Sacred Plant Medicine Courses
2024 - 2026
Please note our courses can fill quickly and have a waitlist every year.
Scroll down to see full course list.
Our Sacred Plant Medicine Apprenticeships blend together Western herbalism with traditional sacred plant medicine of our ancestors. We offer in depth training where students learn plant medicine through direct hands on experience and mentorship. Every class we weave together ceremony and tea meditation, with lecture and hands-on experience working with healing plants.
For all in person classes students are able to harvest an abundance of medicinal plants, herb seeds, and wild foods for their own use and learning. All courses include optional home practice, readings, and class recordings to explore between apprenticeship weekends.
Certification for each in-person course will be given upon completion of each apprenticeship. Students combine herbal medicine with many other healing modalities and often go on to incorporate plant medicine into their careers in many different ways - growing medicinal plants, medicine making, teaching, opening healing practices, working with family and community - using plant medicine to benefit social, environmental, and collective healing.
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Courses now offered in New England, Colombia, and Canada
Spring & Summer Workshops
Registration Open Now
2025
Sacred Plant Medicine Apprenticeship
Year One ~ In Person Vermont
In Vermont or Online ~ Spring to Winter
The Gaia School’s Year One 9 Month Apprenticeship in Foundational Herbalism, Sacred Plant Medicine, Spiritual Ecology, and Holistic Healing. This course focuses on learning the essentials of plant medicine and developing strong relationships with our plant teachers. Students will build a strong foundation in herbalism through hands on experience. Our Year One courses fill with a waitlist every year!
2026
Advanced Plant Medicine Apprenticeship
Year Two ~ In Person Vermont
In Vermont and Online ~ Spring to Winter
Our Sacred Plant Medicine Year 2 Apprenticeship continues where we left on on Year 1, focusing now on bringing plants to our communities. We move through each system of the body and chakras, exploring holistic anatomy and physiology for herbalists. While our first year course focuses on self-healing and developing relationships with the plants, year two prepares you to support others with plants safely. The course begins with a journey around the sacred wheel through the elements, deepening relationships to our plant teachers from Year One.
2025
A Year of Gaia ~
Online Year One Course
Distance Learning ~ Spring to Winter
Our Year One Apprenticeship in Sacred Plant Medicine, Traditional Herbalism, Spiritual Ecology, and Holistic Healing. This course focuses on learning the essentials of plant medicine and developing strong relationships with our plant teachers. A Year of Gaia with Sage Maurer & guest teachers includes 12 Modules plus live classes every month, videos, audio lectures, guided meditations, readings, and written content. After 12 months you'll receive lifetime access to all course content.
2025
Adv. Sacred Plant Medicine Course ~
Online Year Two Course
Distance Learning - Spring to Winter
Our second year training focusing on bringing plant medicine to our communities. We move through each system of the body and chakras, exploring holistic anatomy and physiology for herbalists. While our first year course focuses on self-healing and developing relationships with the plants, year two prepares you to support others with plants safely. The course begins with a journey around the sacred wheel through the elements, deepening relationships to our plant teachers from Year One.
Next Round of Live Lectures begins Spring 2025
Community Practitioner Year Three
Our Sacred Plant Medicine Year 3 Apprenticeship focuses on training students to work as herbalists in their community through offering herbal consultations, healing sessions, classes, and community circles. Year two students will train to become practitioners and facilitators of sacred plant medicine. Many of our students go on to teach classes, create apothecaries and herbal medicine lines, facilitate plant medicine circles, or offer one on one healing sessions and herbal consultations. Returning Soon
Gaia’s Immersion Courses
Our Gaia School Immersion courses in Vermont are offered for distance learners who wish to come train at The Gaia School for a concentrated 1 or 2 weeks. These trainings are meant to be an immersive experience in sacred plant medicine with Sage. Immersion courses will be offered in the summer and fall of 2023. Check back for more information!
Frequently Asked Questions ~
Please review these common questions before contacting us in case your question can be answered here.
Will this course prepare me to be an herbalist in my community? - Yes, our courses offer in depth training in herbal medicine. After 2-3 years of training, depending on your previous experience and how much work and time you put into each course, you can begin practicing as a budding herbalist in your community. Know that it takes years of practice to build up the experience to serve others well with herbal medicine, so it’s important each student knows that through practicing herbalism you will continue to learn and increase experience over many years.
How do I reserve a spot in a Gaia course? - Courses often fill quickly and have a waitlist every year. Once you put down a deposit your space is held in the course of your choice. You are welcome to send us a deposit via our Paypal links, or by mail. Deposits are always non-refundable.
Will you announce when a course is full? - Yes, we will post a notice on our website when we only have a few spaces left in a course. Once a course is full we will post a notice that registration has closed, and you can add your name to the waitlist.
Housing for Commuters ~ For students who are commuting we offer rustic lodging in our yurts or camping on site. We have kitchen space and access to food from our gardens. You are also welcome to book a local place to stay on class weekends. If you would like to know more about lodging, please contact us.
Scholarships & Work-trade ~ We offer scholarships and work-trade for lower income students. For more information on scholarships and work-trade please fill out our application for assistance.
VSAC Grants - We work with VSAC to provide Vermont residents with full grants to our courses. Every year approximately 10 students receive free tuition through VSAC.
Can I visit the school and meet the teachers? - We can certainly meet with you in person if you are interested in visiting before you sign up, just send us a message to let us know you would like to visit. We are also happy to chat with you over the phone.