Growing and Processing Medicinal Herbs

The demand for local, organic herbs is rapidly growing with the revival of herbalism and integrated medicine. This workshop will provide an overview of what it takes to grow and manage a successful herbal market garden.

Full Kettle Farm’s Greg Disterhoft will walk us through soil, light & water requirements, cool and warm season herbs, annuals vs. perennials, transplanting, harvesting, fertility, and the maintenance of a variety of herbs.

Greg will demonstrate how he propagates and cultivates a wide array of herbs (including high value herbs like ashwagandha, astragalus, tulsi, and clary sage).

Attendees will join in a participatory harvest, which we’ll then process and transform into essential oil and hydrosol using the farm’s distiller. Participants will also learn how to design and build a drying room and use dried herbs to make potent and long-lasting tea blends.

Full Kettle Farm is a one-acre herb farm with a focus on permaculture, high-value cropping, and creative marketing strategies. They sell dried and fresh herbs directly to local herbalists, farmers markets customers, cafes and other retailers.