Rita Roquette is the founder of Bloom Sativum, a botanical initiative in Portugal that bridges traditional herbal knowledge with contemporary practice. With a deep passion for plant medicine, Rita cultivates, crafts, educates, and helps you to embrace your wild side.
Join us in celebrating the healing power of herbs in this wonderful conversation.
About growing up as a city girl but spending weekends and holidays in rural Portugal.
About agroforestry, regenerative agriculture, and working with the different ecosystems in the garden and on the farm.
About the general herbal knowledge in Portugal and the ongoing little rituals in daily life.
About how people in Portugal are connected to plants through family names and place names.
About folk herbalism and herbal education.
About the future of herbalism in Portugal, and how more popularity comes with more restrictions.
About Rita's favourite local plants to work with.
And lots more.
You can find out more about Rita and her work on https://bloomsativum.wixsite.com/bloom-sativum
Or follow her on Instagram @bloomsativum
🌿 I'm looking for more interesting guests to talk about European herbalism and foraging in Europe. If you know anyone that would be perfect for this podcast, please let me know.
If you want to reach out, you can find me on Instagram @wildplantforager, and on Facebook.
You can also find more about me or contact me through my website www.wildplantforager.com
But please don't hang around online for too long. Go outside, and follow your wild heart 💚
🎼 music by Eva LaRuna
Disclaimer:
The information in the WYLDE podcast has been compiled with the utmost care. We try to keep it as current, complete and accurate as possible, yet no rights can be derived from this podcast episode.
We accept no liability for: direct or indirect damages resulting from possible errors and omissions, the content of linked websites, or the opinions of interviewed guests.
Please take into account that transcripts were automatically created by A.I. and may contain mistakes.
The content of this podcast in no way replaces personal medical advice or treatment by doctors and other medical professionals.
[00:00:33]
Unknown:
Welcome to Wild, the podcast for wildlings just like you. Wildlings who want to transform the prevalent plant blindness to collective plant wisdom. My name is Liebe Gollle. I've been working as a herbalist and wild plant forager in Belgium since 02/2002. In those years, I've seen a lot of changes. Working with plants has become more popular, but I've also seen time is running out for our planet. As foragers and herbalists in Europe, sometimes we're dealing with different plant species and different cultural approaches towards plants. In some countries, working with plants is licensed, and in others, it's almost illegal.
I believe that together, we can learn from one another and be stronger. There is nothing more empowering than connecting wild souls. Together, we can have a greater impact on restoring the ancient link between people and plants. And that's why for this podcast series, I'm talking to fellow herbalists and foragers in Europe. So if you're ready to find out what you've never been told, but what your soul already knows, welcome to Wild.
[00:02:12] Unknown:
Hello, Wildling. Welcome to a new episode of the Wild Podcast. And today, we are joined by Rita Roquettes, the founder of BloomSatuvum. That's a botanical initiative rooted in Portugal, and it bridges traditional herbal knowledge with contemporary practice. With a deep passion for plant medicine, Rita cultivates, crafts, and educates celebrating the healing power of herbs. Welcome, Rita. So nice to have you here today. Welcome. Yeah.
[00:02:46] Unknown:
Nice to be here with you. And thank you for that introduction. Oh, you're welcome. And and and profound at the same time.
[00:02:55] Unknown:
Yes. Well, you're welcome. It's nice to have you. So can you tell us a little bit about how your love for plants and for herbs got started? Was it like a key moment in your life or was it something that grew more gradually on you or how did it all start?
[00:03:14] Unknown:
So I I I was lucky enough to spend a lot of time in rural Portugal when I was younger. Yeah. When I since my two, three year old, we always, on the weekends, would go to the farm and to my grandfather's house up in the mountains. So we always were like little goats. You know? The kids were always, like, hanging around themselves and and being covered with dirt and and all that sense of really immersed, with nature. But things didn't have names. They had they had that entity type, feeling. And many years I've passed. Like, I I was a city girl. I was I brought was brought up in Porto, in the North Of Portugal. And then I I I was always in the artistic path. I was very much, into landscape architecture.
I entered landscape architecture. And then, my even even on my high school, my my project for ending high school was to cover a public building with plants. Wow. That already have it really inside me. But, yeah, the real calling for, like, how can I talk? How can I have this communion with the plant world? I started when I was living in Greece. I lived in a little island called Paros in the Cyclades. And, this small island had an amazing abundance of aromatic herbs. So there's a lot of, like, thymes and sages and oregano. So all these, like, really profusely aromatics just boom in your face.
So there's not a way, like, if you I I think we have now I have a dog. He's a puppy. And I see him always, like, sniffing around. I was like, I'm like that too. That's when you have a sense, you really want to go deep, and they they really bring out memories and feelings inside you in such a strong way that I couldn't say no to the plants. So I started learning about them. I was staying in a house of a friend that had a lot of books on cooking and Greek cooking, and there's a lot of introduction of these herbs and the cooking. So for me, it was a big beginning. So I start my first vegetable garden there. I've we did the first communal, tree planting there also, and this was in 02/2010.
So in that moment, I knew that plants were on my way, and that was my my path to go. Yeah. That was a big beginning. So when I came back to Portugal, I came to live in a a land here in the North, in Minho. And, yeah, I start my my medicinal gardens. I build my own house with straw bale. Wow. So I had this, like, off grid life for for a good amount of time. Yeah. And nowadays, I I work with the plants. I do gardening and landscaping. I have a plant nursery. So and I do I do practice the herbalism in a different way than clinical than I used to do. So, yeah, things plant plants and and me, I think it's like I feel we are very together. I couldn't separate myself from the plant world.
[00:06:45] Unknown:
Yeah. I and I have to say, I love how you say the plants when you are when you are a child, that the plants, like, did not have a name, but they were sort of an entity. I can I can relate to that? It's it's interesting. I've never heard someone wording it exactly like that, but I know exactly what you mean.
[00:07:08] Unknown:
It's very, very interesting. Actually, there was a big cedar there, which I remember is like huge cedar with low branches, so we could like kind of climb it as if it was a ladder. And I remember, like, like, the hide and seek, we would go and I would hide in that tree lot. Wow. And I remember, like, having deep conversations with these trees while I was hiding, you know. It's like Wow. That's so lovely. Yeah. And and I have a five year old child now, Mateus, my son. And I I I see him. I I give him a lot of space, and he has his his secret spots also. And I know there is this innate thing that comes with us that gives voice to to supposedly inanimate things, but which which are very alive for us.
It's yeah. It's the animism. It's like what's what all the original civilizations still do, and it's so beautiful that it's it's in our DNA somehow.
[00:08:09] Unknown:
Yes. And I think it's also beautiful how having this contact with the plants changes something in us. Like, because you're talking about your son. Well, my son is 16 now, but he, I remember as a child, we have a a linen linen tree in the garden. And, whenever he would be upset or angry, he would just climb to the top. He's a really good tree climber. And, he would stay there for a while, and then he would come down and he would be giggling. Like, his emotions just totally transformed. And there was like yeah. There was something magical that only the linen tree could do. So I I think it's Nicely Linden, Yes.
Exactly. Because it's so, you know, a very soothing tree and and Relax. I thought it was always I was always so surprised to see him coming out of the tree and be giggling, and I thought, wow. Something really happened there. Yeah. Right. Right.
[00:09:13] Unknown:
It's it's amazing. And and that connection, just like being with, we sometimes forget that's medicine also. Mhmm. We don't have to have a intake of things. We don't have to have a huge amount. More and more, I'm in the low dose spectrum of of things because I I feel it really makes a lot of effects. And and it shows people to not be in excess. Mhmm. So it's it's a good way of of working with plant medicines.
[00:09:43] Unknown:
Yeah. It's a very interesting viewpoint, I think. Yeah. Yes. So I hear that you also have a plant nursery. Yeah. Like, what kind of plants are you growing? So I'm really into agroforestry
[00:09:57] Unknown:
nowadays and regenerative agriculture. And so here in the farm, we live in a farm which is around seven, eight, hectares. Mhmm. So it's a very traditional old Portuguese house. It's from the sixteen hundreds. And he has all these small gardens that you usually have. It is the vegetable garden, the the the staying gardens or the beautiful gardens. And then you have the the sideways, the orchard, and then you have the forest. So in the forest, the forest area, which is very shady, we had to take some trees, which were very big, but the roots are not super deep. So they're very shallow and sometimes low down. And to prevent that, we have I cut them, which are acacias, acacia melanoxylen, which we call australid. It's an Australian plant, that came to Portugal by introduction. And nowadays, it's called invasive, But it has it has a lot of benefits, and it's always has a sense why it's there.
It's a nitrogen fixer, so you can use it as improvements of soil also. So we took these seven big trees. And in this forest, there was like this clearing showed up. So place patches with sun, patches with less sun, and it became a place where we would go more and we would look. And and for me, it was very interesting that all the seedlings underneath the trees, were very active and they grew well even in the shade because they were under mom's skirt. So I said, okay. So this is a perfect spot. Even if it's very shady in some places, just try to start, a agroforest.
So I tried to understand better the shade plants. I made a pond there or two ponds so I could have the different ecosystems. So I could have the very wet and then the drier when it's when it's going to the to the to the more sun sun burning side. And I can have from Mediterranean to tropical to so I'm I'm working a lot with this, which is like you have species with an intense mulching, that you're kind of doing compost in place. Mhmm. And so these are the feeding trees and Australians are great for that. So we just chop, let it on the ground, they make their own compost, and it warms up the soil. It creates aeration.
It just creates beautiful ecosystem for the roots. So this this nursery, I have plants growing there called kriya, which means, small creature or creation or creativity. It can be a mix of all of this. And, I do the seedlings and propagations all there. And because I don't need shade screens, I have the shade from the trees in the summer. It's a perfect environment to be underneath. It's not that straight. High benches, nursery that people just go and look. They really have to to pay a visit. So it's so it's, yeah, it's, it's my main work nowadays. It's I spend a lot of time there, and I do my own compost, making sure that I don't have many needs from the outside, which is Mhmm. Which is something that I feel that the nursery business sometimes lacks. It's
[00:13:27] Unknown:
Yes. Yes. Absolutely. Yes. It's nice if you can close the system. And, yeah. And I like how you how you, describe, you know, the open spot in the forest and how it really inspired you just by looking at nature and how nature does it and, working with the different ecosystems within your garden. Yes. I think more people should do that. That's, Yes. Yes.
