Here is what herbalist Margi Flint has to say about it:
“So, you want to be an herbalist? Start here. HERB CRAFT is a gift for all people engaging with plants on our Earth. Good herbal practice begins and ends with self-care. This is care is intertwined with the sharing of practical lessons creating a solid foundation to become an herbalist. Nicole imparts respect for our history, elders, varied practices, terminology and practical conversational instruction. There is an ease to her writing. Delightful tips like …to make herbal remedies, especially if you are wanting to capture aromatics. Ahhh. You will feel the warmth of her love for our friends the plants, the reverence for our elders, the wisdom of her experience will light your way.
Nicole Telkes has birthed HERB CRAFT the complete guide to western holistic herbalism! Always find books written by practicing herbalists! You can really hear her wisdom on the pages from the many years of teaching Wildflower School of Botanical Medicine programs, walking on and off the paths of woods, desert, shores and plains, sleeping under stars, then returning to the apothecary to create formulations properly. Yes, the plants will have their way!
I have been practicing over forty years and learned so much new information in this amazing book. It will sit on the first shelf in my busy office between books written by my most revered mentors. I look forward to making it dog-eared.”
HerbCraft covers everything you need to know to get started as a socially and environmentally responsible Folk Herbalist.
About Nicole Telkes RH(AHG): Clinical Herbalist, Director and Founder of Wildflower School
Nicole Telkes is an award-winning, community-centered Registered Herbalist and clinical mentor who has worked with plants for most of her life. She is a first generation citizen of the United States and both her Hungarian and Polish grandmothers used herbs.
After graduating with a degree in Ecology & Botany, Nicole rounded out her herbal and holistic medicine training with Michael Moore at the SW School of Botanical Medicine, Greta de la Montagne, Margi Flint of EarthSong Herbals, Paul Bergner, Filiberto Delgado, Dr. Vasant Lad at the Ayurvedic Institute, and many others. She also added structural bodywork, cranial sacral therapy, MAM, and other hands-on techniques to her practice through the years.
Nicole’s work has always centered around protecting plants. Early in her journey, she did direct action work in the wilderness, protecting old growth trees and protesting against corporate dominance. She spent several years as a direct action, first aid, frontline herbal medic, and in 2001, she co-founded an urban permaculture collective.
More recently, she was featured in the New York Times and Boston Globe for her work to protect the traditional herbal remedy, fire cider. Nicole, part of the Fire Cider Three, fought in federal court to protect the generational remedy from being trademarked. After five years, Free Fire Cider won. The trio received awards from the American Herbalist Guild and American Botanical Council for this effort.
Nicole wrote the book Medicinal Plants of Texas in 2013 and recently finished a new book Herbcraft: the Complete Guide to 21st Century Holistic Western Herbalism in 2021.
Nicole has been training others since 2000. After founding Wildflower School of Botanical Medicine, she added an 8.5 acre botanical sanctuary and apiary into the mix in 2014. The school has expanded to online and in-person courses.
