Saturday, August 18; 10:00AM - 12:00PM
Introduction to Herbal Medicine
About This Event
Instructor: Irena Stathis
Saturday, August 18, 2018
10:00am – 12:00pm
$25 Arboretum members / $35 non-members (Includes Arboretum Admission)
To Register please call the Education Department at 626.821.4623 or pay at the class
An introductory class for all who are interested in learning about the folkloric and traditional use of plants as medicine.
In our discussion, we will explore the topics of sustainability, quality, practical application and forms of extraction. We will get to know some of my favorite plants through our senses, by touch, taste, smell and an inner listening.
Historically, humans have always lived deeply connected with their environment and the plants and other beings who inhabit it. These interwoven relationships developed over time and traditional practices were passed down orally and through actual experience to future generations.
There are two aspects or lines of knowledge of Herbalism; one that encompasses the wisdom of nurturers, crafters and elders who provide a basis of healthful living for their families and communities through the use of plants in food, crafts and daily rituals; the other being that of the healer or shaman which deals with the mystical, hidden and magic realm of healing with plants. In some traditions, knowledge is transmitted by means of story, some through experimentation, and others through a direct receiving in dreams or visions from the plants themselves.
In this class, we will draw from both lines, blending the tangible with the intuitive in our approach. Participants will discover a variety of ways to include herbs in their daily lives and will leave with an informed confidence to do so.
Irena Cora Stathis is a Certified Herbalist, wildcrafter, gardener and medicine maker. In 2010 she founded a small-batch Apothecary, Abalone Herbals (www.facebook.com/abaloneherbals @abalonerherbals), where she handcrafts botanical beauty products, hydrosols, herbal teas, extracts, essences and balms. As a native Californian, Irena primarily focuses on the indigenous and naturalized plants of her local terroir and others that are well cultivated in our Southern California Mediterranean climate. She has been studying the art of Herbal Medicine since 2005; her teachers include Candis Cantin, Matthew Wood, David Hoffman and Susun Weed.
When she is not tending her gardens, distilling or crafting in the Apothecary she can be found teaching classes or exploring the local mountains. She specializes in women’s health, self-care, natural beauty and preventative wellness drawing from a diverse background of indigenous American traditions, Western Herbalism, Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Through her work with the herbs she seeks to understand ever more the nature and relationship of plants as medicines, healers, and wisdom keepers and how this ‘plant-knowledge’ deepens and enlivens humanity and its environs.
Cost
$25 Arboretum members / $35 non-members (Includes Arboretum Admission)
To Register please call the Education Department at 626.821.4623 or pay at the class