HANS ANNUAL HERB FAIR REVIEW

July 23 & 24, 2005 - Dorje Dema Ling Buddhist Centre

Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia

Saturday July 23, 2005

The morning was beautiful. Dorje Dema Ling Buddhist Centre sits upon a hill overlooking the Tatamagouche bay. If you stand on that hill, looking north you can see miles and miles of forest leading to the bay. It was a lovely sunny morning with the nights dew sparkling on the greenery all around. People began gathering by 8-830am to join those that had gone up the night before in preparation for the weekend's activities. Everything was organized and well thought out. People milled about, wet grass causing some to loose their sandals altogether and go bare feet. There was an excitement in the air; we were here once again for the plants, to celebrate the plants.

Nine am we were to begin our third AGM. This was the plan anyway. Well sometimes the best-laid plans get interrupted by people so desirous to once again socialize with old herbal friends and acquaintances that we ended up beginning our day at 10 am. Surely all those in attendance at the AGM were thankful for the pavilion that DDL has on it grounds and where the meeting was held. As we sat in a circle talking of the business of keeping HANS running, rain pelted the red metal roof above. At times so loud our voices were drowned out and so moving closer was the only solution to continue. The meeting, like the water from the sky flowed as committees and business was reported for the year. The board, after 2 years of working with an artist and graphic designer, unveiled its logo and our first project with it, a lovely dark green tote bag.

Taking a small break to enjoy the as always, lovely tea selections. We were warmed from the coolness the rain had caused the air to become, by both the tea and each other's company. Once again we settled our excitement of the weekend, to proceed with finding a new board of directors. Going into these things, nominations, a few of us were a bit nervous we would walk away with a less thankfull board as three submitted their resignations. But just as the herbs themselves give, we were able to walk away with a full 8-member board prepared to give their time and energy to the continuing efforts of HANS.

After the AGM was completed there was a little bit of time to enjoy the market offerings. Buying a fantastic HANS tote bag, tasting the loveliest lavender jelly available, selecting a fun new pair of pants or sweater, or making a bid on the many items our sponsors provided for our silent auction, were some of the activities people enjoyed prior to being called to the incredibly delicious, nutritious lunch offered by DDL.

After lunch we gathered for the opening circle of instructions, introductions and song. While most of the people were from Nova Scotia, we were also privileged to host those from Quebec and Vancouver Island. Following this we began Series I and II of the workshops:

SERIES I       Starting at 1:30 - 3pm

Lavender                         with Anita Carlson
With many examples of how Lavender can be used Anita spoke of her farm and the many wonderful products her company has to offer. Surely to sit and smell this lovely plant, one can easily see why Anita enjoys working and experimenting with it. For many tasting the Lavender Jelly was an absolute highlight.

Making Lip Balms & Ointments                   with Elizabeth Mills & Erica de Sousa
It started with making herbal oils; from picking to chopping to packing and sitting. There was a live demonstration of blending and melting the bee's wax with the oils and pouring the mixture into the containers. The audience participated with chopping of herbs and grading bee's wax. It was very simple to follow, fun and thorough and everyone walked away with a little sampling to help keep their lips smooth.

Herbal Politics in Canada                 Presented by CCHA members:
with Savayda Jarone, Cappucine Chartrand and Amanda Howe
This workshop was attended by approximately 15 people. Current issues pertaining to herbal practitioners and herbalism in general, in Canada were discussed. These included: the need for herbal practitioners to gain status as health care practitioners in the eyes of both federal and provincial governments, the right of herbal practitioners to dispense, compound and process herbal remedies for their clients, site licensing, the importation of bulk herb materials, the desire of herbalists to keep herbs "whole" and herbal access issues. Good discussion was stimulated by the presentation.

SERIES II       Starting at 3:30 - 5pm

Herbal Wine & Beer Making                 with Norman Budgey
A mix of humor and experience was found at this interesting talk given by veteran herbalist Norman Budgey. Simplifying the art of wine and beer making is the very foundation of what Norman strives to achieve. As he puts it "you don't need hundreds of dollars worth of equipment to get started". Norman showed the group some simple devices to put together, shared recipes (some very old) and of course instilled the idea of freedom of experimentation during this talk. Those in attendance walked away with more juice under our wings in our future attempts at this lovely craft.

