There's more than just memorizing herbs to being a successful herbalist.

Learn the skills that will help you build successful herbal protocols in this free course!

  • Herbal Energetics

    How do we choose the right herbs? How do we build formulas that work? Learn to work with your senses to identify the most appropriate and effective medicinal plants for each person.

  • Four Pillars of Good Health

    How do we maintain good health? Four cardinal areas of lifestyle and habit - nourishing food, manageable stress, abundant movement, and restorative sleep - are all critical for staying vital and resilient.

  • Aligning With Nature

    How do we know it's working? How do we know that what we're doing is going to help? When we support the body, we're going in the right direction.

  • Herbalism As A Lifestyle

    How do we fit herbs into our busy lives? Herbalism isn't just for "medicine" - it's for nourishment, self-care, and delightful indulgence too!

This free course teaches you the tricks we use to get healthy and stay healthy - naturally.

These are skills you can apply right now to improve your practice - no matter how long you've been practicing herbalism!

Studying herbalism isn’t about memorizing lists of herbs you can "use" to get rid of symptoms; it’s about developing deep familiarity and partnership between your own body and your herbal allies.

You can learn how with this free mini-course to learn the basics of our approach to herbalism and the healing arts!

Each lesson is about 20 minutes long and includes supporting materials. You'll be able to create an account to keep track of your progress and sign-up for email updates to support your engagement with the material. AND: you'll have three months of free access to our live, twice-weekly Q&A sessions!
Links to the live web conference are sent each week by email and we'd love to have you join in & ask any herby questions you have!

It makes so much sense!

Jesse S.

I never understood why sometimes herbs worked and sometimes they didn't - but now I totally get it! I feel like I know "the secret" now - I can't wait to learn more!

Course curriculum

    1. Welcome to the 4 Keys!

    2. Live Q&A sessions twice a week!

    3. How to use this platform

    4. How to use Closed-Captioning

    5. The "What's New" button on your dashboard

    6. How to use the Discussions feature

    7. Meet our Friends!

    8. Chatting in the Community Space

    9. Use of Course Material (Intellectual Property)

    10. Every Body is Different

    1. Herbal Energetics

    2. Energetics [audio]

    3. Printable: Herbal Energetics

    4. Energetics Infusion

    5. Energetics Infusion [audio]

    6. Infuse your herbalism with Energetics!

    1. Four Pillars of Good Health

    2. Four Pillars [audio]

    3. Printable: Four Pillars of Good Health

    4. Resource: Exercise and Depression meta-review

    5. Where's your challenge?

    6. Where's your challenge? [audio]

    7. What's your biggest challenge?

    1. Aligning With Nature

    2. Aligning With Nature [audio]

    3. Printable: Aligning with Nature

    4. Supporting the Body

    5. Supporting the Body [audio]

    6. How do you know what your body is trying to do?

    1. Herbalism As A Lifestyle

    2. Herbalism as a Lifestyle [audio]

    3. Printable: Herbalism as a Lifestyle

    4. Making herbalism YOUR lifestyle

    5. Making herbalism YOUR lifestyle [audio]

    6. What are your herbal goals?

    1. Your Path to Resilience

    2. Your Advanced Path to Resilience

About this course

  • Free
  • 37 lessons
  • 1 hour of video content

But wait, there's more! 🙂

In addition to the videos, we provide features to accommodate all the different ways people like to learn, so you can internalize the information easily!

  • Lifetime access - so you can review the content as many times as you like, forever!

  • Weekly live Q&A sessions with Katja and Ryn - to ask your questions directly, live and in person! (They're even archived, in case you miss one!) This course has 3 months of live Q&A support.

  • Ask questions anytime - we're always just a click away: you can ask any questions in the integrated discussion forum, and we're committed to personally answering your questions, usually within 24 hours

  • Printable PDF materials - if you like to follow the videos along on paper, or keep them handy for a quick reference

  • Downloadable MP3 files - so you can review the content while you commute, workout, garden, ... anytime!

What students are saying:

5 star rating

What a great introduction to Herbalism

Karin Sorensen

I've been looking for a program that helps fully immerse myself into the wonderful world of Herbalism. There are so many options out there, it's easy to get ...

