The Organic Medicinal Herb Farmer, Revised Edition

How to Produce High-Quality Herbs on a Market Scale

*Updated with new information about herb dryers and construction, soil fertility, growing cannabis, and more!*

In the first edition of The Organic Medicinal Herb Farmer, authors Jeff and Melanie Carpenter presented a comprehensive seed-to-bottle guide for aspiring and experienced growers alike, from basic business considerations to planting and propagation to creating value-added products. Now they’re back with a revised and updated edition, sharing the lessons they’ve learned throughout their twenty-five years of operating a medicinal herb farm that prizes quality over quantity.

The Carpenters offer their insights and tips on every aspect of herb farming, including:

• Size and scale considerations
• Data management for profit maximization
• The herbal marketplace and choosing which herbs to grow
• Field and bed preparation and planting, including building soil fertility
• Plant-positive weed, pest, and disease control
• Harvest and post-harvest processing, including scalable dryer construction
• Value-added products and marketing
• A new chapter on growing cannabis
• And much more!

The Carpenters make the case that growing organic medicinal herbs is not only viable and profitable, but also an important step for improving the ecological health of farmland, taking pressure off of wild medicinal plant populations, and increasing biodiversity. While local foodways are more often the focus of attention, local medicine ways are equally critical and in need of restoration.

The Organic Medicinal Herb Farmer is a one-of-a-kind resource, complete with detailed profiles of 50 medicinal herbs and over 200 color photographs. Whether you’re looking to grow an herb farm from the ground up, incorporate medicinal plants on an existing farm, or add tools to your belt as a seasoned grower, you’ll find the information you need in this volume.

SKU 7790. Copyright 2023, Softcover, 416 pages.

About the Author:

Jeff Carpenter has farming in his blood. Descended from generations of Vermont farmers, Jeff deepened his love and understanding of plants through an apprenticeship with Rosemary Gladstar and as the former co-owner of Sage Mountain Herb Products and the International Herb Symposium. Since those early days, Jeff’s work as a farmer, agricultural consultant, author, educator, and researcher has focused on the cultivation, conservation, and marketing of medicinal herbs. His passion for the green world is evident as he spends his days working in the fields and in the community.