Wild Weed Walk                         with Danette Steele
True to her herbalist form, Danette shared once again her bountiful knowledge of the plants found in the local area. Starting off in the pavilion due to rain, this group ventured outside to be with the plants. Using a sensory method to get acquainted with the plants, people enjoyed discovering new plants, new information about them and how to get to know them.

Herbal Garden Design                 with Trudy Watts
Trudy's wealth of experience and talent in this area brought the participants of this workshop a blend of garden designing and plant medicine. This well attended workshop helped provoke budding herbal gardeners inspirations for the rest of the summer and surely the planting seasons to come.

After a full first day of amazing workshops we all enjoyed the nourishing food once again offered by the staff at DDL. Saturday night brought a relaxing time with fire, storytelling and song. Surely hearing the stories written by Maryse and Savayda that brought some plants to life were among the favorite that night. Lots of drumming and singing in different styles and languages also brought us together in that circle. Then it was off to bed in the tents provided by DDL. The clear starry sky gave us the hopes of a bright sunny day to come.

Sunday July 24, 2005

Morning did bring the sun to dry the rain from the day before and the dew of the night. We gathered for breakfast enjoy among other things, fresh bright red strawberries. By 9:30 we were all raring to get started on the days series of workshops.

SERIES III       Starting at 9:30am - 11am

Tree Medicine Walk                 with Michele Graveline
Michele, a herbalist who specializes in trees, led a lovely walk through an older growth forest. Behind Dorje Dema Ling Buddhist Centre is an amazing forest plentiful in deciduous hardwoods and so this was the focus. We learned how to identify different trees and to differentiate between species by looking at the bark, leaf edges, and leaf formation. Medicines were covered and what parts we to be used. It was a very informative walk and exciting to see some less common trees such as Ironwood and Witchhazel.

Fertility                         with Savayda Jarone
A very thought-out program for increasing one's fertility (men and women). It covered the women's cycle with duration of phases and healthy hormonal changes during the phases, signs of ovulation, herbs to take for hormonal imbalances, nutritional advice, herbs for stress and the role stress has with fertility. There was a good amount of information given the time allotted which covered various aspects regarding health pertaining to fertility.

SERIES IV       Starting at 11:15am - 12:45pm

Woodland Plant Walk                 with Jeanette Poirier
There were over 12 (water mint, galium, blue flag, yellow dock, cat tail, vibernum, raspberry, blackberry, bayberry, water hemlock, self heal, alder...) herbs covered with useful & medicinal qualities mentioned. We walked from dryer patches to moist areas to identify a diversity of herbs including some poisonous.

Herbal Vinegars and other Delights         with Julie Coleman and Jen Melanson
A fantastic addition to the workshop series. Both these women work within a food related profession. Jen a farmer and Julie working in a Health Food Store/Restaurant environment enriched the talk with their grassroots philosophies on food. Examples, tasting and recipes were shared with the enthusiastic participants.

Directly following the last series of workshops, we enjoyed our last meal at DDL together, scooping big spoonfuls of just-to-look-at-mouthwatering fresh beets onto our plates. We finished the Herbal Fair as is our HANS fair tradition with a closing circle, song and give-away. As people packed to leave, we all realized, and many expressed, how much we enjoyed the weekend. A weekend that brought the herbal community closer, making herbal sisters and brothers even dearer in our hearts.

HANS wishes to extend a huge Thank You to all the donators for this years Silent Auction. The success of this event helps HANS carry on with all the wonderful events and activities it hosts in fulfilling our objectives.

1. East Coast Outfitters
2. Jill Barber
3. Jennifer Bishop
4. Radical Leathers
5. Yvette Graveline
6. Jewels drive by Body Art
7. DJ's home computer work
8. Porter's Lake Chiropractic Health Centre
9. Wooden Monkey
10. Topiary
11. Trident Used Book Store
12. Tasha Laviolette
13. Tangled Garden
14. Venus Envy
15. Village Market
16. Sherwood Sweets
17. Purkle Frog Sewing School
18. Sadhana Yoga Centre
19. Selwood Green
20. Angie Roos
21. Sunroot Farm
22. Danette Steele
23. Savayda Jarone
24. Cox Hanson
25. Little Mysteries
26. Lola Doucet
27. Michele Graveline
28. Great Ocean
29. Erica de Sousa
30. Spice of Life
31. Robin Whidden
32. Rita Baruss
33. Goddess Wear

Click here for more details about Herbal Fair 2005.

Click here to travel further back in time to Herb Fair 2004.