Herby At Heart

🌿 Episode OverviewIn today’s episode, we explore the world of nettle—Urtica, the stinging nettle.Rising like a quiet warning along forgotten paths, its jagged leaves tremble with a secret fire. Touch it, and it answers not in anger, but in memory—a sharp whisper against the skin that lingers longer than the moment. Yet beneath its sting lives a stubborn grace: roots gripping the earth with quiet resolve, offering healing to those who understand its language.Nettle is a plant of contradiction—fierce and tender, wild yet purposeful—reminding us that even what wounds can also nourish and restore.“Nettle is a plant for a witch's tool bag. Drink it, grow it, burn it as incense. May patriarchy fall!”— Elisabeth BrookeOur special guest today is a long-time coming—a dear friend and colleague: Alexis from Edible Alchemy.Together, we dive into fermentation, wild plants, and the many expressions of nettle.Alexis Goertz is a Berlin-based herbalist, beekeeper, and educator, originally from Winnipeg, Canada. Through her platform Edible Alchemy, she shares her passion for fermentation, foraging, and hands-on experimentation with wild foods.She hosts workshops, urban foraging tours, and immersive events that celebrate the intersection of art, science, and nature.Her book 52 Wilde Fermente (52 Wild Ferments) guides readers through a full year of fermenting wild plants. She is currently working on her second book, exploring global fermentation techniques, planned for release in spring 2027.🔗 Website: http://www.ediblealchemy.co📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ediblealchemy.co📖 Book: https://shop.ediblealchemy.co/products/book-52-wilde-fermenteTash🔗 https://www.avantgardenlife.com📸 Instagram: @avant.garden.lifePhil🔗 https://www.hp-phildius.de📸 Instagram: @power.plants.berlin📍 Visit our Praxis:Mommsenstraße 55, 10629 BerlinTune in, slow down, and explore the world of mindful plant experimentation with us—one careful step at a time.🌱 Guest Feature: Alexis Goertz🎙 Hosts🌾 Closing

In this episode of Herby at Heart, we step off the well‑worn path and into the dappled light of the forest, where one of the most iconic and misunderstood fungi is waiting: Amanita muscaria, the fly agaric. Red‑capped, white‑spotted, and wrapped in myth, this mushroom has long been branded as poison—yet it’s also bound up with stories of luck, ecstasy, danger, and deep initiation.Amanita muscaria lives in the liminal spaces where fear and fascination meet. It doesn’t ask to be casually consumed; it asks for respect, questions, and a careful relationship. In its presence, we’re invited to slow down, sharpen our senses, and remember that not all medicine—or magic—is meant to be easy or tame.To guide us through this terrain, we’re joined by wild food and fungi educator Courtney Tyler of Hips and Haws Wildcrafts, who has spent years wandering Irish woodlands, learning from the mushrooms and teaching others how to meet them with humility and skill.Together, we explore:The myth, folklore, and cultural symbolism of Amanita muscariaHow fear, taboo, and misunderstanding have shaped its reputationThe chemistry, risks, and cautions around fly agaricTraditional and emerging ways people are working with this mushroomHow to approach powerful fungi with respect, discernment, and an open heartWhat it means to be in relationship with a being that is both teacher and tricksterThis conversation isn’t a how‑to guide—it’s an invitation to curiosity, reverence, and responsibility in our encounters with potent plants and fungi.Guest – Courtney Tyler (Hips and Haws Wildcrafts)Website: ⁠https://hipsandhaws.com⁠Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/hipsandhawswildcrafts⁠Facebook: ⁠https://www.facebook.com/hipsandhawswildcrafts⁠Music in this episode“Amanita Muscaria” – Alex AtlantisMani Neumeier, FungleYour hostsTashWebsite: ⁠https://www.avantgardenlife.com⁠Instagram: @avant.garden.lifePhilWebsite: ⁠https://www.hp-phildius.de⁠Instagram: @power.plants.berlinFind our Praxis in person at:Mommsenstraße 55, 10629 BerlinTune in, slow down, and meet Amanita muscaria with us—one careful step into the forest at a time.

