Bramble Bird Meadow

Today was a beautiful fall day for our family bookclub! 🥰💕

🌿 𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒 𝐌𝐄𝐄𝐓 𝐓𝐎𝐃𝐀𝐘! 🌿

Today we’re wrapping up our time in 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐭 𝐆𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐧! 🌸

We’ll spend our time together exploring, observing, creating, and enjoying the changing season around us.

🌿 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐤
🐦 𝐁𝐢𝐫𝐝 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠
☀️ 𝐒𝐮𝐧 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐬
🎨 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐀𝐫𝐭

I love ending a book together by stepping outside and finding the connections between the story and the world around us. There is something especially lovely about taking the time to slow down, notice what is growing and moving around us, and then turn those observations into something of our own.

I can’t wait to see our Nestlings shortly!

[We’re meeting in SW Springfield, near republic at 11am. You are welcome to come meet us, even if you haven’t read the book yet. PM me for exact location or details]

🌻 𝐒𝐮𝐧𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐓𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐩! 🌻

We’ve had such a lovely month of slowing down, getting curious, and learning to really 𝐬𝐞𝐞 the plants around us! 🌿

This month at Sunflower, we’ve been building our nature journals from the ground up, beginning with creating our own journals and taking time to connect with the materials we’re using. There’s something special about making a book with our own hands before filling its pages with observations and discoveries.

We explored the 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐚 𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫, including what makes up the pistil and stamen, and talked about what each part does. We also learned how to 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬, why we might want to preserve them, and how pressed specimens can become part of our nature journals.

But perhaps most importantly, we talked about 𝐰𝐡𝐲 𝐰𝐞 𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐣𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥.

Nature journaling isn't about creating a perfect drawing or filling every page. It’s about observation. It’s about slowing down enough to notice the shape of a leaf, the structure of a flower, the way a plant changes over time, or the tiny details we might otherwise walk right past.

We talked about all of the things we might include in our journals: drawings, pressed plants, observations, questions, measurements, words, colors, dates, weather, and even things we’re still wondering about. Whatever guides our curiosities and/or holds our attention… as well as being a record to look back on.

And, of course, we’ve been practicing our plant identification skills!

Some plants we’ve discussed this month:
🌼 Goldenrod
🌿 Passionflower
🌱 Snakeroot
🌿 Pokeweed
🍃 Poison Ivy
🌸 Asters
🌼 Dayflower

Every plant we identify gives us another opportunity to practice looking closely, noticing patterns, finding differences, learning plant vocabulary, and becoming more familiar with the living world around us.

I love watching these little nature studies grow into something bigger than simply “learning plants.” We’re learning to observe, to ask questions, to connect with our materials, and to develop a relationship with the world around us.

Another beautiful month of 𝐒𝐮𝐧𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 in the books, and looking forward to the months ahead! 🌻🌿

🌿 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐩! 🌿
September 25th, 2026

Let’s take a look at everything accomplished this week!

🌿 𝐉𝐔𝐍𝐈𝐎𝐑 𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐁𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐒!
We started with our monograph work before moving into herbal oil preparations!

We reviewed both the folk method and ratio method for making infused oils, then moved on to the intermediary method. The students created two oils to compare next week: a rose, calendula, and jojoba oil, and a rose, calendula, and avocado oil.

Next week we’ll be comparing the finished oils (a hands on tie in to last week’s lesson) before turning them into salves and lip balm!

We ended our morning with some quiet nature journaling time by the creek. There’s just something special about slowing down, sitting beside the water, and giving ourselves time to really observe what’s around us.

🌱 𝐌𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐎𝐖𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒
We started the day with a lesson on the Four Humors and how this historical framework influenced the development of Western herbalism, and herbal energetics.

The kids had SO much fun thinking through what different combinations of hot, cold, wet, and dry might look like in the body. We talked through examples like a wet, cold, runny nose versus something more hot and dry, and had some really great discussions about how these qualities were traditionally used to understand patterns in the body.

From there, we moved on to continuing their mandrake projects!

They have come up with the ideas for their individual mandrakes, created their own patterns, and have now started sewing and stuffing them. I absolutely love watching the personalities of these little creations take shape! Each one is becoming so uniquely theirs!

We ended the day down by the river, and it was quite the froggy day! 🐸

SO. MANY. FROGS. 😂

We even had to stop a few kids from trying to sneak their new friends back to the building, with a few reminders about our “leave nature in nature” and “leave nature better than we found it” rules. 😂😅

Additional photos have been posted in our private Facebook group for families who would like to see more from the day!

As always, I hope you all have had a restful weekend and are ready to begin the week!

I’m looking forward to seeing everyone Friday for more nature adventures. 🌿💕

🌿💙 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐮𝐬! 💙🌿
The Nest- Our Adult Learning Circle

What a lovely way to wrap up our reading of “Gathering Blue”! We had so much fun stepping out of the pages of the book and into our own little world of experimenting with plant dyes.

Thank you to everyone who came, experimented, asked questions, got curious, and shared in the experience with us. These gatherings are about so much more than the book itself. They’re about slowing down, learning together, connecting with nature, and building community.

🍂📖 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐆𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 📖🍂
Next month, we’ll be stepping away from a traditional novel and spending some time exploring nature poetry!

For those who would like a little reading inspiration, we recommend “The Lost Words” and/or “The Lost Spells” by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris.

You certainly don’t have to read either book to join us. Come ready to explore, listen, share, and find a little more poetry in the natural world around us.

✨ 𝐉𝐨𝐢𝐧 𝐮𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐡!
We’d love to have you gather with us! Send me a message for more information! 💕

Our local symposium is having a FLASH SALE!

