Elsie Harp, Founder of Divina Botanica, is a florist, folk herbalist, and mental health practitioner based in the South-West of England, where she grows seasonal, regenerative flowers in deep relationship with the earth and its rhythms. In this episode, Elsie shares her journey with anxiety and intergenerational trauma, and how the nurturance of the living world has become her greatest source of strength and support.
Elsie’s story takes us on a journey into the expansiveness, wonder, play and connection, that arise through sensing the aliveness that is everywhere around us, and exploring the possibility this holds for healing and integrating challenging experiences—both our own and those of our ancestors.
In Elsie’s We As Nature story, she shares:
- Her childhood relationship with the aliveness of everything in the natural world, and how this sense of belonging to nature gave way to struggles with identity in her teenage and young adult years
- How debilitating anxiety led her to a transformative encounter with birch wood trees and a return to the nurturance of the living world
- How her journey of becoming a mother and working in NHS mental health services connected her with her own mother’s journey—raised in the townships in South Africa during the height of the apartheid—and the intergenerational imprint of this lineage
- How her research into epigenetics intertwined with her connection to the natural world to become a passionate source of strength, and evolved into the offerings and practices she shares today
- The nuance and power of working with flower essences, describing the specific healing properties of the dandelion as an example
Find out more about Elsie’s work at Divina Botanica, discover her upcoming workshops, and connect with her on Instagram and Facebook.
You can listen below or find this episode on all major podcast platforms including Spotify, Amazon and Apple
About Elsie:
I am a florist, folk herbalist and flower farmer growing flowers in Bristol, UK. I grow seasonal, regenerative flowers in a deep relationship with the earth and its rhythms. I grow flowers as a way to bring joy and hope into people’s homes and lives, and know that these little acts of nature connection can have a profound effect on people’s emotions. I work with floristry as a nature connection tool, offering immersive, therapeutic workshops alongside fresh, dried flowers and flower remedies.
Illustrations by Rohama Mailk.
Elsie Harp, Founder of Divina Botanica, is a florist, folk herbalist, and mental health practitioner based in the South-West of England, where she grows seasonal, regenerative flowers in deep relationship with the earth and its rhythms.