Bergitte McGovern, Medical Herbalist

07/09/2026

Winter Herbal Farmacy round 2 took place yesterday! 🌿

Thank you to all the beautiful souls who joined me for Friday’s workshop and yesterday’s workshop – two really lovely groups and two wonderful days of learning, making and exploring acute herbal medicine together. And thank you Rachel for sharing your wonderful pics 📸👌

And that is a wrap workshop-wise for the year!

Winter clinics tend to be very busy, so my focus now turns back to my 1-to-1 work and supporting individuals through the darker months.

I also love seeing what arises over winter in terms of workshops for the following year – I never work to a set rota. Winter Herbal Farmacy is probably the only workshop that happens every year, partly because I am so passionate about acute herbal medicine, but also because it continues to be such a popular one for supporting winter health.

If there is a particular workshop you would love to see me run next year, please let me know! I have been debating hosting one on digestive bitters for a couple of years now... 🤔🌿

And finally, a fresh batch of Elderberry Remedy is now available for those of you who love having it as part of your winter wellness kit 💪💜

01/09/2026

Realistic and achievable is always my aim! Life is FULL and quick and easy can make all the difference...

For me today, that has translated into having a handful of my favourite slaw (premade at the weekend and containing grated carrots, grated beetroot and finely sliced red cabbage - sometimes i add other things too) with some EV olive oil and pomegranate molasses (yum shorkk ) - a starter, as I munched on it whilst warming up leftover baked beans and grilled tomatoes, and popped some multiseed bread in the toaster. A drizzle of homemade chilli infused EV olive oil ontop and some freshly ground pepper 😋.

5 minutes
7+ plants
Full off fibre and tasty!

Finding ways to sneak some extra veg and fibre into your diet is always a good thing, and more achievable than many people realise!

Working with individuals on a 1-2-1 basis means finding out about their diet and lifestyle (along with their full medical history) so I can make things realistic and achievable for them, wherever they are at ❤️🙌

29/08/2026

Since getting home there has been so much catching up to do in the garden! My mum has done a wonderful job of watering the key plants that have needed it most.

Evenings and the weekend has been spent weeding, harvesting and processing. And there is lots more to do! It's also wonderful being able to share out some extra produce.

You don't need a big garden to grow some food, and just growing a little can have a really positive impact on you - mood, connection, presence. Then there are the environmental benefits - chemical free, 0 food miles, 0 plastic, super fresh 😋. What's not to love?

My top tips in terms of focus are salad leaves and beans! Perennial rocket is a must 💪 and at this time of year sewing some miners lettuce and lambs cress will take you through the winter wonderfully!

27/08/2026

Elderberries! And chest infections, and getting specific when it comes to treating them 💪💜💚!

Herbal medicines can be used in a really targeted way to 'unpick' and treat infections according to their presentation and the person they are presenting in! Powerful, effective and safe when appropriately used. This is why the Winter Herbal Farmacy is probably my favourite workshop of the year!

Happening next Friday and Sunday. Link below 😊

23/08/2026

There is a world of difference between knowing which herb to use — and knowing how to use it effectively. 🌿

Over nearly 20 years of clinical practice as a Medical Herbalist, I have become particularly passionate about acute herbal medicine — using herbs effectively for coughs, colds, and other common winter infections.

When people tell me, “I tried herbs, but they did not work,” the problem is often not the herb itself.

It may be the wrong herb for that person or stage of illness. Treatment may have started too late. And very often in acute illness, the dose and frequency simply were not sufficient.

Knowing what to use, when to use it, how much and how frequently can completely change how effectively we work with medicinal plants.

And some of those medicines may already be growing outside your back door or sitting in your kitchen cupboard. 🌿

Used appropriately, herbal medicine can be remarkably effective in acute illness. I have seen again and again how skilled, timely use of herbs can support people through infections and, in many cases, help avoid the need for antibiotics.

I am absolutely in favour of antibiotics when they are genuinely needed. But avoiding unnecessary use also helps protect our gut microbiome — something I feel particularly passionate about.

This is what my Winter Herbal Farmacy Workshop is all about: sharing almost 20 years of clinical experience to help you use herbal medicine confidently, effectively and safely through the winter months.

It is a full, practical day exploring common winter illnesses and getting hands-on making herbal medicines.

You will leave with your own Winter First Aid Kit containing 8 herbal remedies, detailed course notes and, new this year, a one-hour online follow-up session.

🌿 WINTER HERBAL FARMACY
📅 Friday 4 September OR Sunday 6 September
📍 North Shropshire
🎟 Full-day workshop £165

Spaces are still available on both dates. Come and discover just how powerful the medicines around us can be. 🌿💚

Booking link in comments.

22/08/2026

Two other epic days out included walking over Constantia Nek and through Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, stopping in for brunch along the way, and then, on our final day, walking up Table Mountain. ⛰️🌿

It was wonderful to reconnect with such incredible fynbos diversity, although with almost 30 years having passed since I studied fynbos at Stellenbosch, it is fair to say I am more than a little rusty 🤪😂.

Fynbos belongs to the Cape Floristic Region, the smallest of the world’s six recognised floral kingdoms — yet one of the richest. The region contains around 8,200 plant species, with roughly 80% associated with fynbos. Proteas are probably the most iconic of all fynbos plants!

