Learn to forage wild medicines and craft your own herbal remedies
July 11-12, 2026
Join Julianne Peterson, herbalist and owner of Singing Springs Botanicals, for a weekend excursion in the beautiful San Juan mountains of Southwest Colorado.
Highlights
• Meet the magnificent medicines of this unique bioregion.
• Explore ethical wildcrafting practices in theory and in hands-on practical ways.
• Share in sacred harvesting practices that go beyond numerical guidelines.
• Make friends with kindred spirits inspired by love for the Earth and the Plantfolk.
the weekend’s
Overview
*If you are traveling from afar, plan to arrive in Ridgway or Ouray on the evening of Friday, July 10th.
Our days will be spent largely outside learning to correctly identify the areas bountiful medicine plants and digging into all the practical skills one needs to wildcraft (harvest) these. The other part of the day we will be processing and preparing several medicines with our botanical bounty.
Participants will learn how to prepare the whole gamut of herbal medicaments: aqueous infusions and decoctions, poultices, tinctures, cordials, infused oils, salves, and more. Preparation skills will be honed and many recipes will be shared so you can return home and make your own herbal medicines. Material is appropriate for ages 12 and up.
We will visit a couple different beautiful settings with access to a large variety of the premier wild herbs of the region. Plants we are sure to meet include: Elderberry, Osha, Yarrow, Green Gentian, Arnica, Rattlesnake Plantain, Pink Elephants, Valerian, Cleavers, Nettle, Angelica and many more.
What to know
Class Price $340 includes:
7 hours of class time on Saturday and 5 hours of class on Sunday. All materials for demonstrations. Students will also get some medicines to bring home and loads of medicine-making ideas, inspiration, and a skill set that will last a lifetime.
You will need:
Appropriate clothing for high mountain weather. It may be very hot and sunny or very cold and possibly rainy so everything from a sun hat, sunscreen and shorts, to long underwear a warm hat, raincoat and insulated jacket.
Also bring:
A personal water bottle
Snacks or lunch for Saturday and Sunday
A notepad and pen
Lodging and meals not included.
Saturday Schedule
Saturday July 11th
9:00am-12:00pm- Herb walk, meeting the Montane and Subalpine locals
12:00-1:00pm- Lunch in the field
1:00-3:00pm- Class- Ethical and Sustainable Wildcrafting, Protecting Our Future
3:00-4:00pm- Break
4:00-6:00pm- Class- Medicine Making Part 1 Herbal infusions, Decoctions, Poultices, Compresses and Vinegars
Sunday Schedule
Sunday July 12th
9:00am-12:00pm- Herb walk, meeting the Subalpine and Alpine locals
12:00-1:00pm- Lunch in the field
2:00-4:00pm- Class- Medicine Making Part 2 Tinctures, Cordials, Infused Oils and Salves
4:00-Closing Circle
wild medicine weekend
I participated in Julie’s Wild Medicine Weekend this past July. I found it so inspiring. I’ve lived in the San Juan Mountains for a long time, and have been walking by so many edible and medicinal plants without knowing. Julie is a fabulous teacher with a calm presence and a comprehensive understanding of how to use wild plants as food and medicine. On the morning walks we identified flowers and plants that informed the afternoons spent in the apothecary beneath her home, where we crafted tinctures, balms, oils, teas, and other medicinal concoctions. I highly recommend taking this weekend course, and wish I hadn’t waited so long to do so.