In this episode, we turn our gaze skyward—to the Rowan tree (mountain ash), a guardian of lore and light. With its slender grace and clusters of flaming berries, the Rowan has long stood at the crossroads between the earthly and the divine. Its roots cling to rocky soils where few others thrive, whispering of resilience and quiet strength.Known to the ancients as a tree of protection, Rowan was once planted by doorways and paths to ward off misfortune, weaving safety into the fabric of everyday life. Its presence carries the scent of guidance and courage—branches said to bridge the realms of spirit and soil, mystery and understanding.Joining us beneath its watchful branches is Elisabeth Brooke—herbalist, astrologer, author, teacher, and counsellor. Through her work, Elisabeth invites us to rediscover the healing pulse of plants and the cosmic patterns that guide their growth. Together, we’ll explore the Rowan’s folklore and medicine, tracing how its symbolism of guardianship and renewal continues to root itself in modern herbal wisdom.So, pour a warm infusion and step into the sacred stillness of the forest—where Herby at Heart meets the enduring spirit of the Rowan and the timeless wisdom of those who listen closely.Elisabeth Brooke:https://elisabethbrooke.com/https://www.instagram.com/elisabeth.cl.brooke/?hl=deMusic by:Tash⁠⁠ ⁠https://www.avantgardenlife.com/https://www.instagram.com/avant.garden.life/Philhttps://www.hp-phildius.dehttps://www.instagram.com/power.plants.berlin/PraxisMommsenstraße 55, 10629 Berlin

Today Herb has qualities of an activist and warrior fighting for justice; she marches with a firm, steady stride—neither soaring nor earthbound, but centred deep in her power. She helps you put on your battle armour, a cool intellect guiding your heart. With wry humour and no-nonsense energy, she stands using both head and heart. We would like to welcome Yarrow, Achillea millefolium.We also have the pleasure of interviewing Florencea, aka Flo, a woman who also stands tall using her head and her heartFlorencia (she/her) is a plant-based culinary designer from Chile, living in Berlin since 2016. She has led food-centred workshops since 2019 and, since 2024, has been part of the Nourished collective with her project OHNE (2016).Through this platform, she creates multi-sensory workshops, events, and rituals — spaces for exploration and shared encounters where living foods, nature’s rhythms, astrology, ancestral medicine, tarot, and herbalism converge in connection with community.She approaches food as art, medicine, and ritual — a medium for translating symbolic languages into edible forms that invite us to embody ancient-looking perspectives and experience eating as a way to reconnect with nature from within.Her work is an ever-evolving process, guided by curiosity and intuition, shaped by a dialogue among the visible and the invisible, where food becomes a bridge between the personal, the collective, and the cosmic.Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/ohneberlin/Website:⁠⁠https://www.ohneberlin.com/⁠⁠Songs:1. Beyoncé - Girls2. Laboratorium Pie´sni - Sztojpa moru3.Violeta Parra - Volver a los 17Tash⁠ https://www.avantgardenlife.com/https://www.instagram.com/avant.garden.life/Philhttps://www.instagram.com/power.plants.berlin/?hl=dehttps://www.instagram.com/power.plants.berlin/PraxisMommsenstraße 55, 10629 BerlinBook RecommendationsTraditional Western Herbal Medicine, 2019 - Aeon Books - by Elisabeth Brooke - "quoted piece"The Sensory Herbal Handbook - Seed Sisters - quoted

This episode, we dive into the lush, aromatic world of wild garlic, known as bear’s leek or Allium ursinum. We will also look at its notruously famous cousin, that people tend to mistake as wild garlic here in Berlin, the wildly famous Few-flowered leek aka “wunderlauch” (allium paradoxum)We have the pleasure of interviewing Olga Graf for this episode. She has the spirit of a siberian bear and the energy of wild garlic. When spring whispers through the forest floor, and a strong garlicky scent fills the air, it’s a sign: the bear’s plant has returned.Growing in rich green carpets beneath trees, wild garlic is among the first plants to awaken in early spring – and the forest answers with a vibrant, living aroma. Its star-shaped, white flowers light up the woods like little constellations, attracting bees, flies, and humble pollinators alike.But wild garlic is more than a seasonal green – it carries stories, healing power, and even the echo of old gods and forest spirits. From the way ants help spread its seeds, to the belief that bears eat it to regain their strength after hibernation – this is a plant rooted in both nature and myth.Let’s explore its name, its uses, and the deep, ancient wisdom it brings with every leaf.Find Olga:https://www.instagram.com/olga___graf/https://markthalleneun.de/https://www.kornlabor.de/Find Philipp:https://www.instagram.com/power.plants.berlin/https://www.hp-phildius.dePraxis @ Mommsenstraße 55 , 10629 BerlinFind Tash:https://www.instagram.com/avant.garden.life/https://www.avantgardenlife.com/Praxis @ Mommsenstraße 55 , 10629 Berlin