Gert Coleman - Gardening Guru

Passionate about herbs, Gert Coleman loves, grows, eats, and reads avidly about them. Retired Associate Professor of English at Middlesex County College in New Jersey, she lives on 106 acres in Middlefield, New York where she and her husband are fixing up another old house, training a new puppy, and planting herbs, flowers, trees, and at-risk native plants. She edits the IHA Herb of the Year™ books (Cilantro & Coriander; Hops: Brewing and Beyond; Agastache: Anise Hyssop, Hummingbird Mints and More; Rubus; currently working on Parsley), and frequently writes about the legends, lore, and poetry of herbs. Three times president of the Staten Island Herb Society, she helped to maintain the Colonial Herb Garden at Conference House Park for over 30 years and has started herb gardens at various locations. As a naturalist, she developed and taught parent-tot nature programs at the Staten Island Zoo and local parks, introducing children and adults to local plants, animals, and geology. In addition, she completed a medicinal herbal apprenticeship with internationally acclaimed herbalist Rosemary Gladstar. Gert is a board member of the International Herb Association and co-chair of the IHA Horticultural Committee; member of the Herb Society of America, North East Herb Association, American Botanical Council, and United Plant Savers. She frequently lectures on various aspects of herbs and teaches workshops on nature writing. Gert is also a GCNJ speaker (Garden Clubs of New Jersey).