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I've been looking for a program that helps fully immerse myself into the wonderful world of Herbalism. There are so many options out there, it's easy to get overwhelmed. The concept of plant energetics that's discussed in the 4 Keys to Holistic Herbalism course hit me like a ton of bricks- in a good way. It's like i got my fingertip into a tiny opening of an unknown plane and am finally able to wiggle it open enough that a whole dimension of understanding can come flooding through. That's a fancy way of saying, the concept Katja and Ryn are sharing in a very fun and loving manner is something i get and will be able to work with. I love their statements that "if you can watch TV and boil water, you can do Herbalism". The videos are easy to follow and contain a ton information, the PDF provided after each is super helpful and the prizing of their courses will allow me to seriously embark on this wonderful plant based journey :0B

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5 star rating

Fun, interesting, and informative

Barbara Patrizzi

This introduction to herbalism exceeded my expectations. It was not only informative, but structured in a very fluid progression that supported my learning. ...

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This introduction to herbalism exceeded my expectations. It was not only informative, but structured in a very fluid progression that supported my learning. The presenters are very well informed, and their ability to communicate their knowledge in an engaging way is excellent. Fresh and invigorating, like a glass of peppermint iced tea.

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5 star rating

I've finally found my people!

April Rowen

SO GOOD. My favorite course within this program is, 'Herbalism As a Lifestyle,' and within it, my favorite quote: "Herbalists are more interested in health t...

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SO GOOD. My favorite course within this program is, 'Herbalism As a Lifestyle,' and within it, my favorite quote: "Herbalists are more interested in health than diseases. We're really interested in what health looks like and learning how to built it, support it, and maintain it." The 4 Keys to Holisitic Herbalism deeply resonated. For too long I've felt very alone as I've watched countless loved ones become chronically ill and go through the medical system, only to become worse. I've been piecing things together on my own. This course gave me hope and excitement -- I've found my people! I can't wait to learn how to give others hope, too.

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5 star rating

Loved it!

Janet Yaw

I’m in school for Aromatherapy, but am also interested in herbalism. I enjoyed the free keys, I will definitely be taking some herbal classes once I get done...

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I’m in school for Aromatherapy, but am also interested in herbalism. I enjoyed the free keys, I will definitely be taking some herbal classes once I get done with my Aromatherapist Certification!,

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5 star rating

Welcoming

Glenn McKinstry

Takes the fear out of embarking on the herbal journey with your presentation.

Takes the fear out of embarking on the herbal journey with your presentation.

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5 star rating

Conversation, competent, and charismatic

Brooke Criswell

Ryn and Katja - you work so well together, responding one to another to cover concepts conversationally. The content introduces and explains the concepts wel...

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Ryn and Katja - you work so well together, responding one to another to cover concepts conversationally. The content introduces and explains the concepts well; adhering to the focus of each lesson. You infuse the videos with laughter, smiles, and wit, in addition to a clearly articulating content and conveying your solid grounding in concepts. A wonderful course to connect with individuals and to enable the participant to reflect on the 4 pillars of holistic herbalism while contemplating the 'right' next steps. The course layout is easy to navigate and is intuitively designed. The inclusion of audio file for ease of access for folks who listen while whatevering. The interactive discussion board affords student participation. The link to articles and resources provides space for deeper dives into content. The pdf files provide a succinct reference for discussion points. I feel like I am seen and heard, even in the internet mediated asynchronous platform.

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5 star rating

Ways to Improve life

Jillian Williams

This course is a great way to start improving your life! Ryn and Katja make it easy to learn and be engaging. They leave you wanting to know more.

This course is a great way to start improving your life! Ryn and Katja make it easy to learn and be engaging. They leave you wanting to know more.

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Your Teachers

Two heads are better than one!


Katja & Ryn
Katja & Ryn

Katja & Ryn almost always teach together. They each have particular talents and areas of interest, and their perspectives on certain issues are quite different! Together, they convey a fuller picture of the realities of herbal theory & practice than either one could do alone.

Katja is an herbalist and teacher working to help people rebuild their relationships with their bodies and their own ability to heal. She’s been in practice for nearly 20 years, but it all began with a desire to make her own “fancy tea” at home instead of paying high prices for imported blends at specialty stores. She’s kept that do-it-yourself ethic close to her heart.

Ryn has been a practicing herbalist since 2010. He came to herbalism by way of martial arts, where his first experiences with herbs were focused on getting back into the game and becoming more flexible, adaptable, and resilient. Passing that experience on to others is what keeps him motivated every day.

Together, Katja and Ryn teach everyone from children to elders, as well as pharmacy students from Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Northeastern University School of Pharmacy, where they both serve as associate faculty. Ryn and Katja are the authors of Herbal Medicine for Beginners, and the creators of the weekly Holistic Herbalism Podcast.

Now you can access our carefully structured curriculum that guides you to develop good foundational habits which will serve you well as a student, a practitioner, professional, or simply a human looking to become your healthiest self. Don't wait!