Resilient Roots

07/15/2025

Purple medicine!
1. Blue vervain at perfect stage for harvest. I have a hard time cutting it because it's so pretty, but I'm out of this extremely helpful medicine for calming nervous systems and cooling type A personalities, so into tincture it goes!
2. Aronia berries, the most antioxidants of any berry, as indicated by their deep purple hue
3. Vitex, the star of my July garden. Not a native but the bees love it! We will harvest the berries at my perimenopause workshop in October

06/28/2025

next up in "periods, perimenopause, and plants" aka my hormone and menstrual wellness series - Saturday August 16th - Liver Love! learn how to support our main detoxification organ and how that can improve hormone health.

This workshop will be held at the Home Sweet Home Midwifery office in Berea, so we will be out of the heat!

learn more/buy tickets here: https://www.resilientrootsky.com/p/herbal-wisdom-workshops-hormone-and

06/23/2025

Please mark your calendars (and buy tickets) to join me this Fall at the beautiful Holler Home farm in Irvine, KY for a day of plant magic! We have a wonderful lineup of folks sharing their plant skills and everyone is welcome! I am so thrilled I get to plan and host this event alongside so many of my herbal buddies!

EVENT SCHEDULE
11 AM >> Arrival, market open
11:30 - 1 PM >> Activity 1
1 - 2 PM >> picnic style lunch, market open
2 - 3:30 PM >> Activity 2
3:30 - 5 PM >> market open, demos, refreshments

Activity 1 Options:
- mindful movement tea ceremony with JB Pitts
- freeform kudzu basket making (Part 1) with Tootsie Jablonski
- digestive health and immune function with Andrew Ozinkas
- plant walk with Melissa Calhoun

Activity 2 Options include:
- traditional Thai yoga bodywork and herbal compresses with Leah VanWinkle
- Using herbs to support your hormone cycle with ME!
- plant walk with Isabel Cochran
- bioregional handrolled incense with Lucy Olive
- kudzu basket making (Part 2) with Tootsie Jablonski

Please buy your tickets in advance here: https://amongtheoaksfarmstead.com/pages/events

06/13/2025

Some sweet farm scenes from early June.
1 - clearwing moth
2 - the garden turtle with a bite out of its shell (last year, from Daisy) that continues to find a way into the garden after multiple removals. Loves the berries!
3 - stubborn chicken
4 - lightening bug on anise hyssop
5 - oats almost milky
6 - black cohosh flower buds
7 - coral fungi
7

06/12/2025

What do all of these plants have in common?

Anise hyssop, lemon balm, bee balm - they're all in the mint family, and they all contain the chemical Rosmarinic Acid, which means they're also highly medicinal! Rosmarinic acid has been shown through research to:
benefit the immune system (can even kill cancer cells!)
Improve memory
Protect the mitochondria
and so much more!

While I generally don't get nerdy on specific chemicals, this one has fascinated me for years. Fun fact, our weedy Prunella vulgaris (aka "Heal-all" or "self-heal") is super high in this chemical. It is excellent for sore throats, skin health, killing viruses, and has even been studied in breast cancer treatment!

https://www.resilientrootsky.com/p/have-you-had-your-mint-family-plant

06/08/2025

Hey y'all, June newsletter is here - head on over to my website to read the scoop!
https://www.resilientrootsky.com/p/the-june-resilient-roots-report

06/06/2025

Meet me in the garden for "periods, perimenopause, and plants!" This hands-on workshop series will guide you through growing, harvesting, crafting, and selecting herbal remedies specifically tailored to support your menstrual and hormonal health.

From tending the apothecary garden to blending teas and tinctures for cycle balance, cramps, and PMS, I'll teach you how to herbally manage your menstrual woes with practical skills, body knowledge, and homegrown herbal remedies. Whether you’re looking for natural support for PMS, perimenopause, or overall well-being, these classes will empower you with herbal knowledge rooted in tradition, practice, and science.

These are small group workshops designed to create a safe space where we can dig into our body challenges and get hands-on experience with the healing power of herbal medicine.

Head over to my website for more info. Registration for the first workshop is open now!

https://www.resilientrootsky.com/p/herbal-wisdom-workshops-hormone-and

05/29/2025

Howdy folks, a couple of reminders:
1. I'm sending out my newsletters and blog posts through email - please sign up at www.resilientrootsky.com
2. I have plans to offer more forest adventures, you can sign up to be notified of those here https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfpD_lsmwgTGhXRM7mrPyRh_WWr8nMD6j6MXMNqzsRizeEMWw/viewform

Thank you and happy herbing!

Occasionally I lead special foraging expeditions, plant rescues, wildflower hikes, and other activities to see cool stuff in the woods. Sometimes it might be short notice based on mushroom flushes, the weather, and the bloom calendars. Sign up if you'd like to be notified of these forest adventures....

04/18/2025

Substack is fun, come hang out with me over there.

04/04/2025

My April newsletter is here! Check it out for upcoming events, gardening tips, a recommendation for Aronia, and more!

Hey Herbies!