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Elderberry & Herb Harvest 
~ August 2025 Newsletter ~

I always ask this: How did we get to August already? 

The goldenrod's blooming, elderberry's ripening, holy basil's bursting, blueberries get picked,  farm stands fill up with a greater variety of produce, the herb garden bends over under its weight. 

August is a month of harvest: making those fresh plant tinctures, glycerites, vinegars, oxymels, honeys, and drying herbs to stock your personal with the most amazing quality herbs on the planet.  (tips on how to do all these things further below!)

August is also the month to grip hold of summer before it slips by and squeeze every drop of sweet nectar you can. Drink up! 

New & Seasonal in This Email

• Personal Updates

• Important Announcement

• Health Concerns Series & Drop in Classes - Start September 9th!

• Plant Spotlight: Elderberry

• Harvest/Drying Tips & Herbal Remedies

• Upcoming September Community Classes

•  Herbal Gut Health Preorders Open Now! 

Personal Updates

A few weeks ago I finally submitted my manuscript for book #5 - woohoo! It's far from "done" - and it'll be back in my lap for an intense edit/review round for the month of October. (It doesn't release til sometime 2027 with lots of spiffing up between now and then.) But I have enjoyed recently getting my weekends back since and have been trying to catch up on "everything/everyone else" that took a backseat these past 7 months.

In the spirit of these last weeks of summer, self care, and recouping my work/life balance, I will be closed for a few weeks this month to be outdoors, relax, and spend time with family for summer break. Once I catch up upon my return, my September focus will be on clients and launching the super exciting live streamed/recorded Advanced Health Concerns (love these topics!) online course with several fantastic guest teachers that I am so honored to host (more on that further below).

Important Announcement: 
Watch Out for Scammers Spoofing Me! 

Unfortunately,  there have been several scam artists at work pretending to be me, so please be aware! 

• On Facebook, the page "Healing Naturally with Specialist Tamara" has stolen photos of me and my life and is pretending to be me, apparently private messaging folks and posting in FB groups and then scamming people of their money pretending to sell them products (I don't sell herbal products except for my books) and services (I don't do tarot readings). Several folks who've seen this in action or been scammed have found me to tell me this. I've reported this page and photos to FB several times and they refuse to take it down. (Perhaps because they are stealing my images but have a different name?) I'm guessing this person is very savvy and has rotated and done this with other folks in the past because they actually have more followers than I do. 
• At least two likely AI books have appeared on Amazon with names like "Body into Balance Diet Cookbook" and "Workbook for Body into Balance " "inspired by Maria Noel Groves." Apparently book names can't be copy written, and because they say "inspired by" there's nothing I nor my publishers can do. (Nor do I have the time, money, and energy to seek legal council to play awhackamole with AI and scam artists.) These books are NOT associated with me and likely have questionable quality content.

Sadly, this is happening more and more often in both the foraging and the herbal worlds! Please be savvy about the books you are purchasing and online folks interacting with you (especially if they reach out unbidden). Scam artists and AI purposely spoof trustworthy experts and their best-selling books to prey upon unsuspecting consumers. Ug. I hate to have to even mention these unpleasantries in this newsletter, but I also don't want anyone else getting scammed.

On to happier topics!

Advanced Health Concerns

Drop In Classes This Fall!

Advanced Health Concerns classes will resume this fall and so does your chance to drop in on guest teacher classes or Maria's classes.  You can still register and catch these great live classes (and our pre-recorded spring classes). Or you can register for individual classes belown. If you decide to register for the entire course after attending your drop in class, email us for a code to apply your individual class payment towards the full course. There is no deadline to watch or access course after purchase.  

Sign Up for the whole Advanced Health Concerns series (details/registration here) or the broader full  Advanced series (details/registration here), both of which include access to these upcoming live stream classes and a bunch of other classes already available on-demand.

Or Drop In for the individual classes:

Autumn Advanced Health Concerns Series Classes

• Sep 9: Fatigue Differentials with Thomas Easley – Drop In Here
• Sep 16: Nervous System, PTSD & Trauma Support for Herbalists with Amy Branum – Drop In Here
• Sep 30: Herb-Drug Interactions with me – Drop In Here
• Oct 7: Thyroid with me – Drop In Here
• Oct 14: Lyme Disease & Coinfections with Debbie Mercier – Drop In Here
• Oct 21: Herbal Cancer Care with Ember Peters (5-8 pm EST) – Drop In Here
• Oct 28: Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS) & Histamine  Intolerance Overview & Herbal Approaches with Mel Kasting – Drop In Here
• Nov 11: Death and Dying Workshop for Herbalists with Suchil Coffman-Guerra – Drop In Here
• Nov 18: COVID Considerations with me – Drop In Here

Multiple additional pre-recorded classes with me (Maria) are also available with a full series registration!

