in beautiful North Idaho
WHEN: May – September 2026
TIME: 9:00 am to 5:00 pm
FEE: $2,250 (Installment payment plans available)
INSTRUCTOR: Suzanne Tabert
SETTING: In-Person
LOCATION: Sandpoint, ID
Not sure yet? Talk with Suzanne first. Schedule a 10-minute call.
May 21
June 4 and 18
July 2, 16 and 30
August 13 and 27
September 10
In-Person Class Dates (Thursdays)
Guided Self-Study Weeks
(Beginning the week of)
May 28
June 11 and 25
July 9 and 23
August 6 and 20
September 3
This program is a great fit if you:
This program draws a diverse and dedicated group, including:
Dear Suzanne,
Nearing August, the colors of the Inland Northwest have matured from vibrant spring green to the dried yellows and mid-summer blooms of wildfire season. In rhythm with the ever-changing artist palette around us, I marvel at how herbal wisdom has evolved within me over the past two months of studies at Cedar Mountain Herb School.
Today, two dozen jars of tinctures, oxymels, and infused honey are macerating in our guest room closet. Oregon grape, motherwort, mugwort, and oats lie in wait for their daily shake and I am counting down the days until they’re ready to strain into final form. This abundance will soon fill my medicine cabinet and find its way via snail mail to the hands of loved ones who share in digestive discomforts and anxiety-ridden days.
Having the knowledge to care for friends and family in need is rewarding. I’ve offered cooling lavender lotion for sunburnt shoulders, sage bundles for grief-stricken seasons, and mugwort oil for wondrous, dream-filled sleep. I sent a botanical care package of lavender-infused honey, Farm Dust, Golden Milk mix, Queen of Hungary facial toner, and tea to my father-in-law when his mother passed away in June. My neighbor (aforementioned dandelion killer, Ruth) is eagerly awaiting my next batch of herbal salt for her pork chops.
Although I’ve yet to note any major physiological changes in myself or my circle, perhaps the most important pattern to date is the profound joy and gratitude I receive when gifting a remedy.
The experience of using a mass-produced product (even one purchased with love and intention) doesn’t contain even an ounce of the magic of a hand-crafted medicine. Many have forgotten the feeling of being truly seen and tended to by the world around them. We’ve strayed so far as a society from creating the tools of our own healing.
The empowering feeling of wildcrafting and harvesting herbal medicine was once only a faraway dream that felt very disconnected from my recent tech-based reality. With each lesson I’ve checked off in the apprenticeship portal, I step further away from this digital despair and root deeper into your teachings.
Although all assignments are completed and I’ve dove into nearly everything shared, I feel I am only at the trailhead of a lifelong herbalism journey. After we depart from our bi-monthly meetings, I’ll spend the next year re-reading, re-watching, and reorganizing my materia medica—followed by several decades of continuous exploration and experimentation.
While I truly am still a newbie to the community, I feel spiritually connected to an herbal tradition that has been passed down for centuries between student and teacher. Although I may never be able to spontaneously recount phytochemicals as you do, I am honored to start this quest with you.
This work truly has been an anchor during a tumultuous year of transitions. It has revealed tender parts of my heart that I didn’t know were calling for attention. You’ve offered the safe harbor I’ve needed for significant self-growth, authentic connection with women, and expansion of my relationship with plants.
It’s true to say that I don’t think I’ll ever see the world the same.
Your biggest fan and mentee,
Hailey
2026 apprentice
The Roots to Tips apprenticeship program is a deeply enriching blend of in-person classes and at-home study that encourages students to build their herbal knowledge from the ground up—all the way to the flowering tips!
Our program is for those who have a strong desire to strengthen their skills and fill their herbal tool belts and apothecary with plant medicine from both the wild and garden. CMHS delivers intensive in-the-field plant identification with hands-on harvesting, formulation, medicine making and holistic health practices. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced herbalist, you’ll gain the knowledge, skills, and confidence to grow and thrive in your herbal path.
Throughout this immersive program, students will gain both foundational and advanced skills in herbal medicine making, plant identification, and applied herbal theory.
Self-reliant herbalism is the practice of building personal knowledge, skills, and confidence to care for oneself, family, and community using plant medicine. It means understanding how to grow, harvest, prepare, and safely use herbs based on sound science and lived experience. Rather than relying solely on outside practitioners, self-reliant herbalists develop the ability to make well-informed choices and take an active role in their own health and well-being.
Medical freedom is the right to make informed decisions about one’s own health care, including the option to choose herbal, nutritional, and other natural approaches. It means having access to a full spectrum of information and being empowered to decide what is appropriate for your body, your family, and your values—without coercion or unnecessary restriction.
Are you ready to stop just reading about herbs and finally learn them in a REAL, hands-on way?
Read on!
Each session brings unique lessons. Students will be engaged in an array of holistic botanical experiences that will take them deeper into the practice of herbalism. Students must make the commitment to be available and present each week.
You’ll engage in:
The in-person days root you in hands-on, sensory-based learning—harvesting plants, making medicine together, and working side-by-side with your teacher and fellow apprentices in the gardens and wild places. These experiences build intuition, confidence, and community.