[00:13:54] Unknown:
And and especially because if you use use the right plant for the right place, it's just flourishes. Just just so happy there. It's like it's like a human finding the place where it's going to live. It's like, oh, it makes so much sense here. So it kind of, like, bloom. You you come up life. You you have something. You have a spark on you. So I propagate these plants, and I propagate a lot of medicinal plants, which are also wild plants. And people don't know how to get them, like, filipendulos maria, meadow sweet, and, other plants. Like, people really don't know where to get them because in Portugal, there's not many nurseries, dedicated to medicinal plants.
So it's, yeah, we have that and shrubs. And I always try to have a way that, multiple planting can be seen and and applied. So people never get one plant. I never almost sell a plant. So I always sell, like, one big tree, smaller bushes, and then herbaceous to go around. So people do the gills?
[00:15:05] Unknown:
Yes.
[00:15:06] Unknown:
Or the nests. And so they have really that abundance of having a lot of and planned communication really helps things develop. That idea of competition is kind of like even Darwin wasn't really, sure of that when he said that. They they kind of grab that the the fittest one will survive. I I think symbiotic relationships are really nature, what makes everyone thrive.
[00:15:40] Unknown:
It makes a lot of sense if you look at nature that, you know, different species are working symbiotically.
[00:15:49] Unknown:
Yeah. Yeah. And things like lichen, you know, and Uh-huh. It's like, woah. Okay. So we're all in a party here now.
[00:16:00] Unknown:
Yeah.
[00:16:01] Unknown:
It's it's and with kids, it's amazing to be in these places of diversity because they really understand that we're not in factories, and it's and and and in Portugal, there's a lot of monoculture of eucalyptus. Mhmm. And before it was pine. The forest is I don't know if you saw it when you were here.
[00:16:21] Unknown:
Yes. I saw the eucalyptus
[00:16:23] Unknown:
mainly. So it's like, sometimes it's kilometers of it. And, yeah, we had the wildfires and, it's interesting. I I we have an association called, and I'm also part of a association called, Flushtar Portugal, which does a lot of these, multiple diverse implementations privately and publicly. And we used to have some volunteering work here. And, when kids understand the difference of what it is to really be in a place that is repeated and repetition, almost like in school, you have to learn this way. You have to learn this no. There's so much, and you can find your own needs or your own interests.
Every day you go there, it's something different calling you. Mhmm. Which is I don't know. It's like this diversity of of greens. Even the shades of greens, you know, Simple as, like, chromatic shades. It's like, woah. There's so many types of greens you can look at. And
[00:17:26] Unknown:
Yes. Yes. I couldn't agree more because, like, every year, like, the last weeks of summer, just before autumn starts, I'm always looking around like all the shades of green. And there are so many shades of green. And I I just try to soak it in before all the coloration starts of the leaves of the trees and the shrubs, and the the orange comes, and the brown comes, and the red comes, and the, but just all these different shades of green. I love that. I really, really profoundly love that. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
[00:18:02] Unknown:
So, yeah, the the nursery is a big thing, and and I I like I'm part of this, we just had it now, called Herb Fest Portugal. I don't know if you heard about it. No. Tell me all about it. It's, herbalism. It's a medicinal herbalism festival that it's the third year that it happened. And it's a group of women. We are seven, that started. And most of us Portuguese, but there's some, from England, some from The States. And, yeah. We started three years ago, and I felt like three years ago that, herbalism like, when I would say I was a herbalist, people like, what? What are you what are you doing exactly?
And now I feel these last three years really changed, and there's so much, diversity of people doing from foraging to crafts to just plant walks, and it's it's incredible. Even the clinical herbalist, there is so much that is already bringing and really, like, rooting finally, you know. Wow. So this year was really great to to feel this this, yeah. It was, like, three weeks ago. It was in the April. So, yeah, it's, it's it's something that I feel, finally, people are getting really, like, proud of the plant world and really wanted to dive in.
[00:19:36] Unknown:
Yes. And it's great to see this evolution in only three years, which is really a short amount of time. And I think it's synchronized
[00:19:43] Unknown:
with the world itself. There's a lot of global, herbalism, going through the networks and social media and so on. So I think that also kind of, like, goes through. Yeah. Yeah. It's true. Yeah. So what about, like, the basic botanical knowledge
[00:20:02] Unknown:
of the general people in in Portugal? Do people know a lot, or is there maybe a difference in the countryside and in the cities? Or how is that in general?
[00:20:15] Unknown:
So, when I arrived, after Greece and, and I was doing my my education as an herbalist, I'll I did some herb walks in the village I was, and they would there were free herb walks. So we would go, and I was like, hey. We're here. I'm not I'm not I don't know more than you. I'm here just to know what we know together. So this is a storytelling place. And they're like, okay. Okay. In the beginning, they're like very shut off. They wouldn't talk that much. And then when they understand it's it's, it's a health space, it's a space that they can feel comfortable, Things start to come.
And, and then it it becomes like a mapping of the of the village. Oh, there's where it grows that thing. And that is what when I used to go and pick the water, there will be like there. And if you want to find that so there is this mapping in people's minds in the villages. And in the cities, there's more and more interest as with the wild plants which are edible, all these chefs, and things are, like, kind of bringing it back. And so the municipalities ask a lot, and I've worked with a lot of municipalities for herb walks, and, yeah, food, preparation with wild plants and the medicinal side of it. So even the the governmental entities are really into, like, spread again.
And the knowledge, I feel, you know, it's you were here. I don't know if you really got to it. But a lot of the people's names, a lot of the people a lot of the places, they are connected to the plants called Zambojal, Funchal, olive oil. So it's all things that are, plant names applied to toponym toponymia toponymi? Yes. Yes. Yes. Oh, so there is a lot of this basic thing. The people's name, and so on. They they're as a pear tree, Sylvia to blackberry, and there's so many family names that myself, I'm I'm, Lima, which is more connected to the the river. But, then I have Pajera, which is the grapevine, and the which is French. But, with these names, we can see really, like, plants were part of people's life. And we have a lot in Portugal.
It's not that this medicinal knowledge is very spread by the elder because they feel this, like, I mean, it's historical. They probably weren't, they didn't feel safe to share that they were using it, especially when the industrial revolution arrived and, all the products from the from the wars and kind of, like, flooded, or the subproducts flooded to the culture. But with the daily life, there are a lot of, like, rituals and little things that people still do, and they're very connected to pagan times and the other times. And even, like, let's say the Mayas, which is the from the 3 to the May 1. So it's called Beltane there.
People on the thirtieth at night, they go and get Scotch broom, to hang on the doors to protect the house of this big change. But it's the protection of fertility also because it's a nitrogen fix. It's a legume. And every time you cut it, it releases nitrogen fixing in the soil too. So it's like people being part of this ritual of continuing fertility itself. And everyone, they get a bit anxious even if they don't hang it on the doors. Electrical doors and the cars. And and in the May 19, which is next Monday, it's the deal, the is the how do you call the wheat? The wheat, cob or the corn?
The
[00:24:38] Unknown:
the cob. I don't know how to Yeah. Like the seed hatch or the Yes.
[00:24:42] Unknown:
Yes. Near the spiga is that. So people on that day or the day before, they collect wheat, grape leaves, papillos, which is, poppies, also some olives. Everything that is connected to what they want to have in abundance, they do this little bunch, this this little, flower bunch, and they keep it in the house for all year to to really bring that year to a good place. So there's a lot of these small significant things that everyone does or almost everyone, which is a life, you know. And for me, it's it's it's amazing to feel that. It's like It's very fascinating that it's so alive to this day. Yes. Yeah. And and it's it's, it's with it's everything, even, like, with the saints. And and here, the church, kind of has this this connection with the with the plant world or kind of, I don't know, what's what really happened historically.
But like Saint John's, which is, on the June 24, people always also put this water with the the plants from that time, and then they they bathe themselves in the next day with it. And even in Saint Antonio, it's in the June 13, it's more like a Lisbon saint. They always have this small basils. It's a small leaf basil that you have to keep, usually before, let's say, modern times, the the man would give this small vase of the of the small leaf basil to the lady with a with, a verse, a little poem for her. And that will be a way of showing his intentions of being with her, because Sant'Antonio is the marriage marriage.
So if the lady was able to keep that, small bush we call, the small bush basil well and not die until the next year, they could probably get married. So there is this small little things, you know, it's fun.
[00:26:59] Unknown:
Thank you so much for sharing that. That's very interesting to know. Yeah.
[00:27:05] Unknown:
Yeah. Wow. I and and historically, you know, we have we have the the only Portuguese pope, which was, Pedro Espano or Pedro Juliao. He was an amazing, let's say, medicine man. So one of the books he wrote, it was the treasure for the people or treasure for the poor, was the first book written in Portugal, in the common Portuguese and not Latin for the versed people. And it had all these little recipes of how to treat yourself for common malices. And it's it's, and this was in December. Yeah? So there's a lot of this, connection that I don't know how much is stayed, but we really want to bring it back. Yeah?
We also with the Discovery Times, we had Garcia Dorto, which was a doctor that went to India and, made amazing work of research and writing all down of of how they use the plants and bring it, like, the cinnamon and the cardamoms and and all the spices back and being really he was really curious. So I think I think Portuguese people are curious, and and they really I think you've you've seen this, which is, I think is charming of Portugal or the charm of Portugal is this. Is you can be in the city, but you can still see that rural side. You hear, you hear chicken going on. You you have, like, these cabbages hanging up a wall. You know what I mean? You have the fruit trees. You know? It's like, it's very alive, the sense of, like, yeah, the countryside being everywhere.
[00:28:49] Unknown:
Yes. Yes. I remember when I was in Lisbon, I went to a park and there was it was April, of course, but there was a loquat tree and it still had a few ripened fruits on it, which I love because loquat is so hard to get in Belgium. I don't know why you can get pineapples from the other side of the world. But loquats, I love them. I love these fruits, and it was like a great welcome from from Portugal. And I I love just picking them, and they were so juicy, and I just totally, totally loved it. It was a great welcome. Yeah. It's a wonderful fruit. I love it. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So and if you like, in the Portuguese context, if you, like, want to study herbalism or study more about medicinal plants, is there, like, a an official school where you can go to? Or how is this exactly? Is it easy to get herbal education? Or do you have to go abroad? Or are these schools live or more, online?
Or how is that exactly?
[00:29:57] Unknown:
So the certified courses, which can make you, like, practice as a practitioner, they're more connected to naturopathy
[00:30:06] Unknown:
Mhmm.
[00:30:08] Unknown:
Or traditional Chinese medicine, let's say, then just a course on herbalism. It's not super, steady here yet. Sometimes they have, like, the disciplines in some health courses on medicinal plants Mhmm. Phytotherapy, but it's not just dive deep and understand the context and study the old books, which I would love if there was a course like that, which kinda really kind of bring us from antiquity to nowadays and having my course was was a great course. I I studied in The States, and, with Michael and Leslie Tiara. Oh, Tiara. Okay. And, the they what they did is really joining the Western Herbalism and the Eastern Herbalism and make us having a broad spectrum of it.
