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Historical & Lesser-Known Books That Explore Black Herbalism, Southern Medicine, Land, and Cultural Gardening
- Yah's Apothecary
- 3 hours ago
- 4 min read
For many of us, the deeper we walk into herbalism, the more we feel the pull to learn where our people fit into this story. Not the watered-down version… the real history.
The Southern kitchens,
the Gullah/Geechee traditions,
the Black women scientists working behind the scenes,
the farmers and gardeners who kept our communities alive.
These books you see in the photos—some old, some newer, show that Black herbalism,
Black science, and Black homesteading origins stretch far beyond what most people know.
They deserve a place on every herbalist’s shelf.
Below are the books and the insights they offer,
plus actionable steps so you can start building your own cultural herbal library.
1. Blacks in Science and Medicine – Vivian Ovelton Sammons
This thick reference book documents over 1,500 Black scientists and medical professionals, many of whom never make it into mainstream textbooks. It lists birth and death dates, fields of specialization, organizational affiliations, and contributions to various scientific disciplines.
Why this book matters for herbalists
It shows you the shoulders we stand on. Herbalists today aren’t operating outside of science—our people built science. When you read through the pages, you see chemists, botanists, nutritionists, and physicians whose research ties directly to plant medicine, food science, and human physiology.
Action steps
Add this to your reference shelf for historical context during your herbal studies.
Pick 3 scientists listed and do a quick Google Scholar search on their contributions.
Share one figure a week with your children or community—keep the legacy alive.
This title can be purchased here.
2. Black Women Scientists in the United States – Wini Warren
This book goes deeper into the lives of Black women who made major contributions to chemistry, nutrition, biology, botany, pharmacology, and more. These sisters pushed through academic racism, lack of funding, being overlooked, and still made history.
Inside these pages are stories like Gloria Long Anderson, a physical organic chemist who intentionally chose to teach at a historically Black college even though she knew research would be harder there. She believed her presence mattered.
Why this book matters for herbalists
Herbalism today still needs the same courage. We stand at the intersection of science, tradition, and community healing. Black women have led this bridge before, and books like these remind us we’re not starting from scratch.
Action steps
Read one profile and journal what it teaches you about perseverance.
Use these stories to inspire your path as a clinical herbalist or community healer.
Include pieces of this history in your homeschool lessons if you’re teaching your children.
This title can be purchased here.
3. Black Girls Gardening – Amber Grossett
This is a joyful, colorful book centered on Black girls connecting with plants, soil, and food. It highlights healing, bonding with the earth, and using gardening as a spiritual and emotional refuge.
Why this book matters for herbalists
Herbalism is more than remedies or eating food, it’s also about relationship with the land. Black children deserve to see themselves in nature books, gardening books, and plant-based healing. Representation shapes confidence.
Action steps
Start a small garden project with your children—windowsill herbs count.
Use this book as a read-aloud to encourage connection to soil and food.
Let your daughters know that the land belongs to them too.
This title can be purchased here.
5. American Grown – Michelle Obama
At first glance, American Grown is often categorized as a White House gardening book. But when you slow down and actually read it, you realize this is a modern record of Black food leadership, land stewardship, and community-based nourishment.
Michelle Obama sparked a national conversation about food access, nutrition, soil, and responsibility to the next generation. And she did it as a Black woman standing in a long Southern lineage of growers, cooks, and caretakers of the land.
This book documents how growing food changes families, schools, neighborhoods, and health outcomes. It highlights seasonal growing, hands-in-the-soil learning, and the way gardens become centers for education, discipline, and healing.
Why this book matters for Black herbalists
Herbalism doesn’t begin with tinctures. It begins with food, soil, and daily practicing this in our everyday lives. Before our ancestors ever made decoctions, they grew collards, sweet potatoes, beans, herbs, and medicine right alongside food crops.
American Grown shows what happens when land knowledge is restored to community life. This is the same foundation African American herbalism was built on; food as medicine, land as teacher, and growing as a responsibility, not a hobby.
Action steps
Use this book to study seasonal rhythms of growing and eating.
Pair it with herbal studies by identifying which culinary plants double as medicine.
If you homeschool, use this as a social studies + health crossover text.
Start with one small plot, bed, or container garden—obedience over perfection.
What makes these books powerful is not just what they say individually—but what they reveal together:
Blacks in Science and Medicine shows who our people were in formal science
Black Women Scientists in the United States shows how Black women carried that work forward
Black Girls Gardening restores identity and belonging to the land
American Grown brings the conversation into modern America, food systems, and community health
This is Black herbalism in full view:
Science + soil
History + household
Knowledge + responsibility
Herbalism was never separate from life. It was embedded in how we fed people, healed people, and taught children.
Where to Go Next
You may be called to:
Study herbalism more formally
Learn anatomy and physiology alongside plants
Heal your household first, then your community
Pass this knowledge to your children
That path exists, and it doesn’t require abandoning your faith, culture, or intelligence.
Inside The Holistic Practitioner Elite Program and the Student Membership Vault we teach herbalism the same way these books point toward it: grounded, disciplined, and accountable.
You can be trained in a system that honors your faith, your ancestors, and your calling to heal.
Click the links above to apply now!
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