Medicinal Herbs of California: A Field Guide to Common Healing Plants (Local Author)

by Lanny Kaufer, 2021. Paperback, 296 pages.

Medicinal Herbs of California is the first statewide field guide to more than 70 common medicinal plants of California. This vital addition to the California naturalist’s shelf will introduce readers to the principles of herbal remedies, history and roots in native cultures, scientific information, and how to find and incorporate medicinal plants into daily life. Complete with color photos and detailed descriptions of each medicinal herb, conservation status, and recipes to put their botanical healing power to work, this guide is a vital addition to the California herbalist's bookshelf and forager's backpack. Authored by Ojai resident Lanny Kaufer, owner of Herb Walks and longtime supporter of ForestWatch.

Inside you’ll find:

• Photos and descriptions to help with positive identification
• Common and scientific names and the plant families
• Conservation status
• Modern and traditional uses
• The science behind natural phytochemicals that have earned these plants a place in Native American medicine for thousands of years.

Lanny Kaufer has been leading Herb Walks in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties since 1976, educating scores of locals and visitors on the flora of the area with a focus on herbs that can be used for food and medicine. As an herbal educator, Lanny also leads workshops and presentations throughout the Ojai-Ventura-Santa Barbara area on the edible and medicinal uses of California plants.

Lanny earned a biology degree at the University of California where he completed independent studies in naturopathic medicine under physiology professor Dr. Henry Hilgard. Lanny is a faculty member of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at California State University, Channel Islands. He served as chief consultant on medicinal plants for the redesign of the Swimmer Medicinal Garden in Playa Vista.