Land, People, and Place: Field Ecology of the Colorado Rockies
near Aspen, Colorado
July 10-13
Location: Aspen Environmental Center Toklat/Ashcroft campus and public land beyond
scholarships available! (inquire with ACES)
Hide Tanning Classes Coming up:
Come out for a for an extended weekend of immersion into the art of fat and smoke sheepskin hide tanning. Hosted in the town of Paonia, Colorado, we will take raw sheepskins and transform them into flexible, preserved and soft rugs. The class will cover all the steps involved with fat and smoke tanning hair-on skins, with other discussions on hide tanning history worldwide, variations for different animals domestic and wild, why good skinning matters, how the process differs from bark tanning and hair off tanning and more. We may experiment with hybrid tanning the skins by applying plant tannin solution to our hides during the process for extra preservation.You will leave with your own sheepskin to take home, the basic skills of using hide tanning tools, an understanding of each part of the process, and more. You will leave with skills to do the process on your own directly from wild or domestic animals. This hide camp takes place near downtown Paonia in our tanning area behind a private studio, and with a shared kitchen and bathroom to use at your leisure.We will provide one hearty lunch every day from local meat and vegetables, hot beverages morning-evening. More details about the location and class logistics will be provided upon sign up. Let us know your diet preferences. We start at 9:30 AM the first morning and end after dinner on the last evening. 9:30-5 each day, with a lunch break.
Camping or lodging is not provided, but we can recommend national forest locations nearby, airbnbs, and can host a couple people camping at our place, but space is limited. Get in touch if have accommodation questions.
Limited number of spots available.Taught by Kelly Moody Payment plans are available through Klarna, shown when you check out. check out a photo journal of a tanning camp I helped with in 2019 in northern Idaho to get a glimpse into the process (most photos taken by Kelly Moody): https://www.ofsedgeandsalt.com/blog/jimcrofts2019tanning* CLASS FULL *
Come out for a for an extended weekend of immersion into the art of fat and smoke buckskin hide tanning. Hosted in Mancos, Colorado we will take raw deer skins and transform them into soft buckskin material. The class will cover all the steps involved with fat and smoke tanning hair off skins, with other discussions on hide tanning history worldwide, variations for different animals domestic and wild, why good skinning matters, how the process differs from bark tanning, hair on tanning and more. You will leave with your own buckskin to take home, the basic skills of using hide tanning tools, an understanding of each part of the process, how to source hides, how to store hides, and more. You will leave with skills to do the process on your own with wild or domestic animals. This process is HARD physical work. What you put into it is what you get out of it, and prepare for the course by resting and eating well before you attend. Come with a mindset that isn’t attached to a perfect product but a dedication to learning the process. There are many variables that are hard to predict, but as instructors we do the best we can to manage the variables we can control.
Children who are interested in the tanning process are welcome to sign up WITH a parent. Email me at kelly@ofsedgeandsalt.com before you sign up with a child so we can make sure it is a good fit. We’ve had great hard working and motivated kids in the past and they can add a great addition to camp. If you want to sign up with your kid, we will ask you to pay a little extra to cover their food cost.
This hide camp takes place in Mancos, Colorado on a large tract raw land a mile or so from town, surrounded by public land. You are welcome to camp on the land for the duration of the class. This class will be in a rustic setting with limited amenities. There is cell service, and we will have a compost toilet set up. Be prepared to camp during fall weather and cook your other meals during the class. We will provide one hearty dinner every evening from local meat and vegetables. More details about the location and class logistics will be provided upon sign up. Let us know your diet preferences through the form when you pay for the class. This is a four day class, it is more financial and time commitment but it will allow us to have a more relaxed and body-aware tanning process.We start at 9 AM the first morning and end the evening of the last day depending on our smoking schedule. Prepare to potentially be in class until 5 pm the last day, if you have a longer commute to the site. Limited number of spots available.Taught by Kelly Moody and Leah Muller Payment plans are also available through Klarna, shown when you check out. For some reason some folks have trouble accessing Klarna through a mobile device signing up, if you do not see it as an option when you go to pay, sign up on your computer. payments are not refundable if canceling 10 days before class time. I know it is tricky with last minute things going awry, but in the past giving refunds right before class starts puts us in a pickle because of the financial overhead of prepping for the class, buying food, etc. that cannot be undone. We have 1-2 scholarship spots available at half off with the other half some sort of trade we can discuss. Email kelly@ofsedgeandsalt.com to inquire. First come first serve for scholarship spots. We cannot hold a scholarship spot without your deposit. When we confirm with you, we will send you a discount code to use when you check out to discount your tuition spot.
