Field Work
‘Look deep into Nature and then you will understand everything Better.’ – Albert Einstein
As we study, whether as a student taking first steps into herbal learning or as a qualified practitioner, it can be easy to become solely immersed in academic books and the dispensary on shelves.
We can forget the importance of walking out and meeting our green friends in their natural environment.
The importance of seeing how they grow, how they adapt, how they protect themselves and how they communicate with the other flora and fauna surrounding them.
The importance of being able to recognise the plants that we know will be of benefit to us and grow in our own locality. To understand how to wildcraft from nature and create remedies with respect and care for the environment and the plants.
The importance of the herbalist’s role in conservation, preservation of biodiversity and sustainability.
‘Don’t judge each day by the Harvest you reap but by the Seeds that you Plant.’ – Robert Louis Stevenson
The IRH believes that any herbalist should be able to recognise at least 30 herbs within their tradition on sight and that they should have spent a minimum of 50 hours ‘in the field’.
Here is a sample Field work log sheet (courtesy Jean Berry)
So what does that term mean and how do you go about it?
Field work, in the herbalist’s context, is about direct contact with the plants themselves followed up by further research and reflection.
This can be achieved as follows:
Going on Herb walks with other qualified herbalists or botanists.
Study how to use a plant key for identification and go on self guided walks, take photographs for home study and to build up your own unique visual herbal.
Use the botany that you would have studied as part of your course to identify plant families.
Volunteer in St Anne’s Physic Garden where there is a great collection of medicinal plants. St Anne’s also has the Millennium Arboretum where you will find many medicinal trees of the world and Irish native specimens too.
Choose a plant and obtain the seeds to grow the plant yourself. Watch and document it’s growth, what soil type does it prefer, how much sun exposure can it tolerate. Get to know the best times to harvest from it and what parts.
Visit or volunteer in community gardens or herbal events, visit the National Botanic Gardens in Dublin or the JFK Arboretum in Wexford.
Observe any plant habitats around you locally – windowsill, garden, roadside, hedgerow, salt-marsh, beach, woodland, mountain meadows and farmer’s fields.
Read books, websites and articles on plant identification and sustainable harvesting.
Download plant identification apps – there are a number of great free ones out there online.
Keep an eye on the IRH facebook page and twitter for posts on potential field work events
Suggested reading and resources
Books – you don’t have to spend a fortune on all these books, you’ll find a lot of them in your local library (most will also order in books you request from other connected libraries)
Irish Trees – Niall Mac Coitir
Irish Wild Plants – Niall Mac Coitir
Flora Hibernica – J. Pilcher and V. Hall
What’s that Tree? – Tony Russell
The Wild Flower Key – Francis Rose
Wild Flowers of Britain and Europe – D & R Aichelle, H.W. & A Schwegler
An Irish Flora – D. A Webb, J. Parnell, D. Doogue
Hedgerow Medicine – J. Bruton-Seal and M. Seal
Holistic Herbal – David Hoffman
Healing Herbs in Ireland – Paula O’Regan
The Lost Language of Plants – Stephen Harrod Buhner
The Secret Teachings of Plants – Stephen Harrod Buhner
The Wildflowers of Ireland: a field guide – Zoe Devlin
Websites – there are a number of great sites out there, here are a selection
National Biodiversity Data Centre
Sourcing Medicinal Plants