Stinging Nettle with Elise Higley + Nettle Spring Tonic Vinegar

You have a double treat in store with this episode.

First, have you ever wondered what it takes to grow herbs commercially on a large scale? 

I kept hearing about Oshala Farm from my students, so last year, I placed an order to check them out. I was so impressed with the herbs I received and knew immediately that I wanted to interview Elise Higley, the farm’s cofounder! 

From finding the right location to the hard work of growing, harvesting, processing the harvest, fulfilling orders, stewarding the land… there are so many details to juggle! I came away from this episode with even more respect for herb farmers than I already had. I hope you’ll enjoy this peek into running a successful herb farm, too!

Second, stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) is one of those herbs that people grow to love and crave, even if they’re not initially drawn to the taste. I loved discussing the gifts of this nutrient-dense herb with Elise! Who couldn’t benefit from an herbal ally that:

► Is deeply nourishing, strengthening, and energizing – an herbal tonic you can enjoy every day (and that your body will thank you for)

► Can provide support to folks who suffer from seasonal allergies

► Supports kidney health

► and more…

To quote Elise, “Nettle is nutritive, high in iron, high in minerals… I feel like it’s a staple as far as nourishing and fortifying the body.” I completely agree.

This episode is full of tips and ideas you can borrow like:

► Best practices for growing medicinal herbs (whether you use this to inspire your own garden or as a springboard for asking questions when you’re sourcing herbs to purchase)

► Possible herbs to blend with nettle when making infusions (and how they complement nettle)

► Various ways to work with both fresh and dried nettle leaf

► How to grow stinging nettle in your own garden

For those of you who don’t already know her, Elise Higley is a folk herbalist, wife, mother, grandmother and farmer.

With her background in Western Herbalism at California School of Herbal Studies and her husband Jeff’s background in organic farming, they blended their dreams and created a full-fledged herb farm in 2013. Together they own and operate Oshala Farm. Located in Applegate Valley, Oregon, Oshala Farm has over 80 medicinal herbs in cultivation.

Elise’s teachers and mentors include Cascade Anderson Geller, Rosemary Gladstar, Karen Aguiar, Teri Jensen, Lily Mazzarella, Autumn Summers, David Hoffman, Shana Lipner-Grover, Jon Carlson and, of course, the plants themselves! In her downtime, (9pm-5am) she helps with the Breitenbush Herbal Conference and TerraVita Herbal Symposium and works on agricultural advocacy with Our Family Farms.

If you’d like to hear more from Elise, which I highly recommend, then head to the show notes where you can get easy links for her website and social media. You can also find the transcript for this episode in the show notes.

I’m so delighted to share our conversation with you today!

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Get full show notes and more information at: herbswithrosaleepodcast.com

For more behind-the-scenes of this podcast, follow @rosaleedelaforet on Instagram!

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On the podcast, we explore the many ways plants heal, as food, as medicine, and through nature connection. Each week, I focus on a single seasonal plant and share trusted herbal knowledge so that you can get the best results when using herbs for your health.

Learn more about Herbs with Rosalee at herbswithrosalee.com.

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Rosalee is an herbalist and author of the bestselling book Alchemy of Herbs: Transform Everyday Ingredients Into Foods & Remedies That Heal and co-author of the bestselling book Wild Remedies: How to Forage Healing Foods and Craft Your Own Herbal Medicine. She's a registered herbalist with the American Herbalist Guild and teaches many popular online courses. Read about how Rosalee went from having a terminal illness to being a bestselling author in her full story here.