Late Summer Plant Spotlight

Elder is one of my immune system staples and a favorite amongst my students and clients as well. Several studies support its ability to reduce the severity and duration of colds and flu. I like to think of elderberries as a force field of protection when it comes to viral infections like the cold and flu. Learn more about Elderberry in my blog HERE or my Virtual Herb Walk Here.

Darcey Blue’s Elder Syrup Recipe

This is one of my personal go-to remedies!

This recipe comes from fellow herbalist Darcey Blue from Blue Turtle Botanicals in Arizona. Many elder syrup recipes call for cooking fresh berries, but this handy recipe uses dry berries (easily available in commerce). Darcey feels that heating the berries for a long time weakens the potency of elderberry. It’s a 1:2 infusion of herbs preserved with honey and alcohol. I’ve adapted the original recipe by using a larger amount of 100 proof vodka to make it shelf stable (for less alcohol, use regular vodka or brandy, half the amount called for here, and store it in the fridge) and cutting it down by 1/4 to make 8 oz total. You could also substitute sugar (a better preservative) for the honey, same proportion.

•  1/4 cup dried elderberries

•  2 tbls dried elderflowers

•  2 tsp ginger chips (or grated fresh ginger)

•  1 tsp cinnamon chips

•  4 oz boiling water

•  2 oz 100 proof vodka*

•  1/4 to 1/2 lemon, juiced

•  ~4 oz raw honey or sugar

Mix all the dried herbs together in a jar.

Pour boiling water over the herbs, add the alcohol.

Cap and let infuse 8 hours or overnight.

In a muslin, jelly bag, or cheesecloth strain the herbs from the liquid.  Squeeze gently to get as much fluid from the herbs as possible.

Add the lemon juice.

Measure out exactly how much liquid you have in a glass measuring cup.

Add an equal amount of raw honey or sugar to the liquid.  Mix well until sugar dissolves.

Bottle and store

*This is for a shelf-stable syrup. For a fridge-stable syrup, you can use 1 oz of 80 proof vodka or brandy instead.

Recommended Dosage: 1-3 tsp per day all season long, or 1/2 tsp hourly in acute illness. If you’re using a dropper bottle, 1 tsp = about 4-5 squirts 

Harvest, Drying Tips & Remedies

It’s midsummer, and the garden has begun to overflow with bountiful medicine harvests including calendula blossoms, marshmallow leaves, lemon balm, and holy basil. If you’re new to herb gardening, you might be looking at your garden with a combination of pride and trepidation. You’ve got the plants, now what?? Get harvest and drying tips HERE and read my Kitchen Apothecary 101 blog for more tips on herbal remedies: tinctures, honeys, vinegars, oxymels, glycerites...  including  links to even more detailed posts and free videos on making tinctures, concentrated syrups, and herb-infused oils and salves.

Upcoming September Events

Releasing mid January!

preorder ~ Herbal Gut Health Book:
Natural Therapies to Promote Healthy Digestion, Boost Your Microbiome, and Support Gut Repair

A healthy gut is the key to good overall health—both physical and mental—and researchers are beginning to uncover the links between an unbalanced gut microbiome and chronic conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, and cancer. As a clinical herbalist with decades of experience, Maria Noël Groves has helped patients of all ages resolve their digestive complaints and related health issues by teaching them how to adopt healthier dietary habits, employ herbs to alleviate digestive issues and improve digestion, and incorporate balanced lifestyle practices—resolving their diseases and dramatically improving their quality of life. Gorgeous full-color illustrated book, 300+ pages, including anatomy and physiology, herbal actions, detailed plant profiles, protocol points for key concerns, herbal energetics, recipes, charts, and more! The book will ship mid-January when it releases!

Includes Special Bonuses!

Free Access to Maria’s Mini Gut Health Online Course On-Demand course, releasing in 2026

Special one-time discount for 10% off 

Maria’s online live streamed and on-demand classes and series when you buy the book direct from her.

And of course, your book will be signed by Maria!

(Local folks - at this time I don't have a free pick up option because my  home is not safe nor easy to swing by in winter. Stay tuned,  hopefully I'll be able to do a few free community classes in the area during January with pick up options there.)

Wintergreen Botanicals

Maria Noel Groves, RH (AHG)

www.WintergreenBotanicals.com

603-340-5161

wintergreenbotanicals.office@gmail.com