Image: Author and herbalist Jean Willoughby (left) and visual artist Kara McSpadden (right) check out a copy of Nature’s Remedies after its release.
I grew up playing in the dirt and growing vegetables and flowers in our front yard. From around the age of seven, thanks to an older sister with a green thumb, I got hooked on cultivating cherry tomatoes (like growing your own candy to a child) and worshipped my morning glories. Those were my gateway shrubs. Three decades later, part of me is still that kid in the dirt just as awestruck by growing, flowering, fruiting things as I’ve ever been.
After college in Connecticut and a few years in New York City, I packed up everything and moved with my partner to rural North Carolina where we learned a lot about how to farm and (cue the fiddles) even more about how not to farm.
The idea for botanical culture was born between a teeming market garden on 12 acres and a back porch garden on 0 acres. Growing for a few years helped me figure out what I really wanted to do, as it does for so many of us wayward youth.
Today I have about 12 years of experience growing, producing, and recommending botanical medicines. In 2015, I wrote Nature’s Remedies: An Illustrated Guide to Healing Herbs, which was published by Chronicle Books.
As a clinical herbalist, I’m dedicated to serving my community and clients with supportive approaches to health and herbal medicines that are safe, effective, and affordable. Throughout my years of training at David Winston’s Center for Herbal Studies and the Herbal Academy of New England, I’ve been as impressed by the skills and knowledge of my fellow herbalists as I have been by the healing potential of medicinal herbs. To share David Winston’s philosophy, which also guides my approach: “Great herbalists treat people, not diseases.”
After an educational journey that has included a Bachelor’s in Sociology at Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT, working in community health centers, another decade working in the food system with farmers and land trusts, and going back to school to study Biology at the University of North Carolina – Greensboro. My formal education includes training in Anatomy and Physiology, Botany, Phytochemistry, Classical and Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ayurvedic Medicine, and major schools of Traditional Western Medicine. I continue to build on my training through reading, conferences, webinars, and courses with doctors, naturopathic physicians, and other herbalists.
Botanical Culture is a labor of love and a life-long homage to herbal medicine. From well-known herbs to lesser-known herbalists, my team and I are excited to introduce you to some of the best in the botanical world.
My goal is to document, share, and use what I learn to help people live healthier lives and contribute to a sense of wonder and respect for botanical culture worldwide. At heart, I consider myself a community organizer and lifelong student of the natural world. Here’s a little more about the specific stuff I’ve dedicated myself to learning more about.
My formal education includes:
- Biology and chemistry
- Botany, phytochemistry, and herb-drug interactions
- Herbal history and traditions
- Holistic approaches to health
- Assessment and therapeutics
- Evaluating scientific research with focus on human health and nutrition
- Anatomy and physiology focused on:
- Blood, lymph, and mucous membranes
- Endocrine system
- Sexual and reproductive health and wellness
- Musculoskeletal system
- Pain management
I also have formal training related to the nuts and bolts of operating a clinical herbal practice and am happy to share resources on:
- Establishing a clinical practice
- Legal guidelines for making herbal products and working with clients
- Safety and legal guidelines for formulating and selling herbal products
I always welcome suggestions on ways to improve the resources on BotanicalCulture.org. Please feel free to get in touch with us with suggestions, ideas, questions, or to inquire about collaborating.