Table Mountain alone supports more than 2,000 plant species. To put this into context, that is more than the number of native vascular plant species found across the whole of the UK! It is an astonishing concentration of botanical diversity in such a small geographical area, with many species occurring nowhere else on Earth. 🌿

Sadly, this extraordinary diversity is also incredibly vulnerable. The South African National Biodiversity Institute’s (SANBI) Red List records more than 2,000 fynbos plant species, subspecies and varieties as threatened, the vast majority of which are endemic — meaning they are found naturally nowhere else on Earth.

And, of course, I could not talk about this flora without mentioning the medicinal plants! 🤓🌿 A comprehensive inventory published in the Journal of Ethnopharmacology in 2026 identified 702 plant species (733 taxa) used medicinally or ritually within the Cape herbal medicine tradition — representing around 17% of the known medicinal flora of southern Africa.

What this means in reality is an extraordinary concentration of plant diversity within a relatively small region, with a rich history of traditional use — but one that is under intense pressure. Habitat loss and development, invasive species, changing fire regimes, climate extremes and illegal harvesting all threaten the future of this remarkable flora.

Building awareness and looking after what is quite literally ‘in our back garden’ is so important — not only for conserving individual species, but for protecting the extraordinary web of life, knowledge and human connection that has developed alongside them.

For me, there was something particularly special about returning nearly 30 years later and walking amongst the plants I once studied — this time with my children beside me. 💚🌿

It has also reminded me once again just how extraordinary our relationship with plants has always been. Across cultures and continents, people have looked to the plants growing around them for food and medicine. There is something deeply reciprocal about our relationship with the natural world — when we care for and protect it, it continues to sustain us in return.

The exotic and unfamiliar can be exciting — perhaps partly because we naturally meet the new with curiosity, without the familiarity that can sometimes stop us really seeing what is in front of us.

But what happens when we bring that same curiosity to the familiar? To the plants growing in our own back gardens, or even sitting in our kitchen cupboards?

Sometimes nothing around us needs to change at all. We simply see what has always been there with fresh eyes.

And perhaps that is where some of the magic lies. 🌿💚

20/08/2026

An awesome catch-up day with exploring ! My first visit, and I was completely blown away by the sheer number of garden ‘rooms’ and incredible plant collections. I also could not think of a better person to experience it with 😊.

There are around 12 acres of cultivated fruit, vegetables and botanical collections to explore – from the extensive vegetable gardens, fruit orchards and berry patches to the Healing Garden, Succulent House, Cycad Collection and Spice House. There is even a Prickly Pear Maze! 🌿🌵🍐

Needless to say, I was in my element!

Craig and I have known each other for about 22 years, and his knowledge of local plants and identification skills never cease to amaze me. My kids got to endure their mum in full plant-geek heaven mode once again 🤓😂.

We visited Stellenbosch afterwards, which felt rather special. I found myself quite emotional showing my kids around the heart of the university campus and pointing out the buildings where I attended lectures for my BSc in Botany and Zoology – as well as showing them the amazing library 🥰.

There was something quite poignant about returning to where so much of my botanical journey began, all these years later, and sharing a little piece of that history with my children. 💚🌿

20/08/2026

This is absolutely crazy...

"The EU is in the process of setting new rules for food supplements — rules the UK has already committed to following. Those rules include:
- Capping Vitamin D at 800 IU. Your skin produces twelve times that in one afternoon in summer sunshine.
- Capping Vitamin B6 at 12.5mg. The World Health Organisation's own upper limit is 100mg.
- Restricting or banning 13 herbal ingredients including ashwagandha, St John's Wort, curcumin (from turmeric), berberine, black cohosh, tribulus, and piperine.
- Restricting medicinal mushrooms as novel foods. We have already lost cordyceps and turkey tail as over-the-counter supplements. The MHRA and FSA restricted them after the EU classified them — exactly the pattern that will now repeat for herbs and vitamins."

Demand UK regain control over food supplements regulation

11/08/2026

A big tick on my personal wishlist! ✔️

As a botanical lover, gin lover and medicine maker, I had the absolute delight of attending a gin-making masterclass at Cape Saint Blaize with a close friend’s daughter.

I quickly realised that I wanted to approach the whole thing like a science and chemistry lesson 🤓 — before reminding myself that I was actually there for pure enjoyment! So I dropped that hat and embraced the full experience. Our tutor was fantastic, and a great comedian too, so a lot of laughter ensued...

My dear cousin gifted me a bottle of Cape St Blaize gin a few years ago, which first introduced me to this rather special local distillery. The bottles are handmade locally, the juniper is organic, and many of the botanicals are grown and sourced locally. Even the logo has a story: an aerial view of the Mossel Bay lighthouse, the home of Cape St Blaize.

So many beautiful strands interweaving — plants, place, people and story.

I left with a truly, deeply personal gin of my own creation — floral notes and fynbos — and, even better, memories to take forward from a beautiful shared experience. 🥰💖💕

01/08/2026

From ginger, fresh lemon and honey (and hot water bottles) to cappuccinos and brunch!

My packed Elderberry Remedy (lots of lurgy fighting ingredients), Echinacea, Vitamin C (high dosing) and Zinc, came in handy along with the above + cinnamon and I bounced back from my cold super quickly 💪😎 and have been having a wonderful time living it up and catching up with family and friends.

There isn't much time left to nab an Early Bird ticket for my Winter Herbal Farmacy workshops at the beginning of September - it's a wonderful opportunity to really grow your confidence in treating winter infections and learning how to make effective herbal remedies to treat. Dosages, cautions and red flags are covered enabling you to enter the autumn and winter prepared and empowered.

🫐 Early bird tickets sales end on the evening of 3rd August, follow the link in the comments below for full details and to book 💪💜🙌