What even is an Herbalist?

The word herbalist has become pretty common. You’ll find it on social media profiles, business cards, product labels, and websites. But what does it actually mean? At what point does someone become an herbalist?

Is it after taking a course? Earning a certificate? Reading dozens of books? Making your first tincture?

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Or is it something much deeper?

I don’t believe there is a single moment when someone suddenly becomes an herbalist.

I actually believe we are all innately herbalist, if we want access to that remembering.

Sure, memorizing hundreds of plant names or impressing others with their Latin names is cool and all. But have you developed intimacy with the green world, yet?

It is in our bones... the deep knowing of the spirit of plants. Our ancestors’ survival depended on their relationship with the herbs growing around them. There was no Johnson & Johnson. No Advil. No pharmacy down the street.

So what did they do?

They learned from the land. They observed which plants eased pain, stopped bleeding, soothed fevers and helped wounds heal. They passed that wisdom from one generation to the next, and for thousands of years, plants were the people’s medicine.

Maybe that’s why so many of us feel called back to herbalism today. Something ancient in us remembers.

And the best herbalists I know remain lifelong students. They still ask questions. They still change their minds when new experiences teach them something different. The plants have a way of humbling us. It is true that you could study just one plant your entire life and still continue to unravel new mysteries about it everyday. I guess we could say the same about ourselves. We are a mystery onto ourselves.

In many traditional cultures, herbalists weren’t simply people who knew remedies. They were caretakers of community wisdom. They preserved stories, honored the cycles of nature, tended the sick, welcomed new life, comforted the dying, and remembered that humans are not separate from the earth.

The herbalists. The shamans. The midwives. The wise women. The healers. Thank you for never allowing us to forget these ways, these rites, these traditions.

In a world that moves faster every year, plants invite us to slow down, listen, and remember.

So how do you know if you’re an herbalist?

Maybe it’s when you begin noticing new plants on your daily walks.

Maybe it’s when you decide to brew tea before reaching for something stronger.

Maybe it’s when your bookshelf slowly fills with herb books.

Or maybe it’s not any of those.

If you approach the plant world with respect and a genuine desire to help others reconnect with nature’s medicine, you’re walking the plant path.

The plants don’t ask for certificates. They just want to be a part of our story again.

Some herbalists even have wings.

I’d love to hear from you.

When did you first realize the plants were calling you? Was there one herb, one experience, or one moment that changed the way you saw the natural world? Share your story in the comments. I have a feeling many of us began this journey in ways that were quite magical.