Summer Herbal Certificate Program - Seed to Remedy

Summer Herbal Certificate Program - Seed to Remedy

For thousands of years plants have been used to promote healthy natural living. Aloe promotes healthy skin and soothes sunburn. Oat straw supports the nervous system for a sense of calm. During cold and flu season, sip elderberry syrup and fire cider. Soothing calendula salve can be applied as an antibacterial for skin abrasions. Learn about a variety of medicinal plants, including ones grown on site at the Gardens as well as those native to Colorado. Led by some of the region's most experienced herbalists, students are guided through every step with a hands-on teaching approach. Students learn in the classroom, in the Gardens and out in the field. This program offers a unique learning experience to transform each student into a confident, knowledgeable and resourceful steward of plants by introducing practical and powerful herbalism knowledge. To earn the certificate, students must attend at least nine classes in person.

Note: Foundation of Herbalism is recommended for students of this course.

Summer Herbal Certificate Courses

Herbal Safety and Tea Formulations - 201

Cat Pantaleo Tuesday, June 17, 2025, 4 - 7 p.m. The first part of this class will provide participants with an overview of botanical safety guidelines, including critical thinking, dosage strategies and primary considerations. The second part of the class will introduce the basics of combining herbs to make therapeutically effective and great tasting tea blends. This lecture and demonstration style class will cover the essential elements involved in herbal tea formulating, including herbal actions, properties, proportions, and intuition, as well as special considerations such as an individual's constitution, season, and climate. Each participant will go home with a tea blend of their making.

Herbalism Hike and Plant Identification - 201

Blake Burger & Kimberly Rose Saturday, July 12, 2025, 9 a.m. - 2p.m. OFFSITE LOCATION TBD In our nature-deficit times, herbalism is a doorway and herbalists hold the key to re-connection and health. On this outing, we engage the opportunity and responsibility to be knowledgeable, ecologically literate, and nature-connected herbalists by focusing on bioregionalism and by awakening your native awareness. During this time outdoors, we integrate botany, ecology, plant identification, knowledge of local edible/therapeutic/survival plants, landscape observation, sensory awareness, and explorations in perception. Deepen your relationship to land while adding to your confidence as a regional herbalist.

Nurturing the Skin You Live In: Skin Spa Day - 201

Blake Burger Tuesday, July 15, 2025, 4 - 7 p.m. This class cultivates an understanding of the skin from a holistic approach. Explore skin conditions from acne to wounds and talk about our plant allies that soothe and deeply nourish the skin. Learn how to use demulcent herbs for irritated or inflamed tissue as well as astringent herbs. Discussion includes a review of the anatomy and physiology of skin to gain familiarity with patterns of health and trauma. Learn about key herbs and herbal remedies to support acute traumatic conditions like cuts, bruises, scrapes, infections, burns, inflammation, sprains, strains, fractures, breaks and more! Sample and create herbal remedies such as a fresh comfrey poultice, a lavender witch hazel liniment and a chamomile oat scrub. The second part of class his class covers which plant oils are great for your skin. Learn to make affordable skin care products that are all natural, garden fresh and excellent for your skin.

Plant Identification and Field Botanicals Making - 201

Amberle Suski & Cat Pantaleo Saturday, August 2, 2025, 9:30 a.m. - 4 p.m. This is a full and fun day outdoors with the plants in their natural setting at Denver Botanic Gardens Chatfield Farms. Spend the morning on a local trail exploring the botanical diversity of the Front Range to review and practice plant identification skills learned earlier in the program. Review basic botanical terminology, plant families and ecology, and introduce the concept and practice of ethical wild crafting and stewardship. Spend the afternoon at the beautiful and bountiful Denver Botanic Garden's Chatfield Farms. Discuss the edible and medicinal properties of the plants we encounter as well as botanical first aid applications. As we wander through the gardens, practice identification and observation skills, nibble herbs and make simple remedies.

Home Wellness: Using Food as Remedies

Amberle Suski & Farnosh Family Saturday, August 16, 2025, 9:30 a.m.  3:30 p.m. Session I: Food-Based Remedies Learn to create tasty and practical foods and beverages packed with herbal benefits, flavors and aromas that will leave you drooling for more! We explore various fermentation techniques, easy snacks, treats and healing libations for each season. Session 2: Framework for Personalizing Recipes Learn to adapt a recipe by adjusting the spices, herbs and ingredients according to the season and herbal considerations. Take home some recipes and use this framework to personalize your food throughout the year.

Remedy Making - Fire Cider 201

Amberle Suski Tuesday, August 19, 2025, 4 - 7 p.m. Enjoy this spicey hands-on workshop. Just in time for fall, learn to create your custom versions of the time-honored, immune-boosting recipe, lovingly known as fire cider.

