Please join me and special guest Professor James Adams of USC School of Pharmacy for a Winter Medicinal Plant Workshop on Saturday, January 11, 2020, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

This workshop is based on his ground-breaking pharmacological studies on local native plants. After seven years of joining me in Ojai for these seasonal workshops, Dr. Adams will present a winter version for the first time. 

Products to be prepared onsite include, among others:

• Yerba Santa steam inhalation
• Everlasting Flower tea
• Acorns with Helen Sweany
• Nopales with Enrique Villaseñor

To learn more and register, visit this link.

One of my online highlights this year was discovering Hilda's Kitchen Blog. I was initially drawn to her interest in seasonal foraged foods like this recipe for Prickly Pear Juice & Syrup or her most recent for Persimmon Bread. So in the spirit of the holidays I'm sharing them with you. Enjoy!

In case you missed David Crow's outstanding presentations at the Ojai Herbal Symposium you can still partake in the vast knowledge carried by this great teacher of herbs. Visit this link to learn more.

The 2nd Ojai Herbal Symposium on November 16-17 was a success, thanks to those of you who attended, our excellent lineup of presenters, our generous sponsors, the great folks at Krotona Institute of Theosophy who allowed us to use the Great Hall, and the volunteers and staff who made it happen. Feedback has been great so we're already planning the next one on November 14-15, 2020.

Those who attended and are patiently waiting for the digital notes, audio recordings, and CEU certificates, thank you for bearing with me. Right after the symposium I was offered the extraordinary opportunity by a well-established publisher to submit a proposal for a field guide to the herbs of California. My proposal was accepted and I'm currently in the process of making it official, something I hope to announce in more detail in the January newsletter.

Writing the proposal consumed the time I would otherwise have spent foillowing up with you. Rest assured I'm back on it now and thanks again for your patience.

Please join me in thanking our 2019 sponsors and consider making a regular habit of supporting businesses that support herbal education and the well-being of our community.

A heartfelt thanks to our two "major" sponsors:

Sespe Creek Collective
Ventura County Reporter

And to all the rest of our wonderful sponsors, in alphabetical order:
101 CBD
A to Z Musical Services 
Artemisia Academy
Canna Superior
Casa Ojai Inn
Club Magic Hour
Earth Island Herbs
Farmer and the Cook
Hamsa Studio
Herb Walks 
KeVita
Lymphatic Health Institute
Papa Lennon’s
Traditional Medicinals
Ventura’s Water Store
WishGarden Herbs

A special thanks is due to Patrick Tumamait (shown facing east in the photo above) for the Chumash blessing on our endeavor.

Stop destruction of 20 million acres of habitat
and protect our communities from fire

I'm reprinting below an email I received from Richard Halsey of California Chaparral Institute. Please read it, follow the link, and consider supporting his efforts to bring a science based, less destructive approach to the way the State of California manages our native  vegetation.

Dear Fellow Chaparralian,

After 15 years of fighting to protect the chaparral and Nature, the moment has come.

The California Board of Forestry will be holding a hearing on December 11, to consider Cal Fire's just released Vegetation Treatment Program's Environmental Impact Report (PEIR) that targets 20 million acres of native California habitat for destruction. [NOTE: The decision was postponed to January.]

Based on past behavior, the Board will likely certify it... but there remains a ray of hope IF we can put enough pressure on them and Governor Newsom to follow the science, not what the entrenched fire bureaucracy desires.

1. Please read and sign our petition (text copied below):
https://www.change.org/p/california-governor-newsom-stop-destruction-of-250-000-acres-of-habitat-year-and-protect-our-communities-from-fire

2. Send emails as suggested in the petition.

3. Please share this petition with everyone you know.

With 15 years of steadfast determination,

Richard Halsey
Director, California Chaparral Institute

The Ventura Land Trust has taken two great local environmental programs for youth under its wing: Ventura Wild and Once Upon A Watershed. If you have kids or grandkids in Ojai or Ventura who could benefit from these great experiences, please check out the links above. Registration just opened December 16 for Ventura Wild's spring programs.