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The Herbal Apprentice
An in-depth learning experience exploring ecosystem health through herbal practice.
An in-depth learning experience exploring ecosystem health through herbal practice, crafted by permaculturist and herbalist, Taj Scicluna (The Perma Pixie).
This 8 week course is designed for those wanting to deeper their connection to medicinal plants, whilst supporting the wellbeing of ecosystems.
The Herbal Apprentice course is designed to give participants the tools they need to evoke medicinal practice into daily living, through wild and medicinal cuisine and seasonal recipes, ethical gardening and wildcrafting techniques, mindful harvesting and deep botanical connection.
Much clinical herbalism in Australia is practiced in an extractive fashion, only using lab-made standardised medicines with herbs grown overseas, which means there is a significant amount of embodied energy and unsustainable practice to our wellness industry. This course addresses bioregional herbalism, botanical colonisation and extractive culture, giving strategies and practices for deepening a connection to medicinal plants whilst supporting the well-being of ecosystems.
The art of herbalism is rooted in earth stewardship, rather than clinical practice.
This Course runs on Fridays from 6th September to 1st November, 10am – 3pm. Please note there is no class on Fri 27th September due to the Public Holiday.
About this course
You will gain an understanding of basic herbalism principles and patterns, that can be applied to human physiology and medicinal gardening, where people and plants meet.
This course is designed to assist those who are striving to connect to the true meaning of healing, as the herbalist is a conduit between the human body and external environment, encompassing holistic health through the understanding of systems and our role within them.
This eight-week course has been designed to provide an introduction to:
- Understanding plants through lenses of both folklore and science, giving a grounding in basic botany, phytochemistry and physiology as well as guidance to intuitively work with plants
- Developing a relationship with plant medicine that is not primarily extractive, focusing on regenerative medicinal systems that can empower people and communities and repair ecosystems
Students will:
- Design medicinal gardens using permaculture principles, techniques and strategies
- Create hand-crafted herbal remedies at home, with a focus on locally sourced and grown herbs for both potency and ecological conservation
- Gain knowledge of herbal properties, uses and applications
- Explore intuitive ways of understanding plants, cultivating a sense of trust in our ability to work with plants and empower ourselves
Your course fee includes two sets of Botanical Education Knowledge Cards designed by your course facilitators. Set One – Materia Medica & Materia Botanika and Set Two – Patterns in Herbalism: Herbal Energetics, Actions, Constituents & Medicinal Applications.
These Herbal Medicine and Medicinal Garden Education cards have been designed using Permaculture principles.
Meet your trainer
Taj Scicluna – known as the Perma Pixie – aims to inspire and educate people to live more nourishing and sustainable lifestyles using permaculture awareness and compassion.
Through permaculture education and sustainable services such as permaculture design and the creation of delicious ornamental edible gardens, Taj aims to nurture diversity and protect ecology.
Course Content
The course incorporates topics such as medicinal plant cultivation, introduction to plant identification and botany, understanding common ailments, herbal language and terminology, patterns of traditional western herbalism, plant chemistry basics, introduction to medicine making, botanical animism and community supported herbalism.
Course Sessions:
Session 1
- Botanical animism
- Medicinal seed germination
- Making infused herbal oils
Session 2
- Patterns of traditional western herbalism
- Medicinal plant cultivation
- Making herbal infused vinegars
Session 3
- Herbal language and terminology
- Medicinal garden design
- Making herbal syrups
Session 4
- Herbalism and human physiology
- Harvesting and drying herbs
- Making herbal tinctures
Session 5
- Understanding common ailments
- Cultivating rich soil
- Herbal Fermentations
Session 6
- Plant chemistry basics
- Intro to herbal formulation
- Making herbal salves
Session 7
- Plant alchemy intro
- Case studies of common ailments
- Making herbal incense
Session 8
- Community supported herbalism
- The medicine wheel – bringing it together
- Plant project and celebration
Terms and conditions
Our booking and refund policies, concession pricing information, FAQs, as well as other general terms and conditions can be viewed here.
Course Specifics
What will I learn?
- Medicinal plant cultivation
- Plant identification and botany
- Understanding common ailments
- Herbal language and terminology
- Plant chemistry basics
- Medicine making
What should I bring?
- Chopping board
- Knife
- Secateurs
- Garden trowel
