Bluestem Botanicals
Farmer
About
Bluestem Botanicals (formerly Barefoot Botanicals) is a certified organic herb farm and certified organic processor located in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Founded in 2008, the mission of Bluestem Botanicals is to connect people with plants for food, for medicine and for a more resilient collective future. Founders Linda Shanahan, MSN, RN (an herbalist and registered nurse) and Eric Vander Hyde (an herb farmer and controls engineer) value ecology over economy and people over profit. They envision a world in which people live in support of and in balance with the natural systems they depend on. Linda and Eric work every day to make sure that their mission, values and vision remain front and center, guiding every decision they make.
Bluestem specializes in whole plant, freshly harvested, farm grown & processed certified organic herbal extracts. With over 70 aromatic and medicinal crops Bluestem crafts for the herbal supplement category as well as the growing craft drinks industry. Bluestem is a proud member of the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA) and follow FDA Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs).
Programs and Partners
Certifications
Production Practices
Perennial Crops Use Only Organic Materials Crop Rotation Extended Growing Season Cover Crops Low Till Uncultivated Landscape Management Polyculture Design Permaculture Design Thermal Composting
We are certified Organic and operate with an eye toward ecosystem health. We lease our land and when we arrived it had been managed in sod production for 2 decades and conventional corn/soybean rotations before that. We responded with compost application, cover crops, and we planted 3 acres in native trees, shrubs, herbs and grasses to increase diversity on site. We have created berms and ponding areas to hold water in site and in so doing have created wetland habitat which has greatly increased wildlife on what was previously devoid of sound and insects. We plant as many perennial crops as we can to avoid soil disturbances when possible.
Location
Doylestown, PA
This is our soon to open farm store, Bluestem Provisions. Planned opening May 2023!
Manager
We are plant lovers! We are a team of farmers, herbalists, and bartenders who have fallen in love with the enhanced experience of life that living with aromatic and medicinal plants throughout our daily life can provide. Plants are why we get up in the morning. Co-owner Linda trained as an herbalist, then nurse, then learned farming in order to access quality cultivated herbs. She runs all of our herbal education programming. Co-owner Eric is an engineer and builds all of our infrastructure on site and keeps the business side of things humming along with lots of excel spreadsheets. Alex is our Field Manager and never saw an engine that he couldn't fix! He has made cue cards to learn all of the Latin names of the plants we grow and is learning quickly. Rachel is our Apothecary Manager and is our Organoleptic Assessment wizard! Paula is the herbalist who runs all of our wholesale accounts and manages our event schedule, often running the events herself. We have a number of part time helpers who include more herbalists, farmers and bartenders who you may meet at an area market near you one day!
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