About Heidi
I have been gardening as long as I can remember, some out of necessity to put food on the table, some to continue a family herbal tradition in Germany. Once a gardener, always a gardener is certainly true for me. Wherever I moved, I could not resist turning some plot of land, no matter how small, into a garden. The row house in Pittsburgh sported sunflowers and echinacea, the sidewalk island in Washington, DC a ring of mint. Small plots in PA provided vegetables, herbs, and flowers. I could really spread my wings when I became the herbalist at Canterbury Shaker Village (1983 – 1997). Restoring the three acres of vegetable and herb gardens was a welcome challenge. It was there, surrounded by Shaker herbal practices, and ingenuity, that I developed a serious appreciation for healthy, organic soil. Soil, the foundation of plant life, is teaming with life. Did you know that in a shovel of dirt are enough microbes to stretch from the moon and back?
I have embraced the concept of organic Herbs as “partners in life” (Adele Dawson) since I was a teenager. The concept of organic Herbs as “soil partners” came to me in my forties while brewing a cup of medicinal tea. It made perfect sense to me at the time but it took twelve years of research and experimentation to arrive at the present formula for Heidi’s Plant Pep™ and its packaging. This organic fertilizer provides the soil with 62 nutrients, attracts earthworms and other beneficial microbes as part of the “ripple” effect of using the herbal brew amendment.
During my professional life I received an Ed.D, became a certified Master Gardener, Master Herbalist, and Historic Landscape Curator. Some of my memorable projects were starting the Titusville Nature Center, designing wildflower trails, historic trails in the Shaker woods, and a Medicine Wood Trail at the Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum.
While producing and marketing Heidi’s Plant Pep™ takes most of my time, I continue to teach an Herbal Apprentice Course, design herb gardens, lecture, and write a monthly Newsletter The Green Umbrella .
Articles in: The Herb Companion, Gourmet Magazine, Audubon Newsletter, New England
Memberships: NH Made, NOFA (Northeast Organic Farmers Association), IHA (International Herb Association)
Photo: Restored Physic Garden, Canterbury Shaker Village, by Heidi Herzberger, herbalist