About Us
The Baton Rouge Unit of The Herb Society of America began in 1989 as The Baton Rouge Herb Study Group. In 1991, the group became an official unit of HSA and is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) educational organization. The unit’s mission is to promote the knowledge, use, and delight of herbs through educational programs, research, and sharing the experience of our members with the Community.
In recent years, the unit has engaged in a synergistic relationship with the Burden Horticultural Gardens and is currently engaged in the development of two herb gardens on the Burden property. One is a heritage garden exploring the cultivation and use of herbs through the different ethnic influences in Louisiana. The other is a traditional Cajun traiteur’s garden as part of the Rural Life Museum.
The Heritage Garden will eventually have four garden rooms; at this time only the first phase, Flavors of Louisiana, is completed. It features the culinary herbs of the ethnic groups that make this part of Louisiana unique. The next part will be the construction of a pavilion for shelter from sun and rain, and gardens featuring medicinal and culinary herbs of African American and Native American settlers of the Baton Rouge area. The third garden room will be a formal European design of culinary and medicinal herbs, and the final phase will be an informal native plants space.
Herbs include shrubs, vines, and trees, so the whole garden will include elder, sassafras, bay, citrus, and other important large plants used for culinary and medicinal purposes, as well as traditional and wild herbs.
The entire garden is being planned also as a therapeutic garden, with fragrant herbs and herbs with interesting textures, and is completely wheelchair accessible. It will be available for schools, nursing homes, hospitals, special education groups, Alzheimer's groups, and the general public. Plants are labeled for self-guiding tours, and guided tours can be arranged.
The Baton Rouge Unit of the Herb Society of America is raising funds to complete the whole garden, which will be a valuable addition to the community. Donations may be made on our Support page.
Meetings are held at the Burden Conference Center at LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens located at 4560 Essen Lane, Baton Rouge, LA. All meetings start at 6:30 p.m. on the fourth Thursday of the month from January through October.
Guests are welcome to attend our programs; admission fees are $5.00 for lectures. For information on our upcoming programs, please visit the Programs area on this website.
In recent years, the unit has engaged in a synergistic relationship with the Burden Horticultural Gardens and is currently engaged in the development of two herb gardens on the Burden property. One is a heritage garden exploring the cultivation and use of herbs through the different ethnic influences in Louisiana. The other is a traditional Cajun traiteur’s garden as part of the Rural Life Museum.
The Heritage Garden will eventually have four garden rooms; at this time only the first phase, Flavors of Louisiana, is completed. It features the culinary herbs of the ethnic groups that make this part of Louisiana unique. The next part will be the construction of a pavilion for shelter from sun and rain, and gardens featuring medicinal and culinary herbs of African American and Native American settlers of the Baton Rouge area. The third garden room will be a formal European design of culinary and medicinal herbs, and the final phase will be an informal native plants space.
Herbs include shrubs, vines, and trees, so the whole garden will include elder, sassafras, bay, citrus, and other important large plants used for culinary and medicinal purposes, as well as traditional and wild herbs.
The entire garden is being planned also as a therapeutic garden, with fragrant herbs and herbs with interesting textures, and is completely wheelchair accessible. It will be available for schools, nursing homes, hospitals, special education groups, Alzheimer's groups, and the general public. Plants are labeled for self-guiding tours, and guided tours can be arranged.
The Baton Rouge Unit of the Herb Society of America is raising funds to complete the whole garden, which will be a valuable addition to the community. Donations may be made on our Support page.
Meetings are held at the Burden Conference Center at LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens located at 4560 Essen Lane, Baton Rouge, LA. All meetings start at 6:30 p.m. on the fourth Thursday of the month from January through October.
Guests are welcome to attend our programs; admission fees are $5.00 for lectures. For information on our upcoming programs, please visit the Programs area on this website.
Officers
Executive Committee, 2024–2026
Chair
Kathleen Harrington, [email protected]
Vice Chair
Daria Doyle, [email protected]
Ruby Homayssi, [email protected]
Treasurer
Claudia Ross, [email protected]
Secretary
Betsy Dunham, [email protected]
Standing Committee Chairs and Other Board Members:
Communications: Kathleen Harrington and Heather Miller
Crafting: Karen Cashio
Culinary: Sudha Jindia
Education/Programs: Art Scarbrough
Herb Day: Sylvia Lowe
Historian: Sharon Murphy
Horticulture/Botany: Jen Blanchard
Hospitality: Ruth Crawford
Intern Mentor:
Garden Intern:
Membership: Sharon Kleinpeter
Plants/Horticulture: Judy Hines
Heritage Garden: Julie Walsh and Art Scarbrough
Sensory Garden: Judy Hines and Sylvia Lowe
Policies and Procedures: Ruby Homayssi
Publicity: Jen Blanchard
Chair
Kathleen Harrington, [email protected]
Vice Chair
Daria Doyle, [email protected]
Ruby Homayssi, [email protected]
Treasurer
Claudia Ross, [email protected]
Secretary
Betsy Dunham, [email protected]
Standing Committee Chairs and Other Board Members:
Communications: Kathleen Harrington and Heather Miller
Crafting: Karen Cashio
Culinary: Sudha Jindia
Education/Programs: Art Scarbrough
Herb Day: Sylvia Lowe
Historian: Sharon Murphy
Horticulture/Botany: Jen Blanchard
Hospitality: Ruth Crawford
Intern Mentor:
Garden Intern:
Membership: Sharon Kleinpeter
Plants/Horticulture: Judy Hines
Heritage Garden: Julie Walsh and Art Scarbrough
Sensory Garden: Judy Hines and Sylvia Lowe
Policies and Procedures: Ruby Homayssi
Publicity: Jen Blanchard
Constitution and By-Laws
Click here to download the pdf of the constitution and by-laws.