The guided self-study allows you to expand and integrate what you’ve learned at a pace that fits your life. You’ll have the time and space to revisit lessons, deepen your critical thinking skills, and engage with more nuanced topics that prepare you for advanced herbal work.
This rhythm of gathering and reflection mirrors how plants grow—bursting forth in active times and then resting and building strength beneath the surface. The combination gives you the best of both worlds: the immersive richness of in-person mentorship and the flexibility and depth of guided independent study.
By the end of the program, you’ll have a strong foundation in both the art and science of herbalism—and the confidence to keep growing.
Final Projects
To complete the program and earn your certificate, students will create a handmade herbal gift using skills learned throughout the apprenticeship—enough to share with your fellow students. On the final day, you’ll go home with a collection of herbal creations crafted by your peers.
100% correct identification is key to harvesting wild plants safely. Learn to confidently identify both native and non-native medicinal plants of North Idaho using botanical Latin and common names. You’ll use standard field and organoleptic methods—touch, taste, and smell—to recognize plant characteristics and seasonal patterns.
Organoleptic method of identification is our specialty here at the Cedar Mountain Herb School—learn when it’s ok to put an unknown plant in your mouth and when it’s not!
Participate in hands-on experiences with ethical wildcrafting and sustainable harvest techniques. You’ll learn local regulations, how to harvest for plant longevity, and how to process herbs to preserve their potency.
Phytochemistry is the study of the constituents in plants that cause physiological changes in the body. Knowing the actions and needs of constituents to fully extract and preserve each group or individual constituent will give the medicine maker a clear view on pairing constituents with the correct mentrua to ensure high quality remedies.
Understand the roles of key constituent groups—like tannins, resins, alkaloids, and polysaccharides—and what they need in terms of menstruum (solvent) to extract effectively. This clear, accessible overview of phytochemistry is perfect for all learners—no prior chemistry knowledge needed.
Develop critical thinking skills as you design herbal remedies that reflect the way plants live and interact in community. You’ll learn to recognize when to harvest for optimum strength and how to blend herbs into effective, thoughtful formulas.
Prepare medicinal, edible, or technological plant products including — but not limited to — medicinal oils, tinctures, salves, elixirs, tea blends, herbal vinegar, poultices, liniments, herbal infused honeys, oxymels, and witch hazels. Distinguish appropriate applications and dosages for the remedies. Students will need to provide their own menstrua – including honey, alcohol, apple cider vinegar, witch hazel, jars, tools, etc for medicine making.
Preparedness for emergency situations. Integrate the best choice of plants and first aid techniques to use and correct applications in emergency situations – whether at home, on the road, or in the wilderness, to heal wounds, infections, muscle trauma; soothe rashes and stop allergic reactions, shock conditions, heat exhaustion. This comes in handy as the apprentices are out in a myriad of environments and conditions.
Gain confidence in how to use the remedies you make. You’ll explore appropriate dosages, various applications (internal and external), and understand safety considerations and contraindications.
Build a foundational understanding of the human body and how herbs interact with different systems. You’ll learn to match plant actions to physiological processes for effective herbal support.
Learn how to write plant monographs to create your personal materia medica, an indispensable resource that includes information such as botanical and common name, habitat, description of the plant and samples, when to harvest, medicinal constituents, physiological effects, drug interactions, preparations and menstrua, tools needed to harvest, personal experiences, etc.
Each plant has its distinct identifier scent, which is part of their medicinal value. Achieve a working relationship with essential oils, their healing benefits, appropriate usage.
Hydrosol distillations using a copper still in the garden and field will help solidify the student’s working knowledge of the aromatic and volatile compounds found in medicinal plants.
Define and describe wildcrafting within the context of legal gathering, ethics, and sustainable harvesting. Students learn how to find and steward their own plant sanctuaries.
Recognize the need for passing on the knowledge of how peoples of the past and present use/d local plants for food and medicine. Students accomplish this through stories, hands-on training, and using new skills to pass on to future generations.
We believe in making herbalism accessible and enjoyable. At Cedar Mountain Herb School, we teach how to “get the medicine to the people in ways they’ll enjoy taking, so that healing can occur.” You’ll walk away empowered to share herbal medicine with others and integrate it into your life and community.
Any former apprentice who refers a new student who signs up for one of our apprenticeship programs will receive a $250 coupon code toward another year of harvesting, learning and being part of the CMHS community! The reward may only be used for a full apprenticeship program. We so appreciate word of mouth referrals. In plain language:
No referral just yet? Former apprentices are also eligible to receive a $100 discount when registering for a new (full) program, even if they don’t have a referral! Contact Suzanne to request your discount code.
“Taking your class was one of the best decisions of my life. Seriously. Being a part of the lovely, wise world of plants has brought me back to who I am. I realized a few months ago, that the Emily I’m most happy with and the one who feels right is the Emily that gets up early every Tuesday and drives up to your homestead and is home. The space that you create and nurture and fill with the magic of herbal medicine is such a glorious place to be and learn and grow in. You, as a person and strong badass wildcrafter, are an inspiration. I thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
Emily B
Calculate the volumes of any two alcohol proofs to create a tincture of a particular strength.
Copyright © 2026 Redheaded Herbalist
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