Join co-instructors Kelly Moody and Callan Burton-Shore to learn how to naturally tan a sheepskin using the traditional smoke-tanning method. Over the course of 3-days, each student will tan their own sheepskin using a few tools, eggs, wood smoke and their own hands! The skills covered in this class also apply to many other kinds of animal hides and types of tanning, so this is a great class to take no matter how much experience you have.
What You’ll Learn
History + various cultural traditions of tanning around the world
How to source + store hides
How to remove flesh and membrane from a hide
How to egg/ dress a sheepskin with emulsified oil
How to soften a sheepskin in a frame
How to smoke a hide
The difference between smoke-tanning + bark-tanning
The difference between fur-on pelts, leather, rawhide, and buckskin
Basic hide sewing techniques
Much more!
About the Instructors:
Between the two, Kelly Moody and Callan Burton-Shore have over 18 years experience tanning hides. They originally became friends because of their shared (though not overlapping) history living in the same cob cottage outside of Asheville, NC. Both are excited to bring their own unique perspectives and experiences of hide tanning into teaching this class together!
Read more about them: About Callan + About Kelly
Location:
We will gather near the of Paonia, Colorado. Specific location to be announced soon.
Camping is included in the workshop price. Food is not included, but there will be a simple outdoor kitchen set up for students to use. (we may change this and add a food option, stay tuned)
Important Notes:
Food will not be provided as a part of this class. Whether or not you are camping, you will need to bring your own food for every meal. More details on our primitive kitchen set up will be shared via email after signing up. Paonia has some great local restaurants and grocery stores as well as lodging opportunities, if you do not want to camp. (We may add a food option, stay tuned!)
This is a physically demanding class. You will be standing and using your arms A LOT. As instructors, we love finding creative ways to accommodate people’s differing bodies and abilities but please reach out before signing up if you have questions about your ability to take this class.
Payment
Payment plans available. You can pay for the class in payments through Klarna when you go to check out. It is one of the last things you click when you do. It seems to work best when you check out on your desktop.
Refund Policy: Due to the nature of this class, refunds will not be issued after August 7th.
We will issue refunds to folks canceling before this date.
Scholarships
We will offer 1-2 partial scholarship spots for folks who cannot afford the class. You will pay half and offer something for trade as the other half. This is an opportunity to get creative! Email me at kelly@ofsedgeandsalt.com or Callan at callanshore@gmail.com to inquire about scholarship spots. Once we confirm it is a good fit, you’ll get a discount code from us to use to check out and claim your spot.
There is a sign up page for this same class on Callan’s webpage. It is the same class and whether you sign up there or on this page, it will hold your spot for this class. (We listed it on both for visibility reasons)
email kelly@ofsedgeandsalt.com for scholarship opportunities
Find writings, Ground Shots Podcast extra episodes, announcements and more on Substack:
Podcast / Field Ecology and Ancestral Skills Classes / Land-Based Philosophy & Theory/ Herbal Apothecary / Land Based Craft
Herbalism Classes Coming up:
(limited class size due to size of indoor kitchen space)
In this two day class, we will work at the Ground Shots Herbs apothecary studio in Paonia, Colorado learning a multitude of medicine making techniques in a full kitchen. This class is focused on ways we can preserve herbs in medicine topically and internally, and is a beginner introduction to starting an apothecary at home.
We will run class from 8:30 AM-5:30 PM each day, with a break for lunch, where you are welcome to use the kitchen if you need to prepare your food. Bring a potluck dish if you’d like to share lunch.
We will utilize herbs from the North Fork Valley in our time together learning to make medicine in the kitchen.
We will cover the basics of:
salve making : beeswax based salves, alternative topicals with tallow and lanolin
infused oils
honey based medicines: oxymels, elixirs & meads
water based infusions and decoctions & we will drink different teas throughout the day
kitchen herbalism basics
folk tinctures
You’ll get to take home some of these medicines after we make them together!
The class location will be near downtown Paonia at the Paonia Makerspace building. More info will be sent out about the location once you sign up. Camping not included - email me for suggestions!
