Acorn School of Herbal Medicine

03/08/2026

We’re turning 10! 🥳

When our school was born, I had been practicing and teaching as a clinical herbalist for over a decade. I had also recently recovered from chronic Lyme disease. During the two years of my illness I struggled
with daily tasks, plagued with extreme fatigue, debilitating joint pain, and horrendous brain fog. My path to recovery was steeped in the methods of Vitalist healing. I worked on healing my gut, restoring my sleep, spending time in nature, embracing spiritual guidance; along with a host of supporting strategies.

The result was that I achieved a higher level of health than before my illness began. Navigating my own chronic disease made me more equipped to work as an herbalist. I started to see better results in my clients, and I became motivated to teach classes on vitalism. It was my own healing journey that paved the way for the birth of the ACORN School of Herbal Medicine.

Over the past ten years we have continued to offer core curriculum developed by Paul Bergner from the North American Institute of Medical Herbalism in the setting of a community learning platform.

When our programs moved online in 2021, we decided to maintain the community learning concepts by hosting live interactive classes. The shift online allowed two things to happen: our learning community expanded to include students from around the world, and Paul Bergner is now able to join us for class.

It is our mission to pass on the methods of Vitalism for the next generation of herbalists to carry forward.

Join us for our 10th year in vitalist herbal education...
Registration for the 2026-2027 school year is open!

Classes start in September.
Last day to register is August 25th.

This year we are offering 10% off all program costs to everyone who applies before May 1st. ✨

I am so grateful for an amazing 10 years…
More ways to celebrate coming soon!

In humble service to healing. 🌿

12/30/2025

10/24/2025

Elk tracks in the river bed.
Mist to thick it feels like the air is a hug.

01/08/2024

Admit it! I know what you really want is to learn herbal medicine, and natural building in the Scottish Highlands...

So I found this guy who builds cool stuff and I'm taking over his croft to teach a few things about plants.

This wee link is where you see details for the two separate workshops. Sign up for either one, or both.
https://www.acornherbschool.com/scotland

01/01/2024

Madrone berry prayer beads- Quietly stringing up intentions for 2024.

Madrone - Arbutus menziesii - is a member of the Ericaceae family; housing relatives such as cranberry, blueberry, uva ursi, and heather. Madrone leaves and bark have many uses as an astringent tonic and disinfectant. Like other members of this family, Madrone also produces a delicious edible fruit….

all strung up for remembrance and sweetness.

12/08/2023

The pharmacy team! When you receive custom formulas or medicine kits in the mail from us its because these ladies made it happen.

I am so grateful for the medicine women in my life. That beauty on the right has been my right hand woman for 8 years. Today we celebrated her last day at ACORN as she moves on to embark on her own herbal business ventures.

Many blessings on your journey … Love you huge! ❤️✨

12/03/2023

As we welcome the emerging signs of winter, and cozy up with warm mugs of tea, I am reminded of how our ancestors lived through the long dark winter nights. I imagine the number of hours spent sitting by the fire telling stories with morals and values teaching us how to live well and be good humans on this Earth. Each generation passing those stories onto the next.

In light of this tradition, I want to echo the power of how a good story can inspire us to thrive and live in good health. Here I have a story for you.
It's a story about a woman with autoimmune thyroid disease who came to our clinic. She spent several months working with one of our interns to achieve a higher level of health than she dreamed possible. It was not with fancy expensive modern treatments that brought this transformation, but rather the application of simple lifestyle changes based on traditional wisdom and ancient teachings.

The principles in this case study can be applied to nearly any state of health and illness. Elements of which remind us how the daily practices to build the foundations of individual health can make an impact on the world around us and uplift entire communities. May it inspire you to live well also... So, grab a cup of tea and dive into the next publication in our Clinical Herbalism Journal.