And now what there is, like, if you want to become herbalist in Portugal, you would probably would do just a community herbalism, small course with some schools. There is Collective Wonder from Olivia, and she's American, from Baltimore, but she's living in Portugal with her family for quite a big time. There are some people you can learn with, but not having really, like, a paper saying you can you can practice as a practitioner. Okay. Perhaps you would need to have a naturopathic doctor or some kind of other kind of cover, to make it happen.
[00:31:48] Unknown:
Okay. So do I understand it correctly then that there is also, like, no legal framework for, like, a medical herbalist in Portugal, but it's more like the community herbalism that is done there? Is that right?
[00:32:00] Unknown:
Yes. The the thing is, you also will not have someone, coming and take you to prison because you're doing herbalism. Portugal is very bland in some senses, because it's seen more as consulting someone who's giving you advice is not is not really, like, treating you. Yeah? And I remember when I was studying in The States, they also also said that, that it would be good for us to have, like, also a degree on acupuncture or massage therapy or something that you can incorporate it if you needed to somehow, show a license or some sort of thing. I mean, we should all be free to use, to use plans with the right amount and to be, to be counseling someone on how to do it in a not dangerous in the proper way.
It's it's a public benefit. So yeah. So I I don't know if this persecution is going to start one day, but it's still it's still okay to have this community. And, basically, a lot of Portuguese still use the plants in their daily lives, you know, for the common diarrhea, as a diuretic, as a sedative even, like lemon balms and the chamomiles and and things like that that they have in hand. For the diuretics, they use a lot of the corn silk here and the cherry stems. So it's this knowledge somehow, it's it's part of the first line of action for people.
[00:33:41] Unknown:
Yeah. So it's like the the the folk herbalism is really still alive, and people are still using it for, small ailments and, yes, first aid situations. Yes. Okay.
[00:33:57] Unknown:
I love how you said I happen and this is approved. Yeah? Or or, like, for the for the varicose veins also Okay. Like, these the use of, grape leaves. You know? They put it in the vinegar, and they just rub it in the in the legs. Okay. There is this, if you are in the countryside, you see this happening. I don't know how much you see it in the city side.
[00:34:22] Unknown:
But, Yeah. I yeah. I I have to say, when I was visiting Portugal, I haven't seen a lot of people actually. I was, like, mostly in the middle of nowhere, which was lovely because Portuguese nature is just amazing. I have to say this. It's still very wild areas without even pots to walk on, but just wow. There was, like, so many moments where we had, like, this wow, and we were making we were following a river, and then we found, like, this big waterfall. And just one surprise after another. I really loved it. But it's great to hear that people are still using it for, like, everyday issues that they have with their health. And I think I think and I love how you say, we should have the freedom to use the plants, because it's true.
[00:35:16] Unknown:
Yeah. Of course, there are loads low dose botanicals that you should be more careful. And, I mean, not people are not going you to use digitalis just Mhmm. Because, you know Yes. Obviously. They're they're they call it the killing of the husbands, that that plant. So there must be Right. Okay. In fact, there is because of the glycosides present, there's the the alkaloid, digit detoxin or digitalin. It's not sensed in the mouth, so the dried leaf would be put it in the wine or whatever. And, it's it sounded like a cardiac attack.
[00:35:55] Unknown:
Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh.
[00:35:59] Unknown:
So, yeah, there is there is some some knowledge around here. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, spooky. Yeah. But but don't get me wrong. There's also, like, a big dependence on the pharmacology side of things. Yeah? And this but but the health health care is is going down, big time, big amounts of waiting, waiting lines, and and people are, I think, will turn to more natural ways of dealing with things. And but Yes. You know, it's it's interesting because the health centers are I mean, it's almost in every village or every other village, are pretty much a social place also for older people.
So it's not that they're going to the doctor. They're just going to a place where they can usually talk like a cafe. I feel that. So it's a it's a funny it's a funny world here.
[00:37:00] Unknown:
Yes. Yes. And I I think it's, interesting how, like, I think more and more people realize also people that are working in the medical field themselves, that they are seeing the boundaries of modern medicine. And, of course, modern medicine had has a lot of advantages, but, like, especially with, like, chronic disease or it doesn't always have the effect that it's wanted. You know? And then people I see people turning more and more to herbs also because the waiting lists are often very long. Like, if you want to see specialists in Belgium, mostly, you have to wait for months before you get a consultation.
So and, you know, if if you have an itch, if it's very itchy or if it's painful, you really want something that works now already, and not wait for months to come. So people are are, trying out whatever they can and And and they're turning to more like autonomous
[00:38:05] Unknown:
way. So
[00:38:06] Unknown:
Yes. It's an interesting evolution to see. Yes.
[00:38:10] Unknown:
Yes. And I think COVID was good in that sense, because feel people felt helpless. Mhmm. I just take just take Ibuprofen or and and it will pass. So they're like, your health is more just than than whatever. There's so many other things we could have done to help people ameliorate and to have a less amount of side effects from whatever that thing was. But just wants to show you,
[00:38:43] Unknown:
Oh, I can't see. Oh, did you draw something?
[00:38:46] Unknown:
Yeah. It's a turtle. Wow. Wow.
[00:38:51] Unknown:
Very nice.
[00:38:54] Unknown:
But, yeah, it's it's was in a sense, was good it's a good moment for people to see, like, okay. There is not always the drug that will save you, and there are other small things that you can take care of yourself. Yes. You really have a better life with it.
[00:39:11] Unknown:
Yes. And I think it also showed us how vulnerable we really are and how dependent we are on systems like the medical system and the, the food system, like, and it's it's, yeah, that it's really important to become more independent to, to these systems and, you know, grow some of our grow or forage some of our own food and our own medicine and and just try that out and and see how far we can come because it's, yeah, it's so important to have this autonomy as you say. Yes. Yes. So, is it is it possible in Portugal to have, good quality herbal products like tinctures or herbal teas? Do they just sell them in in the stores, or have to do you have to go to special herbal shops? Or,
[00:40:08] Unknown:
So so for herbs, there are some, like, big franchising going on, but, personally, it's like the last, place I would go. Usually, you buy it directly to the producers or to the makers and manufacturers. For the Herb Fest this year, we had a good amount of people, bringing their own tinctures and their preparations. I know so. I have a bit of a bit of a party. I have a bit of a party also, which I it's a dispensary. Somehow, I can I can help people around me and my family? We also have, tourism here in the house. So I I collect, most of the herbs and dry them. So the most I can have by myself, great. If it's specialized plants like echinaceas or things that I need in bigger amounts.
In bigger amounts, it's, it's it's always better to go to producers that do it themselves. And there's beautiful, work being done in Portugal in sense of aromatic and medicinal plants. So, yeah, we would it's it's a small country, so we can have a good network of, of people, producers, practitioners. If I'm not able to have, I can ask someone else, and we can compliment. And, or sometimes when you don't have a plant and, if people studied herbalism outside, there was other plants. We tried to figure out and this is a work I love. What is the correspondent? How can I use the local plants, instead of asking from somewhere else? I don't know where it comes from exactly.
Because the connection with the people, with the plants from the place, with the place they are, also has a great benefit. So if the people know the plants they're taking also, it's it's already a welcoming yeah. Just just work on me. You know?
[00:42:17] Unknown:
Yes. I think it's great that you can go to the producers yourself. It's, yes. Wow. Because there is there is some kind of medicine that you know, obviously, we get a medicine from the plant by ingesting it, but just knowing the plant and where it comes from is also a form of medicine that is hard to put in words, but I'm pretty sure you know what I mean. Right? Yeah. Yeah. It's like a trust. No? It's just like a bone that it's there already.
[00:42:49] Unknown:
Mhmm. Yeah. Mhmm.
[00:42:52] Unknown:
Okay. Wow. That that's so interesting what you have been telling me. Yeah. Yeah. Really. Really. So what I would like to know is so there there is a lot of regulation in Europe around herbs. As you mentioned before, in Portugal, it's, you know, it's not really licensed, but there is also, like, not of a witch hunt going on. How do you see the future of herbalism in Portugal in the next ten or twenty years?
[00:43:30] Unknown:
I don't know. It was a lot it was a lot of, opening doors until now. In fact, for for a good amount of time, Fernanda Butaylo, I don't know if you know her. It's a she's a Portuguese herbalist. Also also studied abroad in Scotland. And she was the one, like, always doing the herb box and and so on. And now there is much more people doing foraging and and herbalism and giving classes and giving material. So as it's becoming more popular, I'm afraid that's a bit of that, restricting could happen. Yeah. Because we always see that. Now it's like, caravans were parking everywhere on on holiday time. Now it's forbidden to park caravans.
So there is this, ongoing policy policing, which can affect us also. But I feel and more and more, I'm I I believe in the connection of people, yeah, and proximity and caring for our little communities and and so on. So it's really hard to policy everyone to you know, it's people's strength even, like, in harsh times of really being the network for each other. So if somehow the health system would go down, of course, there is extreme acute cases that need to be surgical, worked on, and there's good things in the medicine, what we achieve nowadays.
Mhmm. But I think for the for the common ailments and the taking care of of the people around us, if there is one for every 20, it's it's great. And you just really have to know your plant well. You don't need don't have to know a lot of plants. You know? It's just sometimes with just, like, 10 plants, you can do a lot of good for people around you. Absolutely.
[00:45:48] Unknown:
Absolutely. Yes. Yeah. And, yes, I I always tell this to my students as well. They want to learn, like, 200 plants at once. And I'm like, but what if you would learn to do more with the five or the 10 plants you already know really well because there's a lot more you can do with it? And that's that's you know, it's not only the the quantity, but also the quality of the of the things that we learn, I think, is important. And just, going deep enough, not not keeping it superficial and and knowing all it's sometimes it's more interesting to know, like, 10 or 20 plants, but really know them very deeply rather than 200 plants and just knowing them superficially. Right. Right.
[00:46:38] Unknown:
And their actions change so much, and they can be very surprising. So, sometimes if you spend some a good amount of time with, let's say, calendula, chamomile, and you start to see the interaction with the plant and what it really has to bring besides the things that were written before, And you start connecting all all the actions like, okay. So there are multiple be beings. It's not just this one herb for one thing. And it's it's so amazing that most of the times, with one one plant, we can access many organ systems and and really harmonize the body. And and this is why I feel that really plants, develop the secondary metabolites, which are the the medicinal part of the constituents because they wanted to communicate somehow.