A small supply list will be sent out close to class time for a few of the projects (jar for you to take medicine home for example)
offered at a sliding scale. 16 hours of class time.
In this three day class, we will camp together and focus our time on identifying plants in the field and making medicine each day from our field excursions. We will cover medicine making basics in a field setting without the use of a modern kitchen or facilities. This class is focused on beginner herbal medicine making, primarily. It is a hands-on class, with much of our time spent processing medicine and teachings on proper medicine making techniques.
You’ll walk away with a couple medicines to take home and materia medica basics on how to further process and use them.
This will be in a rustic setting. Be prepared to car camp. Bring what you need to be comfortable in the wild. We will be at high elevation between 8,000-11,000 feet so prepare accordingly. We will make medicine from what is in season, which will vary in diversity depending on monsoon rains and flowering times. Bring your own food and we can collaborate on dinners.
We will cover:
basic plant ID and poison plants
relevant wild tending and sustainable harvesting techniques
wild plant teas
drying plants in the field
folk tincture making
place-based small batch mead and elixir making
place-based flower essences
Our schedule:
August 27 : arrive in the morning, class from noon-5:30 PM
August 28: all day class 9-4:30 PM
August 29: class from 9-3 PM
I will provide a required foraging and medicine making tool list before class time for you to bring to class (this will include things like portable fabric drying racks, note-taking gear, hori-hori, pruners, medicine making supplies etc.). Bring camping gear to be in a wild space without amenities. We will likely be near water but bring water you’ll need during the time. I will send the specific location and a more detailed small suggested gear list as time gets closer to class.
Location will be within an hour of Paonia, Colorado.
Please email me if you have any questions: kelly@ofsedgeandsalt.com
The Ground Shots Podcast has been featuring conversations and stories about our relationship to land since 2017
listen some of the latest Ground Shots Podcast episodes:
Stock your apothecary with our small batch herbal goods:
Calendula infused in Jojoba Oil, Almond Oil and Extra Virgin Olive Oil sourced from the family homestead Dancing Springs Farm in Weaverville, NC and the organic medicinal herb farm Grey Owl Garden in Paonia, Colorado.
A richly golden oil to soothe the wear and tear the face encounters daily. While this oil is amazing for the face and neck, it is also a great all around body oil.
This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Mint Nourishment Tea is a blend of simple flavorful herbs to drink any time to nourish the body. Herbs organically grown in Paonia, Colorado.
1.5 oz of herb
Brewing: Put a hearty pinch or two of herbs in a pot of water, about a quart or so, bring to a boil and then turn off heat. Let herbs sit for 15 minutes, and then pour cups to drink through a strainer. Rebrew once more the same day for a lighter version of the tea.
Contains:
Organic Anise Hyssop
Organic Spearmint
Organic Oat Straw
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This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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A salve made with Pine sap (Pinus spp.) from various trees across the west, Beeswax, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Almond Oil and Jojoba Oil. Available in 2 sizes.
This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Larrea tridentata branches and leaves infused over several moons in in Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Creosote Bush is found in the Mojave, Chihuahuan and Sonoran deserts in the Southwest and into Mexico. It covers miles of terrain, sometimes creating a sea-like illusion on the desert floor much like Sagebrush does in the cooler Great Basin desert to the north.
Creosote Bush is commonly named as such because this plant's heavy resinous scent and tacky demeanor has been compared to the smell of creosote found in stove pipes. It doesn't really smell like black soot at all to me, but does indeed have a sweet, ancient and deep earth smell that especially fills the air after rainstorms when it opens it stomata and on cool mornings in the desert where it grows. This plant is also called Chaparral and Gobernadora.
Stories, scientific studies and the ethnobotanical information available on the plant suggest that native folks did historically and still do use the plant for a number of ailments including: as a mild sunscreen or after sun care, chicken pox, eczema, sores (like the kinds my dad gets from working in the sun, and probably includes staph and the like), measles, as a styptic (powdered to stop bleeding), for burns and reducing burn scars, during colds and flus, as a mild expectorant, cramp relief, rheumatism and more.
For a complete plant profile on Larrea tridentata, that I wrote a few years ago, read here.
https://www.ofsedgeandsalt.com/blog/2018/4/6/creosote
This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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Inula helenium root elixir made with honey and vodka. This batch was made from plants grown at Enlightened Earth Herb Farm in Nevada County, California.
