Nature Preserve Walk                   at Taft Gardens

Please join me for one of my occasional Nature Education Preserve Walks at Taft Gardens. We will explore trails through the wild parts of the property, identify and discuss native plants, and observe birds and animal tracks in the context of local ecology. 

 

This event is a perfect fit with my personal mission to open a space for people to connect with the natural world, starting with the plant kingdom. The diversity of plant communities and native species make Taft Nature Preserve the ideal place. Taft Gardens & Nature Preserve was featured in an L. A. Times article on “The 16 Most Beautiful and Inviting Public Gardens in Southern California” and included in the RedBook Magazine list of “The 12 Most Beautiful Botanical Gardens in the United States.”

 

The $35 cost includes a $10 donation to benefit the Conservation Endowment Fund, the non-profit steward of Taft Gardens & Nature Preserve. 

 

I will have my mobile bookshop onsite after the walk, including my book, Medicinal Herbs of California, and Milt McAuley’s classic Wildflowers of the Santa Monica Mountains which features every native plant we will see.

 

Please plan on leaving dogs and cigarettes at home. Thanks.

 

Click on this link to learn more and sign up,

        Summer Solstice Nature Hike              on Pine Mountain

If you’ve ever walked or hiked with me, you’ve probably heard me speak of the special beauty of Pine Mountain. Experience it for yourself on our annual Summer Solstice Nature Hike on the Reyes Peak Trail. On Saturday, June 20, we’ll visit some of the most spectacular scenery and habitat that Ventura County has to offer just when many late spring wildflowers are blooming up there at an elevation of 7000 feet.  According to Craig Carey, author of Hiking and Backpacking Santa Barbara and Ventura, the Reyes Peak Trail along the northern slope of the peak is “quite simply one of the most beautiful stretches in the southern Los Padres.”

 

Click on the photo above or read the article below to learn more and sign up,

Herb Walks 50-Year Anniversary Garden Party

Celebrate a half-century of nature connection! You are cordially invited to a morning garden party at the Ojai Valley Museum as we mark the 50th anniversary of “Herb Walks with Lanny Kaufer.” This is my opportunity to say “thank you” to the walkers, hikers, learners, and collaborators who have made it possible for me to keep doing what I love.

 

This free event takes place in the beautiful Chumash Garden, a space dedicated to the native flora of our region. As a native plant consultant for the Museum, I will lead a short tour to share the stories, uses, and ecology of the plants growing there.

 

Among the important and useful native plants used by the Chumash, we’ll see:

Please click on the photo above or visit the event listing at HerbWalks.com to RSVP so we can plan refreshments. I hope to see you there!

Full Moon Sunset Nature Hike

On Sunday evening, June 28, from 6:00 to 8:30 p.m., Rondia and I will lead a Full Moon Sunset Nature Hike to a vista point above the Ojai Valley where we can watch the sunset afterglow and rising of the moon. Both will happen around 8:00 p.m. Although the exact time of the full moon is on Monday, June 29 at 4:56 p.m., it is not visible then. And It rises too late that night to schedule a hike. So June 28 is the ideal time to view it in its fullness. 

 

We’ll meet at the trailhead at 5:45 p.m. for a 6:00 p.m. start, then gradually hike about 1.5 miles to the viewing site, experiencing some elevation gain on a well-worn, dirt fire road with uneven footing in places. Along the way we’ll stop to meet some valuable edible and medicinal plants, including:

We'll also identify Poison Oak.

 

My 2021 book, Medicinal Herbs of California, will be available at the trailhead for sale and signing. I'll also have the rest of my mobile bookshop with me.

 

In addition to adult tickets ($35), tickets for students 13-17 ($25) and children 6-12 ($15) are offered on my website. One supervising adult must accompany each child 12 years old or younger. Senior discount is available by request.

 

No dogs or smoking, please.

 

Click on this link or the photo above to learn more and sign up,

Botany Field Course for Herbalists: 

January – November 2027

In January of 2025, a longtime friend and Herb Walks attendee asked if she could study plant identification with me to supplement her college class in Ecological Restoration. After we brainstormed how that might look, she created a draft of a course description, including duration, goals, cost of program, and a cost breakdown per student for 6 students. The course became a reality for 6 students on 24 Monday mornings from January into November. Those students signed on for a second-year advanced course in 2026 and I started a new beginning course on Tuesdays.

 

I’m now accepting inquiries from those interested in joining one of those two courses in 2027. They will continue to run on Monday and Tuesday mornings from January to November. The opening classes are on Monday and Tuesday, January 11 and January 12, 2027.

 

I'm also interested in hearing from interested students who may want to fill a space that just opened up in this year's beginning course. If you might be that student, please continue reading.

 

No previous knowledge is required for the beginning course. Some foraging experience or previous plant study is required for the advanced course. My use here of the words “for herbalists” in the course title is broad, along the lines of Merriam-Webster’s definition #2 of an herbalist: “a person who collects or grows herbs.” Most likely you already fit that definition. If so, click on this link or the photo above to learn more and schedule an interview.

You can order my book by visiting the Herb Walks bookshop or by clicking on the book cover image above.
 
To request a simple autograph or have the book signed to your name, when you reach "checkout" use the “Order notes (optional)” field. This personal touch is something not available when purchasing on Amazon or other vendors. 
 
If you already own my book or you're considering buying it, be sure to click on the following link to check out the free hyperlinked bibliography I created to save you the hassle of copying long URLs from the printed page to your browser. This feature enables you to easily visit any of the web sources linked to the 350 citations in the book.