Power Plants

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More About

• Tellur Fenner
• Oprah Winfrey
• Herbal Medicine
• Alternative Health Care

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There are people who’ll tell you that medicinal plants exist all over: in public parks, along roadsides, and some even in your own backyard. There are people who will lead you on journeys to gather such species and show you what to do with them. There are also people who’ll talk about ethics and environmentalism but then go foraging in public places without a permit, eventually damaging the ecosystem. In other words: Every trend has its share of hypocrites. Tellur Fenner is not one of those people. To be sure, Fenner has made a career in botanical medicine. But he’s been doing it long enough to know that it’s a potentially dangerous practice, and it can’t be taught in a single afternoon. That’s why his class, Foraged Health: Medicinal Plants of California, is a basic primer rather than a three-hour path to enlightenment. “To go out and forage just because you saw it on Oprah is irresponsible,” says Fenner, owner of Blue Wind Botanical Medicine Clinic in Oakland. “That’s how people die.” But if you know what you’re doing, plants have tremendous potential. Take Anemopsis californica, also known as lizard tail. It contains oils that are known to promote healing and reduce inflammation. When processed correctly it can be taken internally or used topically. It’s native to the Bay Area and can be easily cultivated. Learning to identify such species is one thing covered in Fenner’s class. He also provides numerous resources designed to be a starting point for further learning.
Sat., Oct. 16, 1 p.m., 2010