Children are often exposed to a wide range of infections and childhood illnesses.

Herbal medicine is a gentle yet effective way to meet each baby or child’s specific needs. A detailed case history is taken with parent and child, including emotional, lifestyle and diet factors, looking at any other underlying causes, rather then just focusing on the symptoms of the disease. Julia uses puppets and stories, and even involves the children in the preparation of their own medicine in her dispensary, enabling them to take their health into their own hands.

Julia’s passion for teaching children about herbal medicine led to her successful application for funding from the National Heritage Lottery in 2014, supporting a range of educational projects around the theme of rediscovering lost plant knowledge.

These included an interactive puppet show designed to capture the imagination of a young audience, based on plant characters, and supported by practical workshops, as well as a fun, educational animation that details the history of herbal medicine through time. The project became the subject of an educational documentary.

The project’s aims were to inspire, educate and help children and young people to understand the dangers of picking plants from the wild, and at the same time outline the benefits of their medicinal use. Encouraging the next generation to protect our natural world – inside and out of our bodies, the project was an invitation for the next generation to see plants as an important and useful part of our natural heritage.