Root and Relic Apothecary holding elderberry herbal class Sept. 21

Elderberries, according to Root and Relic Apothecary co-owner Jamie Badstieber, have certain properties that can be beneficial to one's health, particularly immune health.

That's why she decided to hold an herbal class at the downtown Columbus shop on Saturday, Sept. 21, starting at 10 a.m. at the 1362 25th Ave.

"It's going be about 45 min to an hour," Badstieber said. "We're going to talk about elderberry and all the benefits for your health, like helping build your immune system to prevent the flu and other viruses, the ingredients to make elderberry syrup at home and talk about the benefits of certain products over other products."

Badstieber herself is currently taking an herbalist class in Omaha and is set to have a certificate by next October, but she thinks the information in her seminar should be more commonplace sooner.

"My main purpose is, I feel like this knowledge should be available for everyone," she said. "It's not difficult to do and I think it gives people a level of control and the ability to have an impact on their health instead of using something made in a factory."

Mary Kula, one of the attendees and an acquaintance of Badstieber, said gaining knowledge is a big part of why she will be joining the event.

"The reason I want to participate is because the more understanding of anything a person can get besides the internet or hearsay of what you see on social media, the better," Kula said. "I like to get as much information as possible. I've known Jamie a number of years and thought I needed to see what she said. You can't just go off one source, we each need to do our own research and figure out what's best."

The ingredients Badstieber is using are sourced from the wild. One ingredient is even from the Columbus area.

The class itself is free, but she will have the ingredients available for purchase should people want to try it themselves.

"I have all the things here for them to buy if they want," Badstieber said. "It's wild-crafted, not grown by humans, grown in the wild and harvested, but I am including honey from a local merchant so they get the benefits of honey grown in this area."

Badstieber said she hopes to hold other classes in the future, depending on the seasons.

"It's definitely something I'm going to continue to do," she said. "Elderberry is first because of the season we're in, getting close to cold and flu season, it's the prime time to make elderberry syrup with events like this and be able to teach herb classes, make tinctures and teas and promote health in people."