My First Medicinal Plants Course

2018 had a very positive start for me: on the first Saturday of the year, I taught my first introductory course to medicinal plants. It was very nice to take advantage of my yearly visit to my home country, Costa Rica, to improve and share my knowledge about phytotherapy and tropical medicinal plants.

Photos by Carlos Carazo.

The course took place at a very special venue: a mountain property north of Heredia (about 15 Km from the capital, San José) that originally belonged to my great-grandfather. My family and I lived in this finca for a year back in 1988, while our house was undergoing renovations, so the place brings back many childhood memories and a special closeness to Nature. Fortunately, the property is still in the family, now in the hands of my cousin Alejandra, who is a yoga teacher and recently opened a beautiful yoga studio there.

We were also lucky that the weather played along: it had been raining and very windy due to a cold front, but on the workshop day the rain stopped, so we could have the class outdoors, and even enjoy a bit of sun.

There were around 20 participants. I was very pleasantly surprised by how well-received the course was, and in general by the huge interest people have in learning more about medicinal plants.

We talked about phyotherapy and its history, as well as about the main constituents found in medicinal plants and their actions. We also covered plants that are commonly used in Costa Rica, and the different preparations that can be made with them. I made three different plant preparations for the participants: honey with ribwort plantain (Plantago lanceolata) leaves, and alcohol-based tinctures of lemon balm (Melissa officinalis), and rosemary. 

It was an amazing experience, and I look forward to teaching more courses in future visits to Costa Rica; maybe even a more practical worskhop, in which participants can work hands-on in the plant preparations.