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Winter Botany Workshop Description

Join ethnobotanist and long-time Firefly instructor and friend Marc Williams as we unravel the mystery of botany and plant identification during the most challenging time of year to do so! Once the flowers, fruits and leaves are mostly gone, one must turn to more subtle clues to determine the identification of many plants. 

During this class, we will:

• Embark on a garden walk to meet and identify plants
• Engage in dialogue about off-season plant characteristics and ethnobotanical applications
• Discuss various resources for further study
• Deepen our relationship with some plant friends as we connect with them in their dormant state
• Finish the afternoon with wild foraged tea and connection

Skills that will be learned and practiced include: basic and winter botany, foraging/ethnobotany, and wild tea preparation.

Winter Botany Details

This class will be held outdoors on Saturday, February 18, 2023 from 1 pm – 4:30 pm near Asheville, NC.

This class is for everyone. Folks are encouraged to bring water, snacks, and wear clothes that can keep them warm and dry. Field guides and a hand lens / 10x botanical loupe are also great (optional) things to bring!

Minimum age is 10 with an adult, persons age 16 or 17 can attend without an adult but need a liability waiver signed by their guardian.

About the Instructor Marc Williams

Ethnobiologist Marc Williams (he/him) has studied the people, plant, mushroom and microbe interconnection intensively while learning to employ botanicals and other life forms for food, medicine, and beauty in a regenerative manner. His training includes a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies concentrating in Sustainable Agriculture with a minor in Business from Warren Wilson College and a Master’s degree in Appalachian Studies concentrating in Sustainable Development with a minor in Geography and Planning from Appalachian State University. He has spent over two decades working at a multitude of restaurants and various farms and has traveled throughout 30 countries in Central/North/South America and Europe as well as all 50 states of the USA. Marc has visited over 200 botanical gardens and research institutions during this process while taking tens of thousands of pictures of representative plants and other entities. He has taught hundreds of classes to thousands of students about the marvelous world of people and their interface with other organisms while working with over 100 organizations and particularly as a Board of Directors member of United Plant Savers, Plants and Healers International, and online at the website www.botanyeveryday.com. Marc’s greatest hope is that this effort may help improve our current challenging global ecological situation.

Equitable Pricing Model $65 – $25

In order to make our workshops more accessible, we offer two price options for each class, with an additional Equity Discount for qualifying individuals. Please consider these options and select your price at checkout.

• Sponsor Price $65: For those who have enough to share, thank you for being a Sponsor. This is an opportunity to contribute towards the cost of the class for someone else.
• Standard Price $45: The Standard reflects one person’s share of what it costs to produce the class and cover basic expenses.
• Equity Discount $25: We offer an additional Equity Discount for those from the following communities who support reparations and/or an equitable redistribution of wealth and would not have access to this workshop without this discount:
  • Indigenous or Native American, Black, Latino/a/x
  • Other peoples of the global majority, or racialized communities
  • Ethnicities underrepresented in the Southeastern earthskills community

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