THE PEOPLE

“In wildness is the preservation of the world” ~ Henry David Thoreau

We are in the process of setting up Veriditas Hibernica as a not for profit organization and there will be more information about the people involved soon. In the meantime here is some info about the person who had the original vision...

Nikki Darrell M.B.S., B.Sc.(Hons), Dip. Phyto., M.C.P.P., M.I.R.H "Founder of Veriditas Hibernica"

Nikki is a plants woman, botanist, medical herbalist and aromatherapist who has spent over 35 years researching and working with plants and their connection with people, especially as medicines and foods.

Nikki Darrell was born in Middlesex, UK. From an early age she was fascinated with plants; how to grow them, their therapeutic uses, their perfumes, as food. She started growing herbs at the age of 8 and bought her first herbal at the age of 11 and has not looked back since!

She attended the Sutton Bonnington campus of Nottingham University to study Horticulture and Plant Science (because she could not find anywhere to train as a herbalist!) and after graduating spent 5 years as a research scientist researching into phytochemistry and plant tissue culture, with the last 3 years spent research for a doctorate. Having discovered the School of Phytotherapy she then decided to move back to her first love of working with medicinal plants and so studied massage, aromatherapy and fitness instruction as a way of paying her way through herbal school.

In 1990 she moved to Cork, Ireland and set up the Evergreen Clinic of Natural Medicine with her colleague, Kevin Orbell-McSean. She also set up a business growing organic herb plants, an Aromatherapy School and an essential oil importing business.

In 1999 she finally graduated with a diploma in Herbal Medicine (Phytotherapy) from the School of Phytotherapy.

In 2008 she completed a Masters in Social and Co-operative Enterprise with her minor thesis researching the potential for co-operatives to help develop a Medicinal and Aromatic Plant industry in Ireland.

She now lives in Coachford, Co. Cork with her family.

Nikki works as a practitioner of herbal medicine, aromatherapy, aromatic medicine and incorporates CranioSacral therapy, Sacred plant medicine and sometimes shamanic techniques into her clinical work. She lectures for various 3rd level institutions including the School of Nursing and the School of Pharmacy at University College Cork and also runs short introductory courses about herbs and their uses. She is a campaigner and writer and spends as much time as possible in her garden and walking in nature.

More recently, Nikki has set up a 2-year Apprenticeship course in Herbal and Botanical Medicine for people who wish to learn community herbalism.

If you would like to know more about Nikki's Apprenticeship course please visit the Events & Workshops section.