How was that herb walk?

Gardeners from The Garden at 485 Elm gathered on a warm, sunny Saturday for a guided tour, tasting, and tincture-making led by Lroy, our herb garden gnome goddess and a second-year student at The Vermont Center for Integrative Herbalism.

Herbalist indicates echinacea flowers growing beside bee balm while a husky dog rests at her feet

Lroy describes the medicinal properties of echinacea while Sierra waits patently

Herbalists holds an artichoke plant while standing beside more of it growing at her feet

Lroy describes medicinal properties of artichoke

Lemongrass, part of a program that provides herbs to migrant workers

Lroy guides everyone in harvesting spilanthes flowers for tincture

A gardener's hand drops spilanthes buds into a mason jar

Adding newly harvested spilanthes buds to a jar in preparation for making tincture

Lroy pours vodka into a jar of spilanthes buds the gardeners harvested

Lroy pours vodka over spilanthes flowers to start the tincture.

Marigold in foreground of a patch of spilanthes flowers

A marigold protects spilanthes from insects.