Beginning Friday January 14 at 6:00 in the evening Pacific Time an 8-week course covering the history and use of herbalism in California will be offered. Each class will be a little more than 1 hour. …
All payments for classes can either be made by check, money order, or Paypal. Checks can be made out to Charles Garcia, as can money orders. They can be sent to 2801 Lincoln Avenue, Richmond CA …
Jam, Jelly, and Canning For many years Martha Garcia, Charles’ mother made jams and jellies in a small two person company. She also preserved many of the fruits and vegetables grown in he…
I was born and raised in a time when neighbors did not lock their doors at night, when summer nights were punctuated by the rumbling of the nearby Contadina cannery, and pickup softball games could la…
Ritual of the Orchards A few years ago I returned home to the central valley of California for a short visit and to pay my respects to the ghosts of memory that occasionally haunt me for good or ill r…
January 22 Saturday 2 P.M. Pacific Time On ZOOM A class with deep emotional influences for the instructor. Charles will share the many foods and drinks used by his mother to keep her family and neighb…
The California School of Traditional Hispanic Herbalism officially opened its doors in January of 1998 in the San Francisco East Bay city of Richmond, California, to teach and preserve the healing traditions of the Hispanic curanderos and curanderas (folk healers) of California. Many of these classes had been informally taught for two years prior to the creation of the school.
Primarily offering classes in herbalism, the school also stresses an understanding of Curanderismo, the healing techniques and philosophies of Native-Hispanic California. The cross-cultural influences of European and Asian herbs, along with the use of native plants, made California Curanderismo a unique and potent healing medium. These practices also include the use of intuitive diagnosis skills, psychoactive plants, ritual and magic.
Due to COVID restrictions all classes are hosted online using Zoom videoconferencing software.
All class times are Pacific time zone.
A unique course focusing primarily on the herbs and herbal methods used by early Hispanic settlers and Native Californians.
Learn to make effective cough and cold syrups using commonly acquired herbs, fruits, and honey.