Welcome to Marikåpe!
Marikåpe is the norwegian name for the herb called Ladies mantle (Alchemilla vulgaris). In the Norse mythology this herb was assosiated with Frøya, the godess of love. Frøya was known to have extensive knowledge about birth, death and the bit in between.
Mari Jerstad has qualified in organic agriculture and has a BSc in Herbal medicine. She is the herbal contact point at Norwegian Assosiation of Natural Medicines and herb guild leader in KVANN, Norwegian seed savers. She works in the garden, in clinic, as a herbal storyteller and has courses.
The many uses of plants have been known to people of all cultures for as long as history goes. It is a knowledge that belongs to the people and connects people with their local land. In the western world these resources have increasingly been set aside. Yet the plants are still here enriching our daily lives.
Herbal medicine
Holistic herbal medicine does not aim to treat disease. It aims to facilitate health. It incooperates all parts of the individual person. Symptoms of disease are seen as expressions of the body. Treatment is directed at the individual as a whole. The aim is to give the body enough resources to be well. Teas and herbal soak mixtures are individually designed acording to personal health goals.
Mari has her herbal clinic in Oslo, the capital city of Norway. She has her clinical practice on mondays. Most of the information about her practice is in Norwegian, so please do not hesitate to email her and get more information about how she practices.
Storytelling
Storytelling is a tool to share knowledge and understanding. Hearing the life story of pioneers who worked with plant resources can inspire and enrich the understanding of the plants themselves. Traditional stories and farytales have been used for thousands of years to transmit the knowledge about plants.
As a third generation storyteller, Mari has no formal education in the performing art. She first told for an audience as a 12 year old. Mari works alone and with other storytellers, telling to people of all ages. Projects includes a dual language storytelling project with Amin Senatorzade, Kabir Jan and Alf Martin Lie; and a storytelling school tour about the use of wonderful weeds with Charlotte Øster and Georgiana Keable.
Community herb garden
We call it the herbal alliance. At Losæter in Oslo Mari and her artist friend Francesca run a community herbal garden. Between early spring and late autoum everyone is wecome to come and join in on Wednesdays between 4 pm and 7 pm. We plant, care for, harvest, dry and make medicines out of these local plants. After some hours hard work we get together for a community meal out in the open. The food is compeatly local and tasty.
Sprouting weeds in Norways oldest feminist radiostation
Mari Jerstad is program leader of the herbal radio and podcast “Ugerss”. This is run by the soon 40 year old feminist radio station radiOrakel. The radio program explores historical and current use of edable and medicinal plants. There are herbal stories, interviews with people from all over Norway, and other adventures exploring medicinal plants and traditions. The herbal radio has been going from 2017 until 2021. Most of the programs are in Norwegian.
Workshops and courses
Short and long courese are offered by Mari. Themes range from medicine making, edible wild foods, foraging, herbal history and philosophy to meditative understandings of plants and the relationship between people and plants. During lockdown Mari held online sessions, otherwise she does weekend courses and 7 week immersion courses. These are all primarily in Norwegian language, but she does make exceptions.
Ethnobotanical study
Mari did an ethnobotanical study on the west coast of Norway as her masters degree. She is talking with people about belonging, place, the body, nature, and medicinal plants. She is in areas where only 50 years ago it was faster to go by boat than by road. Today there are still living traditions.