executive director, and editor of the American Herbal Pharmacopoeia, is a co-founder, past president, and vice-president of the American Herbalists Guild (AHG), and serves on the Committee of Revision for the United...

Michael Pilarski is a farmer, educator, and author who has devoted his life to studying and teaching how people can live sustainably on this Earth. He has extensive experience in organic farming, seed collecting, wildcrafting medicinal herbs, plant propagation, horticulture, teaching, and international networking. He founded Friends of the Trees Society in 1978 and has authored many books on fores...

Timothy Lee Scott is an acupuncturist and herbalist with a master’s in Traditional Chinese Medicine. His book, Invasive Plant Medicine, demonstrates the ecological benefits and healing abilities of invasive plants. Timothy studied extensively with Stephen Buhner, who wrote the forward to his book. Working with Buhner led him to work in the area of Lyme’s disease treatments, and Tim later formed Gr...

Brigitte Mars is an herbalist, author, raw foods chef, and nutritional consultant from Boulder, Colorado. Brigitte has been teaching for over 40 years, most recently Naropa University, Boulder College of Massage, and Bauman College of Holistic Nutrition. Brigitte is a professional member of The American Herbalists Guild. Her many book titles include The Desktop Guide to Herbal Medicine, Addiction-...

Caroline Gagnon started teaching and practicing herbalism in 1995, and is co-founder and director of the FloraMedicina School of Herbal Studies in Montreal, Quebec. She also helped create the professional wing of the Guilde des Herboristes (Herbalist Guild) in Montreal. In this episode, Caroline and I explore plant energetics in a way we’ve never discussed on HerbMentor Radio. We can all learn to...

David Bruce Leonard is a practitioner and teacher of all five branches of Chinese medicine: acupuncture, herbal medicine, massage, food medicine, and martial arts. Besides studying traditional medicines with healers in Asia, North and South America, David also studied Hawaiian native plants for over 20 years and is the author of Medicine at Your Feet: Healing Plants of the Hawaiian Kingdom and Wil...

Emily Ruff is a community herbalist and health educator who has practiced the art and science of plant healing for over a decade. Her studies have taken her to three continents, where she has studied under indigenous healers of many traditions. She also apprenticed for many years with Rosemary Gladstar. Emily founded Orenda Herbals and is director of the Florida School of Holistic Living. Through...

The microphone is turned as John Gallagher, host of HerbMentor Radio, is interviewed by Rosalee de la Forêt in 2012. HerbMentor members asked for it, and John was happy to sit down and reveal the string of random events that lead to the creation of HerbMentor. How did spraying weeds with herbicide begin John on his herbal journey? Why is a dandelion in the LearningHerbs logo? How is Bruce Springst...

Margi Flint practices herbalism in the seacoast town of Marblehead, Massachusetts, and over the last 30 years has become their village herbalist. She is an adjunct professor at North Shore Community College, The Tufts University School of Medicine, Bastyr University, Pacific Rim College, and the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy. Margi is the author of the textbook, The Practicing Herbalist: Meeti...

Rebecca Altman is an herbalist, writer, and proprietor of Kings Road Apothecary. As a Scottish herbalist wildcrafting in Los Angeles, she has acclimated well to the Southwest by coming up with herbal remedies that are as unique as she is. Ocotillo blossom elixir, peach leaf and wild rose calming potion, busted joint ointment, white fir and juniper incense, and white sage chaparral salve are just a...

Sunny Savage is a wild foodie, filmmaker, and homeschooling parent traveling with the wind … aboard a sailboat with her husband and son. She has a Master’s degree in Nutrition Education and taught native nutrition at the White Earth Tribal & Community College. Her ancestry includes pirates, diplomats, farmers, to writers of the French constitution. Her ancestor, Thomas Savage, arrived in James...

Rosemary Gladstar is the author of several books, including the bestseller Herbal Healing for Women and A Family Herbal. She has taught herbs extensively throughout the U.S. and has led travel adventures worldwide. Rosemary has founded the California School of Herbal Studies, United Plant Savers, co-founded Sage Mountain Herbs and is a founding member of the Northeast Herb Association. Her experie...

A well-known and respected member of the Meso-American Zapotecan people located in Oaxaca, Dona Enriqueta Contreras is a descendant of a long line of Zapoteca shamans that date back to 500 B.C. Dona Enriqueta owns and operates a health clinic for her community, as well as for international visitors, in the small town of San Francisco Tutla. Her history as a practicing midwife of more than fifty ye...

David Hoffmann, B.Sc., F.N.I.M.H. has traveled the world, run for Parliament on a Green Party ticket, and has been an activist in the Green and Peace movements for longer than he cares to remember. He is the author of 17 books, his latest is a textbook on science and clinical skills for phytotherapists entitled Medical Herbalism, published by Inner Traditions. These accomplishments aside, David, a...

Lesley Tierra, L.AC., AHG is a California State and nationally certified acupuncturist and herbalist. In her practice, she combines acupuncture, herb, and food therapies along with lifestyle and inner growth counseling. She is a founding professional member of the American Herbalists Guild. Lesley is the author of Healing with the Herbs of Life and Healing with Chinese Herbs. She collaborated with...

Will Endres is an herbalist, wildcrafter, and outdoor guide with more than 40 years of experience. Originally from West Virginia, Will studied 28 years with herb doctor and healer CF “Catfish” Gray. He has had many herbal elders and has been deeply influenced by the traditional Cherokee approach to plants and medicine. Will runs “Will’s Wild Herbs” in North Carolina, and has been in business for 3...

Sandor Katz returns to HerbMentor Radio in celebration of his new book, The Art of Fermentation: An In-Depth Exploration of Essential Concepts and Processes from Around the World. This nearly 500-page volume gives practical information on fermenting vegetables, fruits, grains, milk, beans, meats, and more. It has a forward by Michael Pollan and is published by Chelsea Green. Sandor is also the aut...