From seed to harvest to production, on this tour you will get to know Gaia Herbs and their 350-acre organic farm in Brevard, North Carolina. The Gaia Herb company does not necessarily focus on native species on the farm for raw material contributions to their final products. They grow about 20% of the raw material needs for the company (only some of which are native). The other 80% is sourced globally. In fact, some of the raw materials come from plants that are invasive in our region. You can enhance your relationship with herbs by learning from the Gaia Herbal Reference Guide, to identify those that are native, whether they are considered Threatened or Endangered in the US, and those with invasive plant profiles. The facility portion will really lean into the extraction details that apply to all herbs.

According to the Gaia Herbal Reference Guide, Partridge (Mitchella ripens) is one of those native plants that you might spot in the carpet of our forest if you look for the bright red colored berries. The species name, repens, means “creeping” in Latin and this is exactly how it spreads itself across the ground. The Iroquois prepared them as a relish, mashed and stored them as a dried cake, or dried and took on the trail as hunting food.

This private tour has a cap of 20 participants due to the facility portion and capacity in the production space. A waiting list will be maintained. From 9:30-11:00 am our group will get a personalized tour of the farm followed by a 11-12:00 facility tour. Everyone who arrives for the tour will sign a printed liability waiver upon arrival. If a walking farm tour is not appropriate for everyone, we may be able to arrange for a van/driving tour of the farm for limited mobility attendees, but please let us know about mobility needs upon registration.