Gardening with Medicinal Herbs in Colorado - 201

Blake Burger Tuesday, August 26, 2025, 4 - 7p.m. Gardening in Colorado is both extremely rewarding, but often challenging. Patience, adaptability, and skill are necessary virtues to be successful and fruitful as a gardener in Colorado. This class discusses soil and compost, seed starting, climate, propagation techniques, transplanting and more. Learn techniques to not only help your plants survive but thrive. We also learn about the best herbs and therapeutic plants to grow in Colorado's dynamic climate.

Tincture and Cordials - 201

Farnosh Family Tuesday, September 9, 2025, 4 - 7 p.m. This class introduces the wonderful world of tincture making, the art and science of creating herbal remedies by soaking plants in alcohol. Using some basic principles of Ayurveda, prepare tinctures using different methods and discuss herb qualities, characteristics, and functions when considering formulation. Discuss and prepare herbal wines and cordials. Students take home a 1 oz bottle of tincture and a jar to make one at home as practice.

Natural First Aid - 201

Cat Pantaleo Saturday, September 13, 2025, 9:30 a.m. -12:30 p.m. This class introduces the myriad ways in which botanicals and other natural remedies can be utilized safely and effectively for first-aid situations, including burns, sprains/strains, poison ivy and insect bites/stings. Both internal and external applications are covered, including homeopathy and poultices. Students make products to add to their home first-aid kits. Class includes a tour of the medicinal garden at York Street.

Final Class Share, Make and Take - 201

Amberle Suski, Blake Burger, Cat Pantaleo, Farnosh Family Saturday, September 13, 2025, 1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. Share with the class a celebration of make and take items based on the things we learned.

Highly Recommended Texts for the Certificate Program, available in the Helen Fowler Library:

"The Herbal Medicine-Maker's Handbook: A Home Manual" by James Green "Medicinal Plants of the Mountain West" by Michael Moore "Botany in a Day" by Thomas J. Elpel Optional Deeper Reading: "The Complete Illustrated Guide To Holistic Herbal: A Safe And Practical Guide To Making And Using Herbal Remedies" by David Hoffman

Price: $770, $698 member

Location: York Street

Instructors: Amberle Suski, Blake Burger, Cat Pantaleo, Farnosh Family

Instructor Bios

Amberle Suski has worked as a holistic health practitioner and plant fanatic in the Denver community since 2011. She is a Colorado Master Gardener and has trained extensively in herbalism, permaculture design, organic low-till farming, reflexology, reiki and wellness coaching. Amberle is motivated by connecting with and supporting people in ways that enable them to care for themselves mindfully, skillfully and confidently, others and their environment. She believes that people flourish as they take ownership of their health and quality of life by connecting dynamically with nature. She can usually be found farming, gardening, dancing, exploring, creating and nurturing relationships of all kinds. Borage and Berry Apothecary is Amberle's ongoing passion project, offering unique herbal remedies, educational opportunities and therapeutic gardening consults that are thoughtfully tailored to each person and project.

Blake Burger began his career at Denver Botanic Gardens as a seasonal gardener. After one year, he was hired full-time as a horticulturalist. Throughout his time at the Gardens, he has worked with tropical plants, native plants, vegetables and herbs. After receiving his Herbalist Certification here in Denver, Blake immediately began working with the vast array of medicinal plants growing in the Gardens. He founded the Denver Medicinal Plant Society in 2015, created and maintains several medicinal plant beds at the Garden's York Street location and laid the foundation for the Garden's first Herbalist Certificate Program. As a certified yoga instructor, Blake has led more than 1,000 yoga classes over six years and created a nationally recognized yoga program at the Gardens. Blake believes in a multifaceted approach to health and wellness: eat well, move your body, never stop learning, get outside and connect.

Cat Pantaleo is a holistic health practitioner with over 22 years of experience as a consultant, educator and nature guide. She weaves together her skills as an herbalist, ecopsychologist, nutritionist and practitioner of nonviolent communication. She creates opportunities to cultivate resilience, restoration, deep nourishment and a reconnection to one's authentic, wild self. Cat's work is ultimately guided by nature beings and an impassioned desire to restore respect and reciprocity between humans and the natural world, re-awakening our innate human capacity for caring and cooperation in order to re-establish an Earth-honoring way of being so that all life may flourish.

Farnosh Family is an Ayurvedic practitioner who uses a blend of lifestyle changes, diet, and herbs in her practice. With a background in organic chemistry, she approaches herbology and cooking like the science that it is. In addition to her work using Ayurveda with clients, she has an herbal ghee company located in Denver called Ayurveda Mama. You can find more information about her on Instagram at @ayurveda_mama or on the website www.ayurveda-mama.com.