About Us
Dandelion Herbal Center offers classes and field trips for herb students ranging from the beginner interested primarily in basic herbal crafting techniques to advanced students seeking to enhance their careers in complementary medicine.
Jane’s lifelong love affair with medicinal plants finds a perfect setting here in the magnificent coastal mountains of Northern California. From pristine tide pools to lush wetlands and the sacred majesty of local redwoods, we are blessed with a glorious abundance of herbs to admire and study.
A note from Jane:
Dear Friends,
As in nature, all things must transition in order to begin anew and so the time has come for me to pass the torch along to the next generation of herbal teachers who will bring new light & life to DHC! I am so grateful to be accomplishing this shift with such connected, talented & esteemed herbalists as Allison Poklemba & Jessica Shepherd who both began studying with me way back in 1999! It has been such an honor and a pleasure to share herbal magick & wisdom with all of you throughout the years. You have brought so much joy, wisdom, & light to Dandelion. I am deeply grateful for you all and the plant teachers that have brought us together.
I will still be very much part of DHC and will drop into the 2022 10-Month Herbal Studies class to share plant wisdom, make tea, do rituals & play in the garden. I am very much looking forward to spending more time being with the plants…and towards this next exciting evolution of Dandelion Herbal Center!
With gratitude & much appreciation to the plants,
Jane
A note from Allison:
For the past 17 years or so I have taught pieces of Jane’s annual Herbal Studies Program, and each and every time I do I think to myself: “This is my absolute favorite. This is where I’m meant to be.”
Since my time as a student of Jane’s at the turn of the century (yes, that long ago!) we have become dear friends and even “neighbors.” It feels like a tremendous honor to share more of my skills and love of plants with the Dandelion Herbal Center community as we write more pages of the DHC story together.
I bring with me my skills as a teacher, botanist, herbalist, environmental educator, small business owner (Backcountry Press), artist, mother, friend, and always curious student of nature. I’m so looking forward to celebrating plants, making medicine, and nerding out with you all!
(Fun fact: Jessica and I have been reveling in the beauty and magic of plant medicine together since we took our first herb class together, Jane’s Beginning With Herbs, back in 1999!)
A note from Jessica:
Jane and the Dandelion Herbal Center changed my life by introducing me to the magical world of plant medicine over 20 years ago. After my very first class, I knew immediately that I had found my path; to become an herbalist and be in service to the plants. This path led me to working as a community herbalist at Humboldt Herbals for 17 years and teaching myriad of classes. Along with pursuing extensive studies and certifications in the field of Aromatherapy, including distillation.
I couldn’t have imagined, way back then, what a pillar Jane and the DHC would have become for me and my knowledge of herbs. From the foundations she laid out in my early years of learning, I went on to develop successful product lines, top-selling tea blends, and created an award-winning recipe published in the book: Fire Cider.
I have had the honor of teaching at the Dandelion Herbal Center for the past 6 years now and look forward to building upon that with Allison. Together Allison and I combine our herb nerd skills and deep love for plant medicine, all which grew from the legacy of seeds that Jane first planted.