Asteraceae family lung and respiratory medicine, this plant also contains inulin, known to be helpful for regenerating gut flora.
hand-harvested Blueberries from organic fruit hand picked in Oregon, Apple Cider Vinegar and Honey.
Alcohol-Free.
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An oxymel is simply a vinegar and honey medicine. It is one of many ways to infuse food and herbs into a menstrum that can be taken into the body. I infused blueberries in honey and vinegar for months as a different way to take in blueberry medicine in daily life. This tasty concoction could be used in morning oatmeal for flavor and nutrition, in your daily hot tea infusion as an added vitamin C kick, in cocktails and mocktails to flavor and bring life to beverages. These blueberries I harvested at a friend’s farm in Oregon during the height of summer.
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This product has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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A body oil made with Organic Mugwort, Organic Clary Sage, Organic Garden Sage (all from Grey Owl Garden in Paonia, Colorado), wildcrafted Sagebrush, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Almond Oil, Jojoba Oil.
For dreams, grounding and rooting in the body. An earthy body oil concocted with Artemisias and Salvias.
Made with organically grown herbs or mindfully wildcrafted plants.
This product has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
This is one of our favorites salves ever.
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This wound salve is made from desert botanicals and is a great all around remedy that can aid against fungal infections, basic skin irritations, sunburn, minor cuts, burns and more.
I started making this salve out of need for something all-around to put on my body for a variety of purposes, and also because I LOVE the smell of these plants and wanted to have their scents lingering around me.
I pretty much use it for everything. I put it on after I’ve been out in the sun to tame sunburn. I use it on healing wounds, on occasional foot fungus after big closed-toe shoe hiking trips, as a face moisturizer in dry places, as a skin protectant on windy days. I give my dad handfuls of this salve every year because he works outside all day everyday and his face, neck and arms get worn from the sun. He loves using this salve on a regular basis, and he’s not a salve-using kind of guy.
Often I miss times when I was driving across a sea of Sagebrush or Creosote Bush during a rainstorm in the desert and found myself with windows open to take in the floating heavy waft. I will use this salve when I want to reconnect with those scented memories.
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Contains:
Chaparral / Creosote Bush
Pine Sap (various species)
Cottonwood buds (Black, Fremont and Narrowleaf species)
Yarrow
Sagebrush
Calendula
Plantain
Beeswax
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Read stories about plants in the salve here.
Read the extensive botanical profiles we compiled on Cottonwood, Piñon and Creosote Bush, all plants in the salve.
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This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
A salve made with Organic Calendula, Beeswax, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Almond Oil and Jojoba Oil. Calendula grown at the organic medicinal herb farm Grey Owl Garden in Paonia, Colorado.
Now in heavier glass container +heftier than one pictured+
2 oz
This small batch body butter is made from:
Rosemary (Salvia rosmarinus), Piñon Pine sap (Pinus monophylla and edulis), Calendula (Calendula officinalis), Jojoba oil, Shea butter. This batch does NOT have Rosemary essential oil.
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This silky body butter is whipped up in a small batch with some evergreen plants from foraging adventures and friends’ organic farms. Slightly warming and with the smell fragrant earth, this body butter is divine and smooth. Rosemary comes from certified organic Grey Owl Garden medicinal herb farm in Paonia, CO and Pine Pitch from western Colorado wilds. Calendula is also grown at Grey Own Gardens or Groundwork Educational Farm in Paonia, CO.
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This product has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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Yarrow Wound Powder in metal tins to add to your emergency or first aid kit. Have in the kitchen, in your pack for outdoor jaunts, in your car, for street medic work, with your bike paneers, etc. (anywhere you think you might get a scrape or cut!) Yarrow has been known to slow down bleeding as a styptic if applied immediately after a wound has occurred and also has been known to aid in wound recovery and wound pain. NOT recommended for super deep or gouged out wounds. Wound meant to be cleaned later after bleeding has sufficiently stopped. Also nice for inflammed bug and mosquito bites. Also can be made into a tea!
Check out Solidarity Apothecary’s plant profile on Yarrow as a first aid herb
each tin contains approx 8-9 grams of ground Yarrow herb (Achillea millefolium) wildcrafted in small batches across the West.
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This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
a distillation of Utah Juniper made in small batch June 2025
made with a lead-free copper still
Use as perfume, hair moisturizer, as an anti-fungal spray on the body, for cleaning, or to freshen up stagnant spaces.
