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Learn with Dr Rachel Petheram

The Herb Garden

Dr Rachel Petheram teaches you how to grow your own herbs for food and gardening.

Course overview

In this lesson we discuss the role of herbs in history and the multifunctional nature of herbs. We will learn about how herbs can benefit out health, how they can increase diversity in the garden and how we can use them in the kitchen.

Meet Dr Rachel Petheram

My name is Dr Rachel Petheram. I am an artisan florist, a gardener and a teacher. My flower story started in 2002 when I grew some of my own wedding flowers. As a full time lecturer in animal nutrition becoming a florist was the last thing on my mind! However, one thing led to another - a bit of faffing, experimenting and flowering on the side -and then Catkin was launched in 2006. All these years later it's hard to imagine that I once had a life without flowers. Now I grow many of my own flowers in the walled kitchen garden of Doddington Hall in Lincolnshire and am an ardent champion of British grown flowers. I was included in the Independent newspaper's list of top 50 florists, I am a BBC Lincolnshire garden expert and I was featured in the first series of the BBC's Great British Garden Revival. I have been featured in numerous national garden and lifestyle publications such as Radio 4. As one of the original grower/florists who were part of the revival of using British grown flowers in floristry, I use my extensive experience to run many courses on floristry and gardening at Doddington Hall, RHS Harlow Carr, Welbeck School of Artsian Food, the Chelsea Physic Garden and with MyGardenSchool. So, whether you are looking for beautiful, seasonal wedding flowers or you are a florist looking for some inspiration or someone who is just looking for a fabulous course then it would be my privilege to contribute to your own flower story. Flowers are only half my story though. I also love herbs. Unassuming herbs are pretty fabulous I think and over the next few years, you're sure to see growing herbs increase in popularity. As a scientist, they blow me away. As a gardener I am amazed at how easy they are to grow and how multifunctional they are. As someone who loves food they taste great. They are a true example of flower power in my opinion. I look forward to getting to know you in class.

Course description

Specialist in herb growing and expert gardener Dr Rachel Petheram teaches you how and where to grow herbs, which herbs to grow, how to use herbs in food and floristry and how to design your own herb garden.

Herbs are beautiful multi-functional plants that are easy to grow, can be grown in the smallest of spaces - from kitchen windowsills or container pots or raised beds in the garden and have many beneficial effects on our health and the health of our gardens. They look and taste fantastic and they are an easy and cost effective way to add interest to our garden and to our diets.

They are forgiving tolerant plants that can survive in the most unlikely of containers, and given the right conditions will thrive in the smallest of spaces. They are the best plants to start off with if you are a beginner but also offer challenges for the seasoned gardener.

They connect us with many traditions and cultures through millennia and offer interest to every gardener whether your interest is in food, wildlife, flower arranging, or purely ornamental growing, herbs have something to offer.

This course will talk you through the multifunctional nature of herbs, how to grow them and how to look after them and will suggest some familiar and perhaps unfamiliar herbs to try.

You'll learn:

  • the history of herbs
  • benefits of herbs on health
  • how to use herbs in the garden, cooking and floristry
  • where to grow your herbs
  • how to create a herbal garden

The course includes:

  • 4 on-demand video lessons - presented by Dr Rachel Petheram
  • lifetime access to the videos, notes and interactive class
  • flexible classes - join and learn when and where you like
  • downloadable lesson notes
  • practical herb based projects (with tutor feedback available)
  • access on your mobile, PC, Mac or laptop
  • small interactive online classroom - chat online to students from around the world and share your creative ideas

    Time to complete the herb gardening course:

Every student is different but in general we think the whole course will take around 10 hours 20 minutes to complete including:

  • Video lessons: 2 hours 20 minutes in total
  • Course notes: 30 minutes per lesson
  • Your herb projects: at least 1 hour per lesson
  • Interactive classroom time: 15 minutes per lesson
  • Tutor feedback review (Expert level): 15 minutes per lesson

You'll need:

You don't need any special equipment for this course - just an interest in herbs! But you will be researching herbs and thinking about how you could use them in the garden, your cooking and for medicinal purposes.

The course is suitable for all levels of student - from gardeners who want to understand more about using herbs to cooks who want to include home-grown herbs in their dishes.