They they were defending themselves, but they wanted to be desired. So so we and the more of the tools they develop, the more desirable they would become. So so they they are quite of, how do you call someone who's very proud of themselves? There are plants we are really, really proud of themselves, and they hold themselves like, yeah. They will need me for sure. Wait for it.
[00:48:05] Unknown:
Yes. And, also, isn't it like a miracle? I mean, to me, it is like one of the miracles of life, how these the defense mechanism of plants are actually the things that are good for us humans. That is it's like a puzzle that fits so well. It's I am totally mind blown over that. I just if you really think about it, it's and then, again, we are talking about, you know, how different organisms can work together in nature rather than than seeing themselves as competitors.
[00:48:43] Unknown:
Yeah. Sometimes I see it almost like as our our people's immune immune systems and plants' immune systems have, like, a connection.
[00:48:52] Unknown:
Yeah. It's like a click. It's like a piece of a puzzle that just fits perfectly into one another, and it's crazy if you think about it, how it can be. It's wow. It's just really very impressive that nature has done this. Yes. So, thinking about the plants that grow in Portugal, that grow locally where you live, What are, like, favorite plants to work with?
[00:49:25] Unknown:
So, yeah, yesterday, I just gave a class on digestive herbs. So it's really fresh on me. But, some of the plants I love to work is, let's say, the lesser, calamint, calamintan fitter. I don't know if you have it there.
[00:49:45] Unknown:
We don't have it in the wild here, I think. I've never seen it in a while, but I do have it in my herb garden.
[00:49:51] Unknown:
Okay. So it's it's a it's a mint, but it has some of the constituents from catnip. So it's a sedative, aromatic, which I love. And being a mom, it's great to have. Another one is fennel. I love to work with fennel. Fennel for me, it's just like eye opening plant. I keep on going deep and deep and deep with it. And it's because there's this salty and sweet, you know, and a bit of vagrant sometimes. So this complexity is the flavors that really brings me and and the different times of the year. And as a forager, you know this. Mhmm. Like, in the beginning of spring is one thing. One month after is another thing. So it's it's completely like a profile of flavors that you gotta learn in one plant. Yes. So right now, another plant that is just popping out and I love is verbena, verbena fiscinalis.
I I use it a lot, for the for the nervine properties, but also as a way of of, bringing it back bringing ourselves back to original place with not many layers, build up or preconceived ideas of what we are. Plans work really well with that that part of, like, personas that we turned. So yeah. And most of all, more than the plants, what I I I really enjoy is seeing is taking people. I receive people for it's called botanical experiences here. So they they get we give a walk of three hours more or less, and then we have a meal together, prepare with the plants. And it's to see how people and I remember this happening to me because they don't know the name of the plants. They never named it, but they have a profound connection to them.
And they're like, I don't know, but I feel drawn to it. And this and this feeling is like you should talk more to it. Just nibble a bit. Try to see what it has to say inside your body. And and this nibbling, for me, this this everyday picking, that we should have, almost like grazing, I'll say. It's it's one of my fundamental, ways of of being nowadays. So every day, there's this always this eye opening moment like, Okay. So this is how you are now. It's like and I remember when when I was when I was studying in The States, and I've been in Portugal in The States, and it's like, there are so many different plants for me. I didn't knew their names. But sometimes, I was like, I know you for ages.
Like, I know you. I deeply know you. Like, I don't know where from. And then suddenly, I knew how to use it and, and the taste profile, like, it told me so much. And sometimes not knowing the names, it's it's better because it's and the common names bring a lot of that sense to local people. It's they know it by the name people call it. They don't know the Yes. What it is exactly. Yeah. It's,
[00:53:17] Unknown:
Yes. And it all oh, also reminds me of something I I did, like, a a series of herbal workshops many years ago for blind people. And so what I would do, I would bring the herbs along with me, and I would have them, taste them and smell them and and feel them. And then they I I didn't say the name of the plant, but they would say they would, like, describe the herb to me, like, how it was and how it felt to them. And they were so spot on. It was Right. Very, very impressive. So, yes, it's it's a bit similar, I think. You don't always have to name it or to there are different ways to to work around and to to get to the center of the plant and the essence of what it has to say.
Yes. Wow.
[00:54:15] Unknown:
Yeah. And, yeah, and the art side of it, I always love to to bring the herbarium part, with the people. Because also when you draw the plants, they they give you so much information by just looking and being present, and do blind drawings even, like you were saying with the blind tastings, the blind drawings where you just look at the plant, you don't look at the paper, and suddenly, it's like you know that plant so much more because you were looking at it. You were attentive. You were really into knowing her better. You know? And that with the kids is really nice too.
That that and also, I I love to do the plantain test with the with the kids where they they nibble on it, and they start salivating a lot. And right after, it's, like, pool, super dry. And they're like, oh, the plant is doing this to me. So it's a it's a great it's a great way. My my son quite knows quite a bit of plants now. And he knows, like, if he has a stomach ache, goes on nibbling on the funnel and to that. So it's, it's it's really nice to see really how this knowledge and it's it's almost like, education itself. It should be brought to schools for sure.
And and for me, these if these kids are introduced to this amazing diversity that we have and how much you can do with it, Being for craft because it's one of the things I feel in Portugal. There is a lot of use of plants in crafts, a lot. Being the shoes, the clogs, being the the rushes, covers for the rain, being the baskets, even the lining for the clothing, or the plants to tint to make the colors for embroidery. So it's so nice if you see the whole variety of what you have and the richness of that. You know? So we really want you become it's not patriot. You become native.
Mhmm. You know? So this sense sense of, yeah, I belong here. I know the good things and and the gold I have in fact. Mhmm. So whatever I need is provided. It's that mother earth feeling. No? It's that Yes. So it's yeah. I think as as foraging or herbalism will bring that to to anyone.
[00:56:53] Unknown:
Yeah. I I remember when my kids were small. I remember this moment. I was in the kitchen, and I was being a bit clumsy. And I I had, like, this really bad cut in my finger. And it was, of course, bleeding a lot because that's what fingers do. And then just my my I think they were, like, I don't know, five or six years old, my twins, and they just rushed out of the back door and came back with Herb Robert to put a a poultice on it. And I was, like, stunned that they just I didn't have to say anything. They just knew exactly what to get, where to get it, and how to get it back to mom. And wow. I mean, it's it's a great way because also as a child to experience that, hey.
Okay. Oh, something is happening here and I need to help. And, you know, the plants, I know where to find them and they will help. And it's it's getting a grip on the world on some some level. So it's I think it's a very interesting thing to learn to learn about plants as a child.
[00:58:03] Unknown:
And sometimes, you know, with this this this, kids which are very aware of everything and lots of communication and so on, I feel it it sometimes, it looks like they're not paying attention, but everything is going in so deeply. I remember this this there was a festival called, nearby of a friend of mine. And this, I was doing, the walks and activities with kids. They were five, six year olds, not more than that. And we we just talk about some plans, and we did game of identifying and so on. And so they really got with this thing on so much that five minutes after it it stopped the activity, one of the kids fell down in a, like, a a gravel path and and hurt his knee, you know, that's creeping and so on. Mhmm. And they made, like, teamwork to go and get plantain, to mash it in their mouths, to put it in Wow.
It was like seeing this for me was like, woof. I really have, the future is in the right hands. You know? So, yeah, it's it's amazing to see how much it soaks in, and and it's never it's never too early. Mhmm. This info to them. You know? It's, and these experiences.
[00:59:28] Unknown:
Yes. And also my experience so I had this this, herbal walk for my friends, and they brought their kids. And my kids were there as well. They were playing together while I was talking about the herbs. And the parents, all the time, they would say, like, shh, be quiet. Listen to what Niva has to say. And I had the impression that the kids were not so interested, that they were not but at the end of the walk, the kids came to me, oh, so this is white clover. Right? And this is this, and this is this, and this is this. And I thought, they have heard everything. They may have been running around and playing with one another, but still, they were listening, and they were soaking it all up. And, wow, that was amazing.
[01:00:12] Unknown:
Yeah. There's a sense of respect, that they have naturally, with not stepping too much, with the gathering just enough. Mhmm. It's interesting to see that. In most of the kids, they don't want to to over forage things. Yes. Sometimes we do.
[01:00:37] Unknown:
Yes. Rita, what final message do you want to share with our listeners?
[01:00:43] Unknown:
Oh, that's a big question. So, yeah, I I would say that that, start bringing plants to your plate, is a great way of starting knowing plants. Even if you just know one edible plant, it's really important to to make that an abbot, so that your mouth, your cells kind of know, the wild tastes and and the wild medicine as you as you kind of, get to know with your mouth and your gut and, your intestines and and your soul even. It's it's something that for me, it's really I'm I'm fascinating with cooking with wild plants because it give us so much pay space to be creative as there's not many recipes. So you kind of, like, understand the taste profile and how how that will be good with the others. So it as we don't have many references, we we kind of intuitively try to understand better how we could put that in our in our meals.
So, yeah, try try something every day. Just go out that that coming back from the work time. Just go out to your little garden or or even for some people who just have some pots at home. Bring some wild plants into pots. It's a great way, because if you bring, just the wild soil that is around that wild plant will bring more seeds that will kind of show up in your pot, and that's always a surprise. And that's spontaneity. Am I saying it right in England? It's something we really need nowadays. It's something that the more technified or technological is getting the the world, We also need this surprises, not intended surprise, not asked for.
So, yeah, I think bringing this wild side is is what we need as human beings again. So so we're not just artificial artificially command. So yeah. And surprise other people with wild plants. You know? Just here. Get a wild pot. Give her some plants that you can use in your meals. It it's great to care for for people and and to have these wild plants as a as a common thing. And not being shy to share what we know. And don't feel like ridiculous. Sometimes people feel ridiculous if they're in certain settings, and they start sharing knowledge. They feel like they're not gonna be appreciated or so on, but never mind. It's going to be good for the other. They're going to get that message pretty good, because it's it's something that it's in all of us, and we all have in our origin. So, yeah, just embrace that wild side.
[01:04:06] Unknown:
That is some great advice. Thank you so much. So, Rita, if people want to find out more about your work, where can they find more information?
[01:04:18] Unknown:
I have, Kia from the nursery, website. It's a c r I a. Also, the BloomSatibulum site is a bit out of date. But But I have a Instagram. I'm not a hyperposter, but, I will put some things once in a while and stories and the the activities I've been doing. And I also have an Airbnb experience. It's for the people who are around, and they wanted to do a forage and and a meal here at the Oh, that sounds really fun. So if you are around here, you will find me for sure. It's in the North Portugal. It's, in next to Vienna Do Castello, and you there's not many experiences around here. So you find me for sure.