A seasonally made cough syrup formulated with Chokecherry, Rose hips, Grindelia, Elderberry, Spilanthes, Ginger, Cinnamon, Beebalm, Honey, Apple Cider Vinegar, Vodka.
Mostly wild harvested, locally (western Colorado) grown herbs.
"These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease”
2 oz
This round is in 2 oz bottle sizes (so bigger than what is pictured)
I’ve made various citrus based bitters over the years and this is my batch made from Citrus I gathered on the road last year on friends’ farms on the west coast. Mint and Lemon Balm were grown organically at Grey Owl Garden in Paonia, Colorado and the Juniper berries were wildcrafted in Nevada, Utah and western Colorado.
Orange Peel Citrus sp., Grapefruit Peel Citrus sp., Mint oxymel (Mentha spp), Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis), Juniper berry (Juniperus sp.), water, brandy, honey
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Bitters have been known to promote increased digestion, nutrient assimilation and overall body balance. Use them before or after meals, or in a mixed drink of your choosing, adult or not.
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This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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1 oz
This medicine contains:
Milky oats, grain vodka
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This simple tincture of freshly harvested milky oats is a wonderful nutritive supplement for the nervous system and promotes overall resilience to stress.
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This product has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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Grindelia squarrosa tincture. Gumweed or Grindelia is considered a ‘weed’ in some areas but is a gem of a medicine. This makes for a great Osha (Ligusticum spp.) substitute because Osha is overharvested. Its abundant across the west especially on edge zones and roadsides and is easy to grow in a garden.
This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
(photo credit - I can’t find my own pictures of it right now) By Franz Xaver - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=16276185
A seasonal small batch of bottled Western Osha (Ligusticum porteri) + combined Lomatium dissectum elixir - medicine made with both potato vodka and local honey.
Lomatium dissectium I often refer to directly by it’s scientific name but it has several common names one being Fernleaf Biscuitroot.
I usually do not sell much of these root medicines unless extremely abundant or garden grown. This is due to the fact that many of these plants are struggling due to habitat loss, lack of wild-tending attention, or from being over-harvested — especially in the case of Osha.
These medicines were made while planting their seeds back in the disturbances made from digging the roots.
Lomatium dissectum, Medicine Lomatium has been known to be a strong anti-viral, and can also act on bacterial and fungal infections. It is helpful for the lungs, but I have also used it for cold sores herpes outbreaks topically and internally. During C0v1d, this medicine became increasingly known.
Ligusticum porteri , Osha, is a powerful traditional herb used across the west (and actually exists in the east in the higher elevation forests, too) as a lung medicine. I have seen it aid in acute asthma attacks from stress, help with breathing at high elevation, clear out mucous when someone stopped smoking among many other examples.
This medicine would make sense to add to your apothecary if you’re wanting a powerful medicine for when upper respiratory or lung infections hit, or experience exposure to smoke or particulates.
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This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Sambucus nigra flower and berry
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This Elderberry Elixir was made using Elderberry flower tincture and Elderberry berry infused honey. Elderberries and Elderflowers in this batch harvested in western Colorado.
A powerful plant that encourages the elimination of viruses in the body, we tend to keep Elderberry around in medicine form during all parts of the year.
Transition seasons can be especially taxing on the body, and during these times we try to take a syrup or elixir of Elder daily to prevent sickness.
When sick, we brew it with ginger, put it in hot tea, mix it in water.
Aside from being an incredibly helpful plant, Elderberry is also delicious and pleasant enjoyed brewed into a wine, soda or mead, or made into a spritzer for a flavorful drink.
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REFRIGERATE AFTER OPENING. Sometimes honey can capture yeast from the air, and elderberries also have a natural yeast on them. This can sometimes cause medicines to carbonate, which is not a bad thing necessarily but not what we want in this case. To prevent this from happening, keep the Elixir out of heat in the fridge.
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This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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1 oz
This round of
Heart Holding Elixir contains:
Wild Rose petals and leaves (Rose spp.), Hawthorn fruit, thorns and leaves (Crataegus spp.), Tulsi (Ocimum spp.), honey from western Colorado, mescal, vodka.
