Herbal Aid Program

We are increasing access to herbalism by providing free medicinal herbs to the underserved communities that need them most.

Unadilla Community Farm’s Herbal Aid Program grows & delivers free medicinal herbs to mutual aid groups and free herbal clinics. Our herbal aid partners then turn our produce into free herbal medicine for the people who need it most, including low-income, BIPOC, and immigrant communities and the unhoused. In 2023, we donated medicinal herbs and berries valued over $18,000.

How It Works

Unadilla Community Farm donates free, fresh medicinal herbs & berries to mutual aid groups, free herbal clinics, and community apothecaries. We can deliver herbs within a 90 minute radius of the farm (West Edmeston, NY 13485) OR ship out herbs via priority mail, both at no cost to you.

Expectations for Recipient Organizations:

Recipient organizations must commit to give these herbs, or herbal products made from these herbs, to communities in need, free of charge.
Herbs are harvested fresh and donated between April 1 and November 1 each season, so recipient organizations must have capacity to promptly process the fresh herbs upon delivery.
We will give preference to organizations with larger capacity for processing and distributing herbs and are especially seeking partners that can handle regular donations of herbs throughout the season, rather than one-offs.
Recipient organizations must be based in the contiguous U.S., with preference for organizations based in New York State or the Northeast.
Organizations that are accepted into the program are asked to complete a feedback form at the end of the season to report on how your organization utilized and distributed the herbs to communities in need.

Delivery Logistics

For organizations wishing to receive large quantities of herb donations (100-400 lbs. at a time, valued at $1,500-$4,000), we can deliver within a 90 minute radius of the farm (West Edmeston, NY 13485) to your organization or to a mutually agreed upon pick-up location, such as a gas station located midway between our organizations’ locations.

Free Mail Order Option

For organizations who cannot meet us within a 90 minute drive from the farm, we also donate herbs by mail, at no cost to you. Herbs are sent via priority mail in insulated coolers to preserve freshness. Mailed orders are smaller, between 10-40 lbs. in size (valued at $150-$400).

The Process:

Please fill out the application form by clicking the button below to tell us about your organization’s work, your herb needs, and your delivery preferences.
We will review applications on a rolling basis and get back to you within 2 weeks to let you know if your organization has been accepted into the program.
Accepted organizations will go on a wait list for herbs, based on the herbs you rank as high priority on the application.
Herbs will be shipped out as they are seasonally available between April 1-November 1. For organizations that are arranging a delivery with us, we will contact you 4-7 days in advance of the harvest to coordinate the day/time/location for delivery. For organizations that indicated the mail order option, we will mail out herbs as they become available and send an email notice with a tracking number, giving you 48 hours notice before the package arrives.

2024 Herbs Available

Anise hyssop (flowers and leaf)
Aronia melanocarpa (berries)
Bee balm (flowers and leaf)
Burdock (root)
Catnip (leaf)
Comfrey, English (leaf)
Currants, red and black (berries)
Echinacea purpurea (flowers and leaf)

Elderberry (berries)
Elderflower
French Tarragon (leaf)
Goldenrod (flowers and leaf)
Gooseberry (berries)
Lavender (flowers and leaf)
Lemon balm (leaf)
Marsh mallow (leaf)

Mint, apple (leaf)
Mint, chocolate (leaf)
Mint, hairy mountain (leaf)
Mint, peppermint (leaf)
Mint, spearmint (leaf)
Mugwort (leaf)
Rosