MBG To Host Herb Education Day

The Mobile Botanical Gardens (MBG) is holding Herb Education Day on May 17 beginning at 9 a.m. at MBG. There will be herb seminars with Debbie Boutelier, a resident of Autauga County, Alabama, who has been growing and studying herbal plants and their uses for many years. Topics will be “Growing and Using Popular Herbs” and “Culinary Delights with Herbs.” Boutelier teaches workshops on numerous aspects of herbs, including organic herb gardening and the use—culinary, historical and practical in daily life—of herbs. She has pursued her interests in gardening and herbs on both a national and local level. Nationally, Boutelier is a past president of the Herb Society of America and is chair of its Green Bridges Program, a project to encourage gardeners nationwide to plant locally native herbs to facilitate healthy ecosystems for pollinators and the plants they depend on. In Alabama, she worked as an Autauga County Extension Agent for eight years and is a certified Advanced Alabama Master Gardener. She has recently been elected for a two-year term as president of the Alabama Master Gardeners Association.