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This elixir contains wild rose collected a friend’s abandoned orchard in Paonia, Colorado. Hawthorn flower leaf and fruit from mid elevation on the Grand Mesa, and Tulsi grown organically at Grey Owl Garden and Groundwork Farm in Paonia, Colorado. Made with mescal, vodka and honey.
This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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Mormon Tea / Ephedra viridis wild gathered in western Colorado.
1.5 oz in a resealable and reusable bag.
The Ephedra species found in North America are NOT stimulating in the way that Chinese Ephedra is stimulating. This is not Chinese Ephedra.
This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
1 oz
spring Fir (Abies spp.) tips, spring Douglas Fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii ) tips, spring Redwood tips (Sequoia sempervirens), raw honey, vodka, brandy.
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Conifers are ‘cone-bearing’ (usually) and keep their needles year round (save for a few outliers, like Tamarack). Anywhere Conifers grow around the world there are stories of their magic and importance for bringing light and life in dark times, of creating shelter for many creatures, including humans. Take this blend to connect with that sense of shelter, for a more productive cough while getting over a cold, or to simply be reminded of the deep wisdom held in these cone-bearers. Vitamin C is associated with Pine family needle medicine.
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This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
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contains: horehound, mullein, mugwort, mint and lavender
Roll this blend up into a handmade smoke or brew into a tea, or both. Clear your lungs, have a relaxing moment. The blend used as a tea is slightly bitter and medicinal in flavor, and have herbs that have known to be great for colds, lung congestion and relaxation.
Most herbs harvested in small batches and dried by hand.
This round of herbal smoke blend is a combination of small-batch wildcrafted herbs and herbs organically grown in Paonia, Colorado.
Choose between:
a tin of herbs to roll your own,
or a recyclable tube with the same blend pre-rolled for you to use right away
Tin is about .8 - 1 ounce net weight of herb
Tube pack comes with 8 pre-rolls at about a half-gram each.
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Horehound - Lung care, expectorant, lung opening
Mullein - Expectorant, lung opening
Mugwort - a wild herb of North America also found around the world. Drawing forth, moving, relaxation, dreams and navigating between worlds.
Mint - Cooling, light and refreshing
Lavender - Calming, soothing, relaxing
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Does NOT contain h3mp or tob@cco.*
This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Eriodictyon californicum
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This elixir features carefully wildcrafted Yerba Santa leaves and flowers harvested from the Sierra foothills of California. Steeped in vodka and raw honey for months, this simple elixir tastes amazing. We take this elixir when our mucous membranes feel moist and boggy from seasonal allergies, when we have a cold with congestion, and more. See our botanical profile on the ecology and traditional use of Yerba Santa here.
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Take 1-3 dropperfuls 3x per day or as needed.
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This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Spilanthes aerial tops - Spilanthes acmella tinctured in vodka. Grown at Dancing Springs Farm in Weaverville, North Carolina.
This toothpowder is an non-abrasive powdered blend of dried herbs for polishing the teeth and gums. A refreshing blend without foaming agents or fluoride. Just pour a tad in the lid, dip a damp toothbrush in the mix and brush away. You'll notice the tiny tingle of Prickly Ash and a pleasant flavor of Fennel. Herbs are in a base of smaller amounts of baking soda and bentonite clay. Contains no essential oils.
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This blend includes:
*Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis)
*Cinnamon (Cinnamomum sp.)
*Horsetail (Equisetum sp.)
Prickly Ash (Zanthoxylum americanum)
*Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare)
Myrrh (Commiphora spp.)
Salt
*Stevia Leaf (Stevia rebaudiana)
Bentonite Clay
Baking Soda
*sourced organically
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2 oz
Japanese Honeysuckle tincture (Lonicera japonica) in potato vodka.
Japanese Honeysuckle is a Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jin Yin Hua" (金银花), meaning "gold-silver flower". I grew up in the south, where it was considered an ‘invasive’ plant and grew everywhere. In the southwest, it is planted as an ornamental. It is known to ‘clear heat.’ While I learned this medicine while I lived in the south, I had first hand experience with the plant that reaffirmed what I was taught a couple years ago, when I got a blood infection from a splinter. After the heat would not pass and it moved around my thumb and hand for a month, a nurse-herbalist friend (Jason Hone who has been on the ground shots podcast!) recommended I find some Japanese Honeysuckle asap. I found it with a local Chinese Herbalist, and after I started taking the herb, the infection cleared immediately. I try to have the plant on hand now as a first aid kit for staph infections, anti-biotic resistant bacteria issues. It is also often put in cough and cold formulas.