Come join us as we build something amazing right here in our community!

Meet your local herbalists, connect with other like-minded folks, and learn so much in such a short amount of time!

Whether you’re just beginning your herbal journey or have been studying for years, there’s something here for everyone. Come learn, connect, and help us grow a stronger herbal community in our area! 🥰💕

Grab your spot during the flash sale while you can!

Happy almost-Fall-Equinox, everyone! To celebrate, we are running a flash sale on symposium tickets. Purchase your ticket between now and September 30 and use code 15%OFFSYMP to get 15% off your ticket.

🌿💚We hope you can join us November 8th!🍄‍🟫🍄

🌿 𝐃𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐭 𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐮𝐠𝐚𝐫 𝐜𝐫𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥? 🌿

We took hot water and stirred in as much salt or sugar as we could get to dissolve. As the solution cooled, the excess salt or sugar began to come out of solution and collect on a pipe cleaner or string, forming crystals.

It was a simple way of demonstrating that a solvent has a 𝐬𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭.

A point at which the solvent has reached its capacity to dissolve a particular substance, and adding more doesn’t mean you’re getting more into solution.
So, how does this relate to herbalism?

Our solvents (alcohol, water, vinegar, glycerin, honey, and others) have extraction limits too. Different solvents have different abilities to extract different constituents, and those constituents are not infinitely soluble.

Adding more herbs, roots, fruits, or other plant material does 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧 you are creating a stronger preparation.

At a certain point, you’ve simply added more plant material than your solvent can effectively extract.
And this is something I see a lot this time of year with fire cider.

People will create completely packed jars, filled with large pieces of produce and herbs, with barely enough room for the vinegar to move through the mixture.
𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫.

In fact, when you overpack your jar, you may be using significantly more plant material without meaningfully increasing the amount of constituents you’re extracting. You’re also reducing the amount of solvent available to actually contact and move through that plant material.

𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐣𝐚𝐫 𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞’𝐬 𝐧𝐨 𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐦 𝐥𝐞𝐟𝐭.

Extraction is about understanding the relationship between your plant material, your solvent, surface area, time, and the constituents you’re trying to extract.

When we understand that relationship, we can make thoughtful preparations that use our herbs more efficiently, rather than simply using 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 herbs.
Because good herbalism isn’t just about making something stronger.

It’s also about being intentional, sustainable, and respectful of the plant material we’re using. 🌿

[The jars in the photo below look packed, but when shaken the inside product still has room to move freely. See the liquid at the bottom of the jar? Further, I blend mine all together after a couple days for better exposed surface area.]

✨ 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫…

If you’re local to Springfield, I’ll be teaching a workshop this Saturday on 𝐈𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐞 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 & 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐂𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐫!

The class is limited to just 10 people, so make sure you register if you’d like to join us! 🌿

Donations toward the class are completely optional, but if you choose to contribute, those proceeds go toward scholarships for my kids’ classes and helping provide materials for these free community workshops.

I love being able to keep these learning opportunities accessible to our community, and every little bit helps make that possible.

Event info:
https://www.facebook.com/share/1FaQ14pSRs/?mibextid=wwXIfr

🌿 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐃𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒 𝐔𝐏𝐃𝐀𝐓𝐄! 🌿

Our Wildlings meeting is 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗽𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗱.
Please check the private community group for more information and details about the change.

Thank you for your understanding, and we’ll see everyone next week! 💕💕

🌿 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐩! 🌿
September 18th, 2026

Let’s take a look at everything we accomplished this week!

🌿 𝐉𝐔𝐍𝐈𝐎𝐑 𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐁𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐒!
We dove headfirst into starting our new monograph for this month, which led to so many conversations and questions. It’s been exciting to watch them begin connecting the dots naturally and increasingly understand and use herbal and botanical vocabulary in context.

The second half of our morning was spent discussing different types of oils, their benefits, and why we might choose one over another depending on the type of product we’re creating.

They also learned how to garble using the rosemary they hung to dry a couple of weeks ago, removing the leaves from the stems.

This naturally led to conversations about how much more vibrant, green, and aromatic their personally processed rosemary was compared to what we had purchased in bulk from elsewhere. We also had a great discussion on the accessibility and sustainability of growing your own herbs, as well as the benefits of purchasing from local farmers and growers whenever possible.

🌱 𝐌𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐎𝐖𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒
We started our afternoon by finishing last week’s History of Herbalism lesson entries, securing any loose pieces, and completing any incomplete or missed work.

We also took the time to create our herbal presses for this school year!

Afterward, last week’s mandrake art pieces started transforming from drawings into small, hand-sewn mandrake plushies! I absolutely loved seeing all of their different mandrake personalities begin to shine through. I cannot wait to see these little creatures completed!

Additional photos have been posted in our private Facebook group.

As always, I hope you all have had a restful weekend and are ready to begin the week! Crossing my fingers for cooler weather! 🤞🤞🤞

I’m looking forward to seeing everyone Friday for more nature adventures. 🌿💕

A huge thank you to Wild Arts Learning for hosting today’s Family Herbalism Class, and to everyone who joined us!

What an amazing group of inquisitive learners, with such thoughtful questions! It makes my job so much more fun when everyone is genuinely interested, engaged, and excited to learn.

Everyone left with a recipe booklet, recipe cards, a skin-supportive salve, a cough-soothing syrup, a nourishing tea blend, and herb samples (thanks for sharing, Cina!) to take home and continue exploring with.

I’m so grateful for opportunities to share herbalism in a way that feels approachable, practical, and empowering for families.