I am entering my 7th decade. I have been blessed to garden most of my life. In my youth, I was conscripted by my mother to weed her zinnia bed, and from that (believe it or not) developed an absolute love of the Zen of weeding (try it, you’ll like it). But we had a lot more growing in our garden and beyond … and when Euell Gibbons published his “Stalking The Wild Asparagus” in the early ’60’s, my Dad and I earnestly searched (and found) the elusive weed. This was an epiphany for me. It instantly married my Catholic upbringing and deep belief in God with my love of my natural surroundings. It demanded further research, which I delighted in.

My first serious textbook on herbs was an ancient one, found in Peabody’s Bookshop in Baltimore, Maryland. “Culpeper’s Herbal” first published in 1616 and my version  illustrated with botanical drawings and mysterious notations, fascinated me, though I understood about 25% of it. It was followed by dozens of serious tomes exploring herbal medicine, the fragility of our environment, and my own experimentation (most quite positive). When I began gardening in earnest in the early 70’s, herbs — culinary and medicinal — herbs were my focus.

That is why I am excited and delighted to finally be able to utilize my decades of experience and knowledge to bring safe and effective herbal blends to my Farmers Market and CherryGal customers. I will be rolling out these “teas” in the coming weeks and hope you will find them to your liking.

— Deborah Phillips, a.k.a. CherryGal