So, yeah, feel welcome. And one day, if you wanna come over, Lee, you're more than welcome to come. Thank you so much.
[01:05:12] Unknown:
Well, Rita, I wish you a lot of luck with everything you do. Keep spreading the herbal love throughout Portugal, I would say. And, yes. Thank you so much for your time. Thank you, listener, to listening to this episode. I hope to see you for the next one. And in the meantime, keep powdering your nose with dandelion pollen. Bye bye.
[01:05:39] Unknown:
A warm thank you for listening, Wildy. Are you feeling a wild itch after this episode? Well, just head over to wildplantforager.com and feel free to connect with me on social media. I'm looking forward to the next episode. I hope you'll be there. But for now, just go outside and follow your wild heart.
Welcome to Wild, the podcast for wildlings just like you. Wildlings who want to transform the prevalent plant blindness to collective plant wisdom. My name is Liebe Gollle. I've been working as a herbalist and wild plant forager in Belgium since 02/2002. In those years, I've seen a lot of changes. Working with plants has become more popular, but I've also seen time is running out for our planet. As foragers and herbalists in Europe, sometimes we're dealing with different plant species and different cultural approaches towards plants. In some countries, working with plants is licensed, and in others, it's almost illegal.
I believe that together, we can learn from one another and be stronger. There is nothing more empowering than connecting wild souls. Together, we can have a greater impact on restoring the ancient link between people and plants. And that's why for this podcast series, I'm talking to fellow herbalists and foragers in Europe. So if you're ready to find out what you've never been told, but what your soul already knows, welcome to Wild.
[00:02:12] Unknown:
Hello, Wildling. Welcome to a new episode of the Wild Podcast. And today, we are joined by Rita Roquettes, the founder of BloomSatuvum. That's a botanical initiative rooted in Portugal, and it bridges traditional herbal knowledge with contemporary practice. With a deep passion for plant medicine, Rita cultivates, crafts, and educates celebrating the healing power of herbs. Welcome, Rita. So nice to have you here today. Welcome. Yeah.
[00:02:46] Unknown:
Nice to be here with you. And thank you for that introduction. Oh, you're welcome. And and and profound at the same time.
[00:02:55] Unknown:
Yes. Well, you're welcome. It's nice to have you. So can you tell us a little bit about how your love for plants and for herbs got started? Was it like a key moment in your life or was it something that grew more gradually on you or how did it all start?
[00:03:14] Unknown:
So I I I was lucky enough to spend a lot of time in rural Portugal when I was younger. Yeah. When I since my two, three year old, we always, on the weekends, would go to the farm and to my grandfather's house up in the mountains. So we always were like little goats. You know? The kids were always, like, hanging around themselves and and being covered with dirt and and all that sense of really immersed, with nature. But things didn't have names. They had they had that entity type, feeling. And many years I've passed. Like, I I was a city girl. I was I brought was brought up in Porto, in the North Of Portugal. And then I I I was always in the artistic path. I was very much, into landscape architecture.
I entered landscape architecture. And then, my even even on my high school, my my project for ending high school was to cover a public building with plants. Wow. That already have it really inside me. But, yeah, the real calling for, like, how can I talk? How can I have this communion with the plant world? I started when I was living in Greece. I lived in a little island called Paros in the Cyclades. And, this small island had an amazing abundance of aromatic herbs. So there's a lot of, like, thymes and sages and oregano. So all these, like, really profusely aromatics just boom in your face.
So there's not a way, like, if you I I think we have now I have a dog. He's a puppy. And I see him always, like, sniffing around. I was like, I'm like that too. That's when you have a sense, you really want to go deep, and they they really bring out memories and feelings inside you in such a strong way that I couldn't say no to the plants. So I started learning about them. I was staying in a house of a friend that had a lot of books on cooking and Greek cooking, and there's a lot of introduction of these herbs and the cooking. So for me, it was a big beginning. So I start my first vegetable garden there. I've we did the first communal, tree planting there also, and this was in 02/2010.
So in that moment, I knew that plants were on my way, and that was my my path to go. Yeah. That was a big beginning. So when I came back to Portugal, I came to live in a a land here in the North, in Minho. And, yeah, I start my my medicinal gardens. I build my own house with straw bale. Wow. So I had this, like, off grid life for for a good amount of time. Yeah. And nowadays, I I work with the plants. I do gardening and landscaping. I have a plant nursery. So and I do I do practice the herbalism in a different way than clinical than I used to do. So, yeah, things plant plants and and me, I think it's like I feel we are very together. I couldn't separate myself from the plant world.
[00:06:45] Unknown:
Yeah. I and I have to say, I love how you say the plants when you are when you are a child, that the plants, like, did not have a name, but they were sort of an entity. I can I can relate to that? It's it's interesting. I've never heard someone wording it exactly like that, but I know exactly what you mean.
[00:07:08] Unknown:
It's very, very interesting. Actually, there was a big cedar there, which I remember is like huge cedar with low branches, so we could like kind of climb it as if it was a ladder. And I remember, like, like, the hide and seek, we would go and I would hide in that tree lot. Wow. And I remember, like, having deep conversations with these trees while I was hiding, you know. It's like Wow. That's so lovely. Yeah. And and I have a five year old child now, Mateus, my son. And I I I see him. I I give him a lot of space, and he has his his secret spots also. And I know there is this innate thing that comes with us that gives voice to to supposedly inanimate things, but which which are very alive for us.
It's yeah. It's the animism. It's like what's what all the original civilizations still do, and it's so beautiful that it's it's in our DNA somehow.
[00:08:09] Unknown:
Yes. And I think it's also beautiful how having this contact with the plants changes something in us. Like, because you're talking about your son. Well, my son is 16 now, but he, I remember as a child, we have a a linen linen tree in the garden. And, whenever he would be upset or angry, he would just climb to the top. He's a really good tree climber. And, he would stay there for a while, and then he would come down and he would be giggling. Like, his emotions just totally transformed. And there was like yeah. There was something magical that only the linen tree could do. So I I think it's Nicely Linden, Yes.
Exactly. Because it's so, you know, a very soothing tree and and Relax. I thought it was always I was always so surprised to see him coming out of the tree and be giggling, and I thought, wow. Something really happened there. Yeah. Right. Right.
[00:09:13] Unknown:
It's it's amazing. And and that connection, just like being with, we sometimes forget that's medicine also. Mhmm. We don't have to have a intake of things. We don't have to have a huge amount. More and more, I'm in the low dose spectrum of of things because I I feel it really makes a lot of effects. And and it shows people to not be in excess. Mhmm. So it's it's a good way of of working with plant medicines.
[00:09:43] Unknown:
Yeah. It's a very interesting viewpoint, I think. Yeah. Yes. So I hear that you also have a plant nursery. Yeah. Like, what kind of plants are you growing? So I'm really into agroforestry
[00:09:57] Unknown:
nowadays and regenerative agriculture. And so here in the farm, we live in a farm which is around seven, eight, hectares. Mhmm. So it's a very traditional old Portuguese house. It's from the sixteen hundreds. And he has all these small gardens that you usually have. It is the vegetable garden, the the the staying gardens or the beautiful gardens. And then you have the the sideways, the orchard, and then you have the forest. So in the forest, the forest area, which is very shady, we had to take some trees, which were very big, but the roots are not super deep. So they're very shallow and sometimes low down. And to prevent that, we have I cut them, which are acacias, acacia melanoxylen, which we call australid. It's an Australian plant, that came to Portugal by introduction. And nowadays, it's called invasive, But it has it has a lot of benefits, and it's always has a sense why it's there.
It's a nitrogen fixer, so you can use it as improvements of soil also. So we took these seven big trees. And in this forest, there was like this clearing showed up. So place patches with sun, patches with less sun, and it became a place where we would go more and we would look. And and for me, it was very interesting that all the seedlings underneath the trees, were very active and they grew well even in the shade because they were under mom's skirt. So I said, okay. So this is a perfect spot. Even if it's very shady in some places, just try to start, a agroforest.
So I tried to understand better the shade plants. I made a pond there or two ponds so I could have the different ecosystems. So I could have the very wet and then the drier when it's when it's going to the to the to the more sun sun burning side. And I can have from Mediterranean to tropical to so I'm I'm working a lot with this, which is like you have species with an intense mulching, that you're kind of doing compost in place. Mhmm. And so these are the feeding trees and Australians are great for that. So we just chop, let it on the ground, they make their own compost, and it warms up the soil. It creates aeration.
It just creates beautiful ecosystem for the roots. So this this nursery, I have plants growing there called kriya, which means, small creature or creation or creativity. It can be a mix of all of this. And, I do the seedlings and propagations all there. And because I don't need shade screens, I have the shade from the trees in the summer. It's a perfect environment to be underneath. It's not that straight. High benches, nursery that people just go and look. They really have to to pay a visit. So it's so it's, yeah, it's, it's my main work nowadays. It's I spend a lot of time there, and I do my own compost, making sure that I don't have many needs from the outside, which is Mhmm. Which is something that I feel that the nursery business sometimes lacks. It's
[00:13:27] Unknown:
Yes. Yes. Absolutely. Yes. It's nice if you can close the system. And, yeah. And I like how you how you, describe, you know, the open spot in the forest and how it really inspired you just by looking at nature and how nature does it and, working with the different ecosystems within your garden. Yes. I think more people should do that. That's, Yes. Yes.
[00:13:54] Unknown:
And and especially because if you use use the right plant for the right place, it's just flourishes. Just just so happy there. It's like it's like a human finding the place where it's going to live. It's like, oh, it makes so much sense here. So it kind of, like, bloom. You you come up life. You you have something. You have a spark on you. So I propagate these plants, and I propagate a lot of medicinal plants, which are also wild plants. And people don't know how to get them, like, filipendulos maria, meadow sweet, and, other plants. Like, people really don't know where to get them because in Portugal, there's not many nurseries, dedicated to medicinal plants.
So it's, yeah, we have that and shrubs. And I always try to have a way that, multiple planting can be seen and and applied. So people never get one plant. I never almost sell a plant. So I always sell, like, one big tree, smaller bushes, and then herbaceous to go around. So people do the gills?
[00:15:05] Unknown:
Yes.
[00:15:06] Unknown:
Or the nests. And so they have really that abundance of having a lot of and planned communication really helps things develop. That idea of competition is kind of like even Darwin wasn't really, sure of that when he said that. They they kind of grab that the the fittest one will survive. I I think symbiotic relationships are really nature, what makes everyone thrive.
[00:15:40] Unknown:
It makes a lot of sense if you look at nature that, you know, different species are working symbiotically.
[00:15:49] Unknown:
Yeah. Yeah. And things like lichen, you know, and Uh-huh. It's like, woah. Okay. So we're all in a party here now.
