2024 Garden Apprenticeship
From seed to apothecary, our apprenticeship is a chance to deepen your connection to nature and plant medicine through a hands-on, working exploration of medicinal herbs.
Join herbalist and farmer, Sunshine Dawson, in tending our Garden of Life - a 120+ species medicinal garden designed around the body systems and the herbs that work with them. There is also a moon garden, a tea garden, and a bed for natural plant dyes.
Apprentices will be working outside with the plants themselves from planting the seeds, cultivating and caring for the herbs, harvesting and processing, to bringing them into the kitchen apothecary to create food and medicine with the plants they have lovingly tended.
Our work & learning will focus on:
Propagation
Techniques used for various plants like seeding, root divisions, cuttings, layering
Soil mixes, nutrients and proper watering
Sourcing seeds and plants
Spring Bed Clean Up & Planting
Common weed ID, beneficial uses and removal
Perennial herb maintenance
Fertilizing and mulching existing beds
Planting annuals
Harvesting & Processing
How, when, and what plant parts to harvest for maximum potency
Drying and garbling techniques
Properly storing herbs
Herbal Preparations
We will use fresh and dried herbs to make a variety of medicines for our farm Apothecary including tinctures, infused oils, salves, and acetums
Our focus will be working with the plants in the garden and apothecary, and while we will talk about how to apply herbs and herbal preparations in daily life, we will not be going over “what is this herb good for” with every species. There is so much more to learning about plant medicine than just what the plants can do for us. This is a chance to connect with and learn from the plants themselves through their cycles.
Apprentices will be given ideas for self study outside of our garden time to further their learning, including books and other resources. There will be ample opportunity to take fresh and dried herbs home to begin or expand home apothecaries; and some plants will also be available to take home for personal medicine gardens.
Sunrise over the
Garden of Life
Apprenticeship Details
Who is this for:
The apprenticeship is open to 7 individuals who wish to expand their connection to and knowledge of medicinal plants by getting their hands into the soil and actively cultivating and caring for our medicine gardens and working in our apothecary.
We will be getting dirty, spending hours on our knees weeding or spreading mulch, in the cold or hot sun or occasionally some drizzle. Please make sure you are up for that!
Where & When:
The Spring session will begin on March 11th and end on May 27th.
We will meet every Monday 3pm - 5:30pmOur meeting place each afternoon will be at the Garden of Life at Maple Spring Gardens -
9779 Allison Rd, Cedar Grove, NC. —> MAP
We will also visit other parts of our farm such as the greenhouse and drying shed.In case of a super rainy day, we will focus on inside/apothecary work, so there are no make up days.
What to bring:
Apprentices should be prepared for hot or cold, sun or occasional drizzle and hard work. We recommend wearing pants, sturdy shoes, and a hat. A lightweight long sleeve shirt is good in the hotter season for sun protection. A change of clothes is sometimes helpful!
Please bring a refillable water bottle and snacks if you wish. Other items recommended are garden gloves, sunscreen, a notebook, and bags to bring herbs or plants home in, plus anything else you may need to be comfortable working in the garden for 2.5 hours, or at times indoors with our cohort.
We will supply all tools needed, but if you have home tools you prefer, you are welcome to bring them.
How much does it cost:
The apprenticeship fee is $400 to be paid at registration. There is an option to pay half as a deposit when you register and the other half by March 1st. This includes 30 hours of hands-on instruction in growing and cultivating herbs from seed to apothecary, fresh herbs and plants to take home to stock your own apothecaries and gardens, hand-outs, guidance for self study, and personal time in the garden before and after on apprenticeship days.
We have 1 additional full scholarship available for a BIPOC community member. If you would like to apply, fill out our scholarship application below. For consideration, please submit by February 19th.
As space is limited, we do not offer refunds after March 1st. Refunds before March 1st will be minus a 10% processing fee. We rely on our apprentices’ work to care for our Garden of Life, our community teaching garden, and want each person to get the most out of the experience. Please make sure you are able to make the commitment to each day in the session before you sign up. We understand “life happens”; if your ability to commit changes after March 1st, please let us know. We may be able to honor a refund IF we have someone else on our waitlist who can take your slot, minus a 10% processing fee.