In ancient agriculture, the farmers observed the need to let fields rest every year or two, so they could recover their fertility. Letting the fields lie fallow in this way actually yielded more food than trying to force them to grow every year.

We can apply this same insight to the learning process. You cannot cram in more information forever, just by gritting your teeth and bearing down. Humans need time to process and integrate what we’ve learned. The best way to enhance that processing & integration is by getting out of your brain and into your body.

Take time to practice what you’ve learned, to engage your senses and your hands. Dig, grow, tend; taste, smell, touch; make, try, play; share!

Taking a fallow period to focus on the hands-on aspects of herbalism is one of our favorite tips for people who are learning. There are lots of ways to study, and lots of ways to enhance your learning. We’ve collected our best suggestions into a FREE COURSE for you: Herbal Study Tips! This fun course is designed to make all your learning – whether that’s with us, from other teachers, from books, or from the plants themselves – more exciting and effective.

Like all our offerings, these are self-paced online video courses, which come with free access to twice-weekly live Q&A sessions, lifetime access to current & future course material, twice-weekly live Q&A sessions with us, open discussion threads integrated in each lesson, an active student community, study guides, quizzes & capstone assignments, and more!

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Our theme music is “Wings” by Nicolai Heidlas.

You can find all of our online herbalism courses at online.commonwealthherbs.com!