[00:16:00] Unknown:
Yeah.
[00:16:01] Unknown:
It's it's and with kids, it's amazing to be in these places of diversity because they really understand that we're not in factories, and it's and and and in Portugal, there's a lot of monoculture of eucalyptus. Mhmm. And before it was pine. The forest is I don't know if you saw it when you were here.
[00:16:21] Unknown:
Yes. I saw the eucalyptus
[00:16:23] Unknown:
mainly. So it's like, sometimes it's kilometers of it. And, yeah, we had the wildfires and, it's interesting. I I we have an association called, and I'm also part of a association called, Flushtar Portugal, which does a lot of these, multiple diverse implementations privately and publicly. And we used to have some volunteering work here. And, when kids understand the difference of what it is to really be in a place that is repeated and repetition, almost like in school, you have to learn this way. You have to learn this no. There's so much, and you can find your own needs or your own interests.
Every day you go there, it's something different calling you. Mhmm. Which is I don't know. It's like this diversity of of greens. Even the shades of greens, you know, Simple as, like, chromatic shades. It's like, woah. There's so many types of greens you can look at. And
[00:17:26] Unknown:
Yes. Yes. I couldn't agree more because, like, every year, like, the last weeks of summer, just before autumn starts, I'm always looking around like all the shades of green. And there are so many shades of green. And I I just try to soak it in before all the coloration starts of the leaves of the trees and the shrubs, and the the orange comes, and the brown comes, and the red comes, and the, but just all these different shades of green. I love that. I really, really profoundly love that. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
[00:18:02] Unknown:
So, yeah, the the nursery is a big thing, and and I I like I'm part of this, we just had it now, called Herb Fest Portugal. I don't know if you heard about it. No. Tell me all about it. It's, herbalism. It's a medicinal herbalism festival that it's the third year that it happened. And it's a group of women. We are seven, that started. And most of us Portuguese, but there's some, from England, some from The States. And, yeah. We started three years ago, and I felt like three years ago that, herbalism like, when I would say I was a herbalist, people like, what? What are you what are you doing exactly?
And now I feel these last three years really changed, and there's so much, diversity of people doing from foraging to crafts to just plant walks, and it's it's incredible. Even the clinical herbalist, there is so much that is already bringing and really, like, rooting finally, you know. Wow. So this year was really great to to feel this this, yeah. It was, like, three weeks ago. It was in the April. So, yeah, it's, it's it's something that I feel, finally, people are getting really, like, proud of the plant world and really wanted to dive in.
[00:19:36] Unknown:
Yes. And it's great to see this evolution in only three years, which is really a short amount of time. And I think it's synchronized
[00:19:43] Unknown:
with the world itself. There's a lot of global, herbalism, going through the networks and social media and so on. So I think that also kind of, like, goes through. Yeah. Yeah. It's true. Yeah. So what about, like, the basic botanical knowledge
[00:20:02] Unknown:
of the general people in in Portugal? Do people know a lot, or is there maybe a difference in the countryside and in the cities? Or how is that in general?
[00:20:15] Unknown:
So, when I arrived, after Greece and, and I was doing my my education as an herbalist, I'll I did some herb walks in the village I was, and they would there were free herb walks. So we would go, and I was like, hey. We're here. I'm not I'm not I don't know more than you. I'm here just to know what we know together. So this is a storytelling place. And they're like, okay. Okay. In the beginning, they're like very shut off. They wouldn't talk that much. And then when they understand it's it's, it's a health space, it's a space that they can feel comfortable, Things start to come.
And, and then it it becomes like a mapping of the of the village. Oh, there's where it grows that thing. And that is what when I used to go and pick the water, there will be like there. And if you want to find that so there is this mapping in people's minds in the villages. And in the cities, there's more and more interest as with the wild plants which are edible, all these chefs, and things are, like, kind of bringing it back. And so the municipalities ask a lot, and I've worked with a lot of municipalities for herb walks, and, yeah, food, preparation with wild plants and the medicinal side of it. So even the the governmental entities are really into, like, spread again.
And the knowledge, I feel, you know, it's you were here. I don't know if you really got to it. But a lot of the people's names, a lot of the people a lot of the places, they are connected to the plants called Zambojal, Funchal, olive oil. So it's all things that are, plant names applied to toponym toponymia toponymi? Yes. Yes. Yes. Oh, so there is a lot of this basic thing. The people's name, and so on. They they're as a pear tree, Sylvia to blackberry, and there's so many family names that myself, I'm I'm, Lima, which is more connected to the the river. But, then I have Pajera, which is the grapevine, and the which is French. But, with these names, we can see really, like, plants were part of people's life. And we have a lot in Portugal.
It's not that this medicinal knowledge is very spread by the elder because they feel this, like, I mean, it's historical. They probably weren't, they didn't feel safe to share that they were using it, especially when the industrial revolution arrived and, all the products from the from the wars and kind of, like, flooded, or the subproducts flooded to the culture. But with the daily life, there are a lot of, like, rituals and little things that people still do, and they're very connected to pagan times and the other times. And even, like, let's say the Mayas, which is the from the 3 to the May 1. So it's called Beltane there.
People on the thirtieth at night, they go and get Scotch broom, to hang on the doors to protect the house of this big change. But it's the protection of fertility also because it's a nitrogen fix. It's a legume. And every time you cut it, it releases nitrogen fixing in the soil too. So it's like people being part of this ritual of continuing fertility itself. And everyone, they get a bit anxious even if they don't hang it on the doors. Electrical doors and the cars. And and in the May 19, which is next Monday, it's the deal, the is the how do you call the wheat? The wheat, cob or the corn?
The
[00:24:38] Unknown:
the cob. I don't know how to Yeah. Like the seed hatch or the Yes.
[00:24:42] Unknown:
Yes. Near the spiga is that. So people on that day or the day before, they collect wheat, grape leaves, papillos, which is, poppies, also some olives. Everything that is connected to what they want to have in abundance, they do this little bunch, this this little, flower bunch, and they keep it in the house for all year to to really bring that year to a good place. So there's a lot of these small significant things that everyone does or almost everyone, which is a life, you know. And for me, it's it's it's amazing to feel that. It's like It's very fascinating that it's so alive to this day. Yes. Yeah. And and it's it's, it's with it's everything, even, like, with the saints. And and here, the church, kind of has this this connection with the with the plant world or kind of, I don't know, what's what really happened historically.
But like Saint John's, which is, on the June 24, people always also put this water with the the plants from that time, and then they they bathe themselves in the next day with it. And even in Saint Antonio, it's in the June 13, it's more like a Lisbon saint. They always have this small basils. It's a small leaf basil that you have to keep, usually before, let's say, modern times, the the man would give this small vase of the of the small leaf basil to the lady with a with, a verse, a little poem for her. And that will be a way of showing his intentions of being with her, because Sant'Antonio is the marriage marriage.
So if the lady was able to keep that, small bush we call, the small bush basil well and not die until the next year, they could probably get married. So there is this small little things, you know, it's fun.
[00:26:59] Unknown:
Thank you so much for sharing that. That's very interesting to know. Yeah.
[00:27:05] Unknown:
Yeah. Wow. I and and historically, you know, we have we have the the only Portuguese pope, which was, Pedro Espano or Pedro Juliao. He was an amazing, let's say, medicine man. So one of the books he wrote, it was the treasure for the people or treasure for the poor, was the first book written in Portugal, in the common Portuguese and not Latin for the versed people. And it had all these little recipes of how to treat yourself for common malices. And it's it's, and this was in December. Yeah? So there's a lot of this, connection that I don't know how much is stayed, but we really want to bring it back. Yeah?
We also with the Discovery Times, we had Garcia Dorto, which was a doctor that went to India and, made amazing work of research and writing all down of of how they use the plants and bring it, like, the cinnamon and the cardamoms and and all the spices back and being really he was really curious. So I think I think Portuguese people are curious, and and they really I think you've you've seen this, which is, I think is charming of Portugal or the charm of Portugal is this. Is you can be in the city, but you can still see that rural side. You hear, you hear chicken going on. You you have, like, these cabbages hanging up a wall. You know what I mean? You have the fruit trees. You know? It's like, it's very alive, the sense of, like, yeah, the countryside being everywhere.
[00:28:49] Unknown:
Yes. Yes. I remember when I was in Lisbon, I went to a park and there was it was April, of course, but there was a loquat tree and it still had a few ripened fruits on it, which I love because loquat is so hard to get in Belgium. I don't know why you can get pineapples from the other side of the world. But loquats, I love them. I love these fruits, and it was like a great welcome from from Portugal. And I I love just picking them, and they were so juicy, and I just totally, totally loved it. It was a great welcome. Yeah. It's a wonderful fruit. I love it. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So and if you like, in the Portuguese context, if you, like, want to study herbalism or study more about medicinal plants, is there, like, a an official school where you can go to? Or how is this exactly? Is it easy to get herbal education? Or do you have to go abroad? Or are these schools live or more, online?
Or how is that exactly?
[00:29:57] Unknown:
So the certified courses, which can make you, like, practice as a practitioner, they're more connected to naturopathy
[00:30:06] Unknown:
Mhmm.
[00:30:08] Unknown:
Or traditional Chinese medicine, let's say, then just a course on herbalism. It's not super, steady here yet. Sometimes they have, like, the disciplines in some health courses on medicinal plants Mhmm. Phytotherapy, but it's not just dive deep and understand the context and study the old books, which I would love if there was a course like that, which kinda really kind of bring us from antiquity to nowadays and having my course was was a great course. I I studied in The States, and, with Michael and Leslie Tiara. Oh, Tiara. Okay. And, the they what they did is really joining the Western Herbalism and the Eastern Herbalism and make us having a broad spectrum of it.
And now what there is, like, if you want to become herbalist in Portugal, you would probably would do just a community herbalism, small course with some schools. There is Collective Wonder from Olivia, and she's American, from Baltimore, but she's living in Portugal with her family for quite a big time. There are some people you can learn with, but not having really, like, a paper saying you can you can practice as a practitioner. Okay. Perhaps you would need to have a naturopathic doctor or some kind of other kind of cover, to make it happen.
[00:31:48] Unknown:
Okay. So do I understand it correctly then that there is also, like, no legal framework for, like, a medical herbalist in Portugal, but it's more like the community herbalism that is done there? Is that right?
[00:32:00] Unknown:
Yes. The the thing is, you also will not have someone, coming and take you to prison because you're doing herbalism. Portugal is very bland in some senses, because it's seen more as consulting someone who's giving you advice is not is not really, like, treating you. Yeah? And I remember when I was studying in The States, they also also said that, that it would be good for us to have, like, also a degree on acupuncture or massage therapy or something that you can incorporate it if you needed to somehow, show a license or some sort of thing. I mean, we should all be free to use, to use plans with the right amount and to be, to be counseling someone on how to do it in a not dangerous in the proper way.
