Following on from their sold-out Discovering Women’s Health Through Herbal Wisdom series in 2024, Maya Thomas (Herbologist) and Natasha Richardson (Medical Herbalist and founder of Forage Botanicals) will be back in London’s oldest botanical garden in 2025 with an exciting new four part monthly lecture series this spring and summer. This lecture focuses on Herbs and Antibiotics

Antibiotic Anxiety (stress created from the overuse of antibiotics) is at an all-time high, yet these drugs are crucial to our survival. How can we navigate our way through the negative and the necessity of them? Looking at nature’s own antibiotics as well as surprising research into hormonal conditions that have been helped and hindered by antibiotic use, Maya and Natasha will also touch on how herbs are helping shape the future of this class of medicine.

Doors open at 6pm, giving you time to explore the Garden or visit the the Physic Garden Café. Then, settle in for the lecture, which begins promptly at 6:30pm.

About Maya and Natasha:

Maya Jayaweera Thomas

Maya Jayaweera Thomas is a herbologist, writer, workshop facilitator and creative consultant specialising in plant medicine, food and growing.

Maya’s background is in documentary filmmaking for Channel 4; ITV and the BBC, and script editing. Having left London a decade ago to pursue a life more closely connected to the land, she went on to gain a distinction from The Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh in Herbology. Maya then worked with growers, plant medicine practitioners and chefs across the UK. On returning to London Maya’s work has centred on finding innovative ways to connect people with their environments through the stories of plants.

Maya regularly collaborates with Chelsea Physic Garden and Toast, and has worked with the Garden Museum; Soho Farmhouse; Charleston Plant Festival; Rough Trade Books and Bloom Magazine.

Natasha Richardson

Natasha Richardson has a BSc (Hons) in herbal medicine from Lincoln University and a master’s in the history of women’s medicine from the University of Oxford. Having struggled with period pain, followed by an unsuccessful search for treatment, Natasha applied her scientific knowledge to create herbal remedies that finally resolved the problem.

Today, Forage Botanicals offers natural products expertly made by her, personalised 1:1 treatment plans and online courses for empowering menstrual education, menopause and more. Natasha ran a successful clinic for over 10 years helping with menstrual complaints from menarche to menopause before writing her book ‘Your Period Handbook’.

Now Natasha has a team that takes patients while she focuses on product development and community relationships.