You’ve seen it in your games and movies. You’ve read it in your books and stories.

Some wise and woodsy character collected the right wild plants (not the wrong ones), then they used the plants for a potent medicine or maybe even for food.

What if I told you the act of foraging wasn’t make-believe?

What if I told you it was true? And you could learn from someone who has been teaching these skills for 30 years?

Join herbalist and foraging expert Tim “Mac” MacWelch to learn about the REAL wild plants that can be used as food and medicine, and here’s the fun part – learn these amazing skills while immersed in a fantasy/medieval setting. From our apothecary shop in the woodlands, you will:

·         Learn how to identify more than three dozen plant and tree species

·         Differentiate between similar looking plants and dangerous “look-a-likes”

·         Forage and sample tasty wild edible plants

·         Craft healing tinctures, salves, poultices, and other medicines from plants

·         Discover the fascinating study of tree identification

·         Identify harmful plants that should be avoided

The take-home projects in the 2-day version of the class will include a first-aid salve, a dry skin salve, a tincture that helps you fall asleep naturally, a skin wash for rashes, and other valuable medicines (plus the recipes to make more!).  

Logistics:

1.       All tools and materials for the crafts and projects are provided by us.

2.       No “street” clothes during the event. Please bring your own medieval peasant or fantasy character garb so that we can all feel immersed in another world. If you do not have clothing like this, Fell & Fair is our absolute favorite provider. If you can only afford this event (you can’t afford our event and a new set of clothing), we do have a very limited closet of medieval loaner clothing and accessories. Please contact us about sizes and availability. Don’t let the lack of a clothing “kit” stop you from joining us.  

3.       We have two dates planned for 2025 - July 26-27 and September 13-14. Each event will start at 9 am on Saturday, and run through 4 pm on Sunday. For those traveling a long way for this event, contact us about the option to arrive Friday afternoon and camp on Friday night (to be ready for the early start on Saturday). 

4.      Camping on-site is encouraged (but not required if you live nearby or would prefer a hotel). If camping, please bring your own camping gear. A recommended gear list will be sent to you upon enrollment. We’ll have separate areas for period correct tents and modern tents. We also have a limited number of modern tents that we can loan.

5.      Saturday night dinner included (one of Mac’s famous soups or stews, with bread and accompaniments). Please let us know if you have dietary restrictions, if you are joining us for the Saturday night meal. Everyone will need to provide their own lunch for Saturday, as well as their own breakfast and lunch for Sunday.

6.      Saturday night will include some games and campfire time. If you are going home on Saturday night, please plan to stay until 9 pm if you care to join us. Officially speaking, this is a “dry” event (for liability reasons.

JUST ADDED!!!

We are now offering a single day ticket if you can’t join us for the whole weekend. Each Herbalist Weekend will have a “Saturday Only” ticket. It’s the Herbalist Crash Course! You’ll still get a good dose of tree and herbaceous plant identification, wild foods, and plant medicines. This single day section of the Herbalist Weekend will cover half of the botanical content of the 2-day class and it runs from 9 am to 4 pm (but dinner, camping and entertainment are not included). We hope that you can join us for the whole weekend, but if you can’t, the one day option may be a better fit for your schedule and budget. Please reach out to us if you have any questions.