Link in comments…

10/27/2023

Peak growing season may be over, but there is still an abundance of wild food and medicine to be found all around us… This autumn plant walk is an opportunity to learn how to identify plants passed the peak bloom cycle, learn about sustainable harvesting practices, and medicinal uses for over a dozen local herbs commonly found along trail sides in the Sierra Foothills.

Bring your walking shoes and appetite for learning. Register online. Link below….

https://www.acornherbschool.com/field-classes

10/24/2023

https://www.facebook.com/100042219078465/posts/1082141829869776/?mibextid=K8Wfd2

A New Moon Acorn wish.🍂
🍂Such a magical tree, ye old Oak Tree be.
Why, it be known to be the master of all trees, the keeper of all knowledge.
They do say ”Great things come when ye stand neath an old Oak Tree”. Our ancestors knew this and they were known to hold great meetings neath the Oak trees.
🍂Acorns are known to be a bringer of good luck and o’er many a year folk have carried acorn charms for protection and good health. Of course, the acorn is associated with the faery folk, they do say the fae love the little acorns for they drink dew drops from its cup.
🍂A new Moon wish🍂
Upon the night of an Autumn New Moon, in the darkness of the night, ye must go out into your garden and choose somewhere special to dig a little hole. Place into the hole an acorn and cover it with soil. Mind, remember to bless it as you do.🍂 For, they do say your acorn will flourish and grow into a mighty Oak Tree and bring with it an abundance of good luck.🍂

Written by Athey Thompson
Picture taken by Athey🍂

10/14/2023

Take care of the medicine, so that the medicine can take care of you…

When harvesting roots be sure to wash and chop them within 24 hours of removing from the ground. Then promptly spread them out to dry in a way that gives them maximum airflow. Turn them evenly every day until fully dried.

Better to let them air longer than you think is necessary (or prefer to use a dehydrator) before storing them in a jar. There’s nothing worse than finding mold growing on your herbs because you jarred them with moisture still in the plant.

10/13/2023

Saying goodbye to the Medicine Garden…

I’m so grateful for everything this land has taught me over the passed six years. It’s a bittersweet bag of emotions to let go of this amazing outdoor classroom. Filled with grief and excitement as I allow space in my life for new things to come.

Harvested a few roots of horseradish and elecampane. Dug up some Solomon’s seal to replant at home. Packed up my garden equipment. Knelt down under the peach tree for a few final words of gratitude to this land… and then loaded up the truck.

I say goodbye to you raspberries.
Goodbye wild cherry. Goodbye heirloom roses. Goodbye fields of marshmallow. Goodbye new england aster. Goodbye hazelnuts and curly willow. Goodbye passionflower, motherwort and scullcap. Goodbye to all the plants I’ve sprouted, tended, harvested and made medicine from here. Goodbye worms in your awesome bathtub worm bin.
Goodbye best soil structure I’ve ever had the honor to cultivate…

There’s a powerful rebirth that comes with letting parts of lives die back to become compost.

There will be more medicine gardens to come...

10/07/2023

There is a very simple criterion for finding out what is good for you. Before every act of our life we must ask ourselves:

Is this good for my vitality? But what is vitality? According to the dictionary it is, “energy, intensity of life force". Well, it is the vigor that causes us to live. And therefore everything that increases this vigor is good. Anything that slows it down is bad.

With plants we have succeeded in developing a measuring system for to determine their vitality. It is based on germination, resistance to parasites, climatic conditions (warmth, ice...), yield and preservation. These vitality criteria are very easy to measure.

When it comes to animals, the terms change somewhat, but the principles remain the same: fertility, resistance to disease and climate, longevity and performance.

For those who are familiar with nature - and I
want all people to become familiar with it - it is no problem to recognize the vitality of a vegetable or a flower at a glance. Anyone who has ever held a firm, round head of cabbage in both hands and seen a fleshy, narrow rosebud at dawn certainly knows what I'm talking about.

-Maurice Messegue (French Vitalist Herbalist)