It's it's a public benefit. So yeah. So I I don't know if this persecution is going to start one day, but it's still it's still okay to have this community. And, basically, a lot of Portuguese still use the plants in their daily lives, you know, for the common diarrhea, as a diuretic, as a sedative even, like lemon balms and the chamomiles and and things like that that they have in hand. For the diuretics, they use a lot of the corn silk here and the cherry stems. So it's this knowledge somehow, it's it's part of the first line of action for people.
[00:33:41] Unknown:
Yeah. So it's like the the the folk herbalism is really still alive, and people are still using it for, small ailments and, yes, first aid situations. Yes. Okay.
[00:33:57] Unknown:
I love how you said I happen and this is approved. Yeah? Or or, like, for the for the varicose veins also Okay. Like, these the use of, grape leaves. You know? They put it in the vinegar, and they just rub it in the in the legs. Okay. There is this, if you are in the countryside, you see this happening. I don't know how much you see it in the city side.
[00:34:22] Unknown:
But, Yeah. I yeah. I I have to say, when I was visiting Portugal, I haven't seen a lot of people actually. I was, like, mostly in the middle of nowhere, which was lovely because Portuguese nature is just amazing. I have to say this. It's still very wild areas without even pots to walk on, but just wow. There was, like, so many moments where we had, like, this wow, and we were making we were following a river, and then we found, like, this big waterfall. And just one surprise after another. I really loved it. But it's great to hear that people are still using it for, like, everyday issues that they have with their health. And I think I think and I love how you say, we should have the freedom to use the plants, because it's true.
[00:35:16] Unknown:
Yeah. Of course, there are loads low dose botanicals that you should be more careful. And, I mean, not people are not going you to use digitalis just Mhmm. Because, you know Yes. Obviously. They're they're they call it the killing of the husbands, that that plant. So there must be Right. Okay. In fact, there is because of the glycosides present, there's the the alkaloid, digit detoxin or digitalin. It's not sensed in the mouth, so the dried leaf would be put it in the wine or whatever. And, it's it sounded like a cardiac attack.
[00:35:55] Unknown:
Oh. Oh. Oh. Oh.
[00:35:59] Unknown:
So, yeah, there is there is some some knowledge around here. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, spooky. Yeah. But but don't get me wrong. There's also, like, a big dependence on the pharmacology side of things. Yeah? And this but but the health health care is is going down, big time, big amounts of waiting, waiting lines, and and people are, I think, will turn to more natural ways of dealing with things. And but Yes. You know, it's it's interesting because the health centers are I mean, it's almost in every village or every other village, are pretty much a social place also for older people.
So it's not that they're going to the doctor. They're just going to a place where they can usually talk like a cafe. I feel that. So it's a it's a funny it's a funny world here.
[00:37:00] Unknown:
Yes. Yes. And I I think it's, interesting how, like, I think more and more people realize also people that are working in the medical field themselves, that they are seeing the boundaries of modern medicine. And, of course, modern medicine had has a lot of advantages, but, like, especially with, like, chronic disease or it doesn't always have the effect that it's wanted. You know? And then people I see people turning more and more to herbs also because the waiting lists are often very long. Like, if you want to see specialists in Belgium, mostly, you have to wait for months before you get a consultation.
So and, you know, if if you have an itch, if it's very itchy or if it's painful, you really want something that works now already, and not wait for months to come. So people are are, trying out whatever they can and And and they're turning to more like autonomous
[00:38:05] Unknown:
way. So
[00:38:06] Unknown:
Yes. It's an interesting evolution to see. Yes.
[00:38:10] Unknown:
Yes. And I think COVID was good in that sense, because feel people felt helpless. Mhmm. I just take just take Ibuprofen or and and it will pass. So they're like, your health is more just than than whatever. There's so many other things we could have done to help people ameliorate and to have a less amount of side effects from whatever that thing was. But just wants to show you,
[00:38:43] Unknown:
Oh, I can't see. Oh, did you draw something?
[00:38:46] Unknown:
Yeah. It's a turtle. Wow. Wow.
[00:38:51] Unknown:
Very nice.
[00:38:54] Unknown:
But, yeah, it's it's was in a sense, was good it's a good moment for people to see, like, okay. There is not always the drug that will save you, and there are other small things that you can take care of yourself. Yes. You really have a better life with it.
[00:39:11] Unknown:
Yes. And I think it also showed us how vulnerable we really are and how dependent we are on systems like the medical system and the, the food system, like, and it's it's, yeah, that it's really important to become more independent to, to these systems and, you know, grow some of our grow or forage some of our own food and our own medicine and and just try that out and and see how far we can come because it's, yeah, it's so important to have this autonomy as you say. Yes. Yes. So, is it is it possible in Portugal to have, good quality herbal products like tinctures or herbal teas? Do they just sell them in in the stores, or have to do you have to go to special herbal shops? Or,
[00:40:08] Unknown:
So so for herbs, there are some, like, big franchising going on, but, personally, it's like the last, place I would go. Usually, you buy it directly to the producers or to the makers and manufacturers. For the Herb Fest this year, we had a good amount of people, bringing their own tinctures and their preparations. I know so. I have a bit of a bit of a party. I have a bit of a party also, which I it's a dispensary. Somehow, I can I can help people around me and my family? We also have, tourism here in the house. So I I collect, most of the herbs and dry them. So the most I can have by myself, great. If it's specialized plants like echinaceas or things that I need in bigger amounts.
In bigger amounts, it's, it's it's always better to go to producers that do it themselves. And there's beautiful, work being done in Portugal in sense of aromatic and medicinal plants. So, yeah, we would it's it's a small country, so we can have a good network of, of people, producers, practitioners. If I'm not able to have, I can ask someone else, and we can compliment. And, or sometimes when you don't have a plant and, if people studied herbalism outside, there was other plants. We tried to figure out and this is a work I love. What is the correspondent? How can I use the local plants, instead of asking from somewhere else? I don't know where it comes from exactly.
Because the connection with the people, with the plants from the place, with the place they are, also has a great benefit. So if the people know the plants they're taking also, it's it's already a welcoming yeah. Just just work on me. You know?
[00:42:17] Unknown:
Yes. I think it's great that you can go to the producers yourself. It's, yes. Wow. Because there is there is some kind of medicine that you know, obviously, we get a medicine from the plant by ingesting it, but just knowing the plant and where it comes from is also a form of medicine that is hard to put in words, but I'm pretty sure you know what I mean. Right? Yeah. Yeah. It's like a trust. No? It's just like a bone that it's there already.
[00:42:49] Unknown:
Mhmm. Yeah. Mhmm.
[00:42:52] Unknown:
Okay. Wow. That that's so interesting what you have been telling me. Yeah. Yeah. Really. Really. So what I would like to know is so there there is a lot of regulation in Europe around herbs. As you mentioned before, in Portugal, it's, you know, it's not really licensed, but there is also, like, not of a witch hunt going on. How do you see the future of herbalism in Portugal in the next ten or twenty years?
[00:43:30] Unknown:
I don't know. It was a lot it was a lot of, opening doors until now. In fact, for for a good amount of time, Fernanda Butaylo, I don't know if you know her. It's a she's a Portuguese herbalist. Also also studied abroad in Scotland. And she was the one, like, always doing the herb box and and so on. And now there is much more people doing foraging and and herbalism and giving classes and giving material. So as it's becoming more popular, I'm afraid that's a bit of that, restricting could happen. Yeah. Because we always see that. Now it's like, caravans were parking everywhere on on holiday time. Now it's forbidden to park caravans.
So there is this, ongoing policy policing, which can affect us also. But I feel and more and more, I'm I I believe in the connection of people, yeah, and proximity and caring for our little communities and and so on. So it's really hard to policy everyone to you know, it's people's strength even, like, in harsh times of really being the network for each other. So if somehow the health system would go down, of course, there is extreme acute cases that need to be surgical, worked on, and there's good things in the medicine, what we achieve nowadays.
Mhmm. But I think for the for the common ailments and the taking care of of the people around us, if there is one for every 20, it's it's great. And you just really have to know your plant well. You don't need don't have to know a lot of plants. You know? It's just sometimes with just, like, 10 plants, you can do a lot of good for people around you. Absolutely.
[00:45:48] Unknown:
Absolutely. Yes. Yeah. And, yes, I I always tell this to my students as well. They want to learn, like, 200 plants at once. And I'm like, but what if you would learn to do more with the five or the 10 plants you already know really well because there's a lot more you can do with it? And that's that's you know, it's not only the the quantity, but also the quality of the of the things that we learn, I think, is important. And just, going deep enough, not not keeping it superficial and and knowing all it's sometimes it's more interesting to know, like, 10 or 20 plants, but really know them very deeply rather than 200 plants and just knowing them superficially. Right. Right.
[00:46:38] Unknown:
And their actions change so much, and they can be very surprising. So, sometimes if you spend some a good amount of time with, let's say, calendula, chamomile, and you start to see the interaction with the plant and what it really has to bring besides the things that were written before, And you start connecting all all the actions like, okay. So there are multiple be beings. It's not just this one herb for one thing. And it's it's so amazing that most of the times, with one one plant, we can access many organ systems and and really harmonize the body. And and this is why I feel that really plants, develop the secondary metabolites, which are the the medicinal part of the constituents because they wanted to communicate somehow.
They they were defending themselves, but they wanted to be desired. So so we and the more of the tools they develop, the more desirable they would become. So so they they are quite of, how do you call someone who's very proud of themselves? There are plants we are really, really proud of themselves, and they hold themselves like, yeah. They will need me for sure. Wait for it.
[00:48:05] Unknown:
Yes. And, also, isn't it like a miracle? I mean, to me, it is like one of the miracles of life, how these the defense mechanism of plants are actually the things that are good for us humans. That is it's like a puzzle that fits so well. It's I am totally mind blown over that. I just if you really think about it, it's and then, again, we are talking about, you know, how different organisms can work together in nature rather than than seeing themselves as competitors.
[00:48:43] Unknown:
Yeah. Sometimes I see it almost like as our our people's immune immune systems and plants' immune systems have, like, a connection.
[00:48:52] Unknown:
Yeah. It's like a click. It's like a piece of a puzzle that just fits perfectly into one another, and it's crazy if you think about it, how it can be. It's wow. It's just really very impressive that nature has done this. Yes. So, thinking about the plants that grow in Portugal, that grow locally where you live, What are, like, favorite plants to work with?
[00:49:25] Unknown:
So, yeah, yesterday, I just gave a class on digestive herbs. So it's really fresh on me. But, some of the plants I love to work is, let's say, the lesser, calamint, calamintan fitter. I don't know if you have it there.
[00:49:45] Unknown:
We don't have it in the wild here, I think. I've never seen it in a while, but I do have it in my herb garden.
[00:49:51] Unknown:
Okay. So it's it's a it's a mint, but it has some of the constituents from catnip. So it's a sedative, aromatic, which I love. And being a mom, it's great to have. Another one is fennel. I love to work with fennel. Fennel for me, it's just like eye opening plant. I keep on going deep and deep and deep with it. And it's because there's this salty and sweet, you know, and a bit of vagrant sometimes. So this complexity is the flavors that really brings me and and the different times of the year. And as a forager, you know this. Mhmm. Like, in the beginning of spring is one thing. One month after is another thing. So it's it's completely like a profile of flavors that you gotta learn in one plant. Yes. So right now, another plant that is just popping out and I love is verbena, verbena fiscinalis.
I I use it a lot, for the for the nervine properties, but also as a way of of, bringing it back bringing ourselves back to original place with not many layers, build up or preconceived ideas of what we are. Plans work really well with that that part of, like, personas that we turned. So yeah. And most of all, more than the plants, what I I I really enjoy is seeing is taking people. I receive people for it's called botanical experiences here. So they they get we give a walk of three hours more or less, and then we have a meal together, prepare with the plants. And it's to see how people and I remember this happening to me because they don't know the name of the plants. They never named it, but they have a profound connection to them.
And they're like, I don't know, but I feel drawn to it. And this and this feeling is like you should talk more to it. Just nibble a bit. Try to see what it has to say inside your body. And and this nibbling, for me, this this everyday picking, that we should have, almost like grazing, I'll say. It's it's one of my fundamental, ways of of being nowadays. So every day, there's this always this eye opening moment like, Okay. So this is how you are now. It's like and I remember when when I was when I was studying in The States, and I've been in Portugal in The States, and it's like, there are so many different plants for me. I didn't knew their names. But sometimes, I was like, I know you for ages.
Like, I know you. I deeply know you. Like, I don't know where from. And then suddenly, I knew how to use it and, and the taste profile, like, it told me so much. And sometimes not knowing the names, it's it's better because it's and the common names bring a lot of that sense to local people. It's they know it by the name people call it. They don't know the Yes. What it is exactly. Yeah. It's,
[00:53:17] Unknown:
Yes. And it all oh, also reminds me of something I I did, like, a a series of herbal workshops many years ago for blind people. And so what I would do, I would bring the herbs along with me, and I would have them, taste them and smell them and and feel them. And then they I I didn't say the name of the plant, but they would say they would, like, describe the herb to me, like, how it was and how it felt to them. And they were so spot on. It was Right. Very, very impressive. So, yes, it's it's a bit similar, I think. You don't always have to name it or to there are different ways to to work around and to to get to the center of the plant and the essence of what it has to say.
Yes. Wow.
[00:54:15] Unknown:
Yeah. And, yeah, and the art side of it, I always love to to bring the herbarium part, with the people. Because also when you draw the plants, they they give you so much information by just looking and being present, and do blind drawings even, like you were saying with the blind tastings, the blind drawings where you just look at the plant, you don't look at the paper, and suddenly, it's like you know that plant so much more because you were looking at it. You were attentive. You were really into knowing her better. You know? And that with the kids is really nice too.
That that and also, I I love to do the plantain test with the with the kids where they they nibble on it, and they start salivating a lot. And right after, it's, like, pool, super dry. And they're like, oh, the plant is doing this to me. So it's a it's a great it's a great way. My my son quite knows quite a bit of plants now. And he knows, like, if he has a stomach ache, goes on nibbling on the funnel and to that. So it's, it's it's really nice to see really how this knowledge and it's it's almost like, education itself. It should be brought to schools for sure.
And and for me, these if these kids are introduced to this amazing diversity that we have and how much you can do with it, Being for craft because it's one of the things I feel in Portugal. There is a lot of use of plants in crafts, a lot. Being the shoes, the clogs, being the the rushes, covers for the rain, being the baskets, even the lining for the clothing, or the plants to tint to make the colors for embroidery. So it's so nice if you see the whole variety of what you have and the richness of that. You know? So we really want you become it's not patriot. You become native.
Mhmm. You know? So this sense sense of, yeah, I belong here. I know the good things and and the gold I have in fact. Mhmm. So whatever I need is provided. It's that mother earth feeling. No? It's that Yes. So it's yeah. I think as as foraging or herbalism will bring that to to anyone.
[00:56:53] Unknown:
Yeah. I I remember when my kids were small. I remember this moment. I was in the kitchen, and I was being a bit clumsy. And I I had, like, this really bad cut in my finger. And it was, of course, bleeding a lot because that's what fingers do. And then just my my I think they were, like, I don't know, five or six years old, my twins, and they just rushed out of the back door and came back with Herb Robert to put a a poultice on it. And I was, like, stunned that they just I didn't have to say anything. They just knew exactly what to get, where to get it, and how to get it back to mom. And wow. I mean, it's it's a great way because also as a child to experience that, hey.
Okay. Oh, something is happening here and I need to help. And, you know, the plants, I know where to find them and they will help. And it's it's getting a grip on the world on some some level. So it's I think it's a very interesting thing to learn to learn about plants as a child.
[00:58:03] Unknown:
And sometimes, you know, with this this this, kids which are very aware of everything and lots of communication and so on, I feel it it sometimes, it looks like they're not paying attention, but everything is going in so deeply. I remember this this there was a festival called, nearby of a friend of mine. And this, I was doing, the walks and activities with kids. They were five, six year olds, not more than that. And we we just talk about some plans, and we did game of identifying and so on. And so they really got with this thing on so much that five minutes after it it stopped the activity, one of the kids fell down in a, like, a a gravel path and and hurt his knee, you know, that's creeping and so on. Mhmm. And they made, like, teamwork to go and get plantain, to mash it in their mouths, to put it in Wow.
It was like seeing this for me was like, woof. I really have, the future is in the right hands. You know? So, yeah, it's it's amazing to see how much it soaks in, and and it's never it's never too early. Mhmm. This info to them. You know? It's, and these experiences.
[00:59:28] Unknown:
Yes. And also my experience so I had this this, herbal walk for my friends, and they brought their kids. And my kids were there as well. They were playing together while I was talking about the herbs. And the parents, all the time, they would say, like, shh, be quiet. Listen to what Niva has to say. And I had the impression that the kids were not so interested, that they were not but at the end of the walk, the kids came to me, oh, so this is white clover. Right? And this is this, and this is this, and this is this. And I thought, they have heard everything. They may have been running around and playing with one another, but still, they were listening, and they were soaking it all up. And, wow, that was amazing.
[01:00:12] Unknown:
Yeah. There's a sense of respect, that they have naturally, with not stepping too much, with the gathering just enough. Mhmm. It's interesting to see that. In most of the kids, they don't want to to over forage things. Yes. Sometimes we do.
[01:00:37] Unknown:
Yes. Rita, what final message do you want to share with our listeners?
[01:00:43] Unknown:
Oh, that's a big question. So, yeah, I I would say that that, start bringing plants to your plate, is a great way of starting knowing plants. Even if you just know one edible plant, it's really important to to make that an abbot, so that your mouth, your cells kind of know, the wild tastes and and the wild medicine as you as you kind of, get to know with your mouth and your gut and, your intestines and and your soul even. It's it's something that for me, it's really I'm I'm fascinating with cooking with wild plants because it give us so much pay space to be creative as there's not many recipes. So you kind of, like, understand the taste profile and how how that will be good with the others. So it as we don't have many references, we we kind of intuitively try to understand better how we could put that in our in our meals.
So, yeah, try try something every day. Just go out that that coming back from the work time. Just go out to your little garden or or even for some people who just have some pots at home. Bring some wild plants into pots. It's a great way, because if you bring, just the wild soil that is around that wild plant will bring more seeds that will kind of show up in your pot, and that's always a surprise. And that's spontaneity. Am I saying it right in England? It's something we really need nowadays. It's something that the more technified or technological is getting the the world, We also need this surprises, not intended surprise, not asked for.
So, yeah, I think bringing this wild side is is what we need as human beings again. So so we're not just artificial artificially command. So yeah. And surprise other people with wild plants. You know? Just here. Get a wild pot. Give her some plants that you can use in your meals. It it's great to care for for people and and to have these wild plants as a as a common thing. And not being shy to share what we know. And don't feel like ridiculous. Sometimes people feel ridiculous if they're in certain settings, and they start sharing knowledge. They feel like they're not gonna be appreciated or so on, but never mind. It's going to be good for the other. They're going to get that message pretty good, because it's it's something that it's in all of us, and we all have in our origin. So, yeah, just embrace that wild side.
[01:04:06] Unknown:
That is some great advice. Thank you so much. So, Rita, if people want to find out more about your work, where can they find more information?
[01:04:18] Unknown:
I have, Kia from the nursery, website. It's a c r I a. Also, the BloomSatibulum site is a bit out of date. But But I have a Instagram. I'm not a hyperposter, but, I will put some things once in a while and stories and the the activities I've been doing. And I also have an Airbnb experience. It's for the people who are around, and they wanted to do a forage and and a meal here at the Oh, that sounds really fun. So if you are around here, you will find me for sure. It's in the North Portugal. It's, in next to Vienna Do Castello, and you there's not many experiences around here. So you find me for sure.
So, yeah, feel welcome. And one day, if you wanna come over, Lee, you're more than welcome to come. Thank you so much.
[01:05:12] Unknown:
Well, Rita, I wish you a lot of luck with everything you do. Keep spreading the herbal love throughout Portugal, I would say. And, yes. Thank you so much for your time. Thank you, listener, to listening to this episode. I hope to see you for the next one. And in the meantime, keep powdering your nose with dandelion pollen. Bye bye.
[01:05:39] Unknown:
A warm thank you for listening, Wildy. Are you feeling a wild itch after this episode? Well, just head over to wildplantforager.com and feel free to connect with me on social media. I'm looking forward to the next episode. I hope you'll be there. But for now, just go outside and follow your wild heart.
Introduction to Wild Podcast
Meet Rita Roquettes: Founder of BloomSatuvum
Rita's Journey into Herbalism
Agroforestry and Regenerative Agriculture
The Importance of Plant Diversity
Herbal Education and Practices in Portugal
Access to Herbal Products in Portugal
Future of Herbalism in Portugal
Favorite Local Plants and Their Uses
Final Thoughts and Embracing Wild Plants