"These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease
Corn Silk tinctured from my Oaxacan Green and Blue Corn harvest last season in Paonia, Colorado. Corn silk has been known to be used for soothing UTI’s (Urinary Tract Infections).
These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Tincture of Pulsatilla patens from Grand Mesa, Colorado. One of the more powerful plants in my medicine cabinet. This plant has saved me and many friends from panic attack and heart ache spirals. Use for when getting on the plane feels impossible, you’re going to visit a parent you’ve had a hard time with growing up, PTSD episodes of all kinds.
Warning, This plant is a DROP DOSE medicine. You must use as indicated.
1-3 drops actuely in moment of stress. In an hour, try 1-3 more drops. (NOT dropperfuls). Don’t take more than 12 drops in a day.
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Not ready to attend an in-person or online class? These past class recordings are ready for instant download:
This is a video recording of the talk I did fall 2022 via ZOOM on the medicine and ecology of the Redroots, otherwise known as plants in the Ceanothus genus.
There’s a significant number of Ceanothus species on Turtle Island, especially concentrated on the West Coast, in fact over 30 species are found in California alone. But, species of Redroot, sometimes called New Jersey Tea, Snowbush, Deerbrush, Buckbrush, or Whitethorn among other common names— have traditions of use often where they are found, and also play a huge role cross-ecologically in the lands they inhabit. What can we learn from the tenacity of the Redroots where they grow, and how can we notice them more in our landscapes?
Sometimes Ceanothus species are incredibly abundant, sometimes they are threatened and somewhat rare depending on their location. Often the powerful medicine of Ceanothus is overlooked, under seen or set aside in typical Western materia medica. But, we could use a reconsideration of engagement with this group of plants in our modern times, and perhaps really NEED to ecologically and culturally.
Want to get into the Redroots with me? Join me for a ZOOM class on these plants. Bring questions about Redroots where you live and I can try to answer those questions the last part of class.
This class is based in part on a plant profile I wrote on my blog, back in 2018. Read it here.
This gives you access to the video recording of the ZOOM class offered on Cottonwood Medicine and Ecology in the fall of 2022.
Different Cottonwood species grow from east to west on Turtle Island connected through vast veins of water spider webbing across varied landscapes. You may recognize these often grand and majestic trees tucked in southwestern canyons or in dry creek beds, or Aspens as immense clonal colonies across mountainsides. For over a decade I've traveled around the country studying and hanging out with these beings from the Pacific Northwest, the Sierras, and across the Rockies. I've made medicine from them, and tried to better understand their significance where they grow. Balm of Gilead some call the medicine of Cottonwood and if you come to the class you can find out why.
In this class, we will take a look at a couple different species of Cottonwood and Aspen, how to ID them, where they grow and their significance in the ecosystems they inhabit. We'll discuss the modern issues Cottonwoods face during climate change, as well as how Cottonwoods and Aspens can be used for medicine.
You are purchasing a recording of an online class taught online via ZOOM in April 2024.
Here is the original description:
An online seminar surveying plants containing tannins across Turtle Island for Natural Dyers, Hide Tanners and Herbalists and how to use them, in order to connect to the plants as they intersect craft and medicine.
We will get into different regions, and do a Q & A and discussion at the end where folks can ask about certain plants and also share their experiences.
as someone who has traveled all over, I’ve managed to tan leather using 95% harvested plants. I also make medicine on the road and gather dye materials when I find them. There are also ways to gather plants in a wild-tending and mindful reciprocity fashion and we will discuss this also with the plants we discuss.
We’ll talk a little about some of the popular tannins folks buy from around the world and contextualize some of them in ecological context.
we live in a global world and It’s impossible to always be in direct connection or know where everything comes from or how to be in direction connection when trying to work with land based craft and medicine. But, the least we can do is try bit my bit to educate ourselves on what is possible.
Contact: kelly@ofsedgeandsalt.com
Location: Paonia, Colorado and the road
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email: kelly@ofsedgeandsalt.com
Camping and lodging not provided. We can give recommendations for camping locations on public lands nearby or local airbnbs if you need. Local commuting encouraged. We may be able to host a couple people where we live, just get in touch and we can let you know if we have space.
class is 9:30 AM -5 PM every day with a lunch break.