One day only: Saturday July 19th 2025
Where?
At ‘The Engine’, Silver Street, Dursley, GL11 4ND (opposite Wykes House)
When?
Open from 10am all day for drop in experiences, browsing and shopping.
Workshops hourly, 11am, 12 noon, 2pm, 3pm and 4pm.
Evening talks from 6 til 9pm
Who for?
Everyone welcome, something for all to do, see and take part in.
Who by?
This event is brought to you by Cotswold Herb Centre, the voluntary organisation created to help get to know our local purposeful plants.
Tell me more ….
A day of events and activities all about plants and the many ways they make themselves useful to us.
Dip in anytime during the day (10am – 5pm) for a sense-testing experience, these are free to come and try so give them all a go – there’s one for each of your senses.
Dive in for a mini workshop to learn ways you can use plants to bring a bit of nature into your daily life. You can book ahead for a workshop, or sign up on the day (space permitting). Workshops are suitable for those aged 12 and above, each last an hour and cost £15 per person. See the full workshop timetable and sign up details below.
Browse and buy the lovely herby and plant-based offerings from local crafts people, growers and makers.
Have fun with one of our drop in events. Activities will rotate through the day to include making floral crowns, flower oils, leaf printing and other mildly messy crafts. No need to book these mini-activities, which are just £5 per person and suitable for all ages from 5 to 105.
Come along in the evening (6 – 9pm) for talks and more herby offerings. Hear the pitches being made for ‘Herb of the Town’ and place your vote for the herb you’d like to see as an emblem for Dursley.
Let’s talk Sense – dip in activities
Along with lots of chat and conversation, there will be a chance to explore many ways to enjoy herbs, using all your senses.
– What good taste you have!
Your taste buds can be tingled by trying tantalising teas.
– Gentle touch
See if you can detect the difference between oils pressed from seeds of different plants.
– Colour magic
So many gorgeous earthy tones can be produced using plants to dye fabrics and yarns. Sometimes with surprising results. See if you can guess which plants yield which colours.
– Who Smells Best?
Can your sniffing earn you 10 out of 10? you can put it to the test in our smell sniffing challenge.
– Make a noise
Herbs have inspired so much creativity throughout time. Come and nominate your favourite songs that celebrate our local herbs.
Plant a seed – dive into a mini workshop and find your new herbal habit or hobby
Timetable for the day:
11am – 12 noon
Herbal Tea Blending
workshop
12 noon – 1pm
Natural skincare
make your own facial cleanser
2 – 3pm
Dying with plants
talk and demonstration.
3 – 4pm
Essential oils
get to know them and how to use them
4 – 5pm
Herb-inspired singing
join in the music making
Read on for more details
(including how to book):
- Take your choice from a range of workshops devised to delight all your senses.
- Each workshop is led by a professional in their field, their products will be available to purchase throughout the day, but why not take this opportunity to learn from their expertise how to make your own creations.
- All workshops last for one hour (please arrive 5 minutes early so we can start on time)
- Workshops are suitable for those aged 12 and above, any under 16s should be accompanied by a participating adult.
- Workshop numbers are limited (to between 8 and 12 people, so please do book ahead to ensure your place).
- For this celebratory day, the workshop hosts have agreed to offer a specially reduced fee of £15 per person per workshop.
Workshop: Herbal Tea Blending
Turn your daily cuppa into a health boost from nature’s finest. Dr Viv, our very own tea blending guru, will teach you the tips and tricks to ensure you can blend from freshly gathered or dried herbs for the perfect brew.
Leader: Dr Vivien Rolfe
Time: 11am – 12 noon
Booking: book direct with Dr Viv at Curiosity Research
Workshop: Natural Skincare
Find out about the magic ingredients that make natural skincare so fantastic. You’ll learn how to use different oils to blend a facial cleanser suited to your skin’s needs.
In this workshop we’ll make a simple cleansing oil focusing on the vital plant seed oils. If you would like to add essential oils to your cleansing oil too, join the essential oils workshop taking place in the afternoon.
Leader: Laura Pardoe, the Hedgerow Skincare Expert
Time: 12 noon – 1pm
Booking: book direct with Laura at Field Fresh Skincare
Workshop: Dying with plants
Dying with plants is an ancient craft with endless scope for creativity and experimentation. With illustrations and examples, you’ll hear all about how to select your plants, using different mordants to fix your dyes and techniques to try at home. Come and be inspired.
Leader: Sharon Butler
Time: 2 – 3pm
Booking: book direct by emailing hello@cotswoldherbcentre.uk
Workshop: Essential oils
If you love the idea of bringing the intense plant based power of essential oils into your home, but are not sure which ones will work for you, come along to this workshop to understand how to intuitively select your essential oils.
This workshop is the perfect complement to the Natural Skincare workshop. Come to both and you’ll be able to put your essential oil knowledge into use straight away by blending into your cleansing oil.
Leader: Laura Pardoe, the Hedgerow Skincare Expert
Time: 3 – 4pm
Booking: book direct with Laura at Field Fresh Skincare
Workshop: Herb-inspired music making
We’ll be gathering ideas throughout the day for your favourite herb-inspired songs, and it will all come together with a singing workshop.
Music making in company is good for the soul, so come along and join in for a joyous hour of singing and we’ll let you know some great tips for looking after your voice with herbs.
Leader: Dr Viv, and her tambourine
Time: 4 – 5 pm
Booking: come along to the Herbal Takeover to book your place, and nominate a song.
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