December's Herb Study Club

A monthly medicinal group exploring seasonal medicinal plants through the senses. Herb Study Club Running since February 2025, herb study club is a sensory exploration of the plant world, exploring local medicinal plants, their folklore and uncovering ancestral embodied knowledge. Every month, we explore a different herb and spend time experiencing it through smell, taste and observation. The herb is prepared in various forms such as infusion, tincture or juice. The herb is not revealed to the group in order to avoid any assumptions we may have about a plant. The goal is to experience it at that specific moment and mindfully taste and see how it makes us feel. In some sessions, we also do some free drawing exploring how the plant may move through us visually! Please let me know in advance if you have any known allergies/medical issues/ or are pregnant in so I can ensure herbal safety. Plantcestors We are undertaking a group project called Plantcestors from November -June. Don't worry if this is your first time at the session, you are more than welcome to join us at any point in the period. 'Plantcestors' explores plants that we consider family, friends or feel connected to due to heritage/culture/spirutal practice. We will explore our relationships to these plants and use different creative outputs to document our learnings and experiences. This will culminate in a group zine and sharing event next year. Tickets are pay as you feel from £5-20. There are free spots each session - please let me know if you want one of these at [email protected] Travel subsidy: If you need support with travel to the session, I have a small amount of funding to cover £5 per person towards transport. Please email me directly if you would like this. About the Organiser Matilya Njau is a professional horticulturalist, folk herbalist and artist based in Leeds. Her practice centres on shared moments of gathering and the relationships that can form around the careful study of flora, whether that be through drinking herbal tea, smelling a flower or tending to the soil. Through workshops and collaborative projects, Matilya is interested in the conversations, memories and care that grow from these encounters. Rooted in care and shared knowledge, Matilya’s work reimagines green spaces as places of connection and ritual. You can find out more about Matilya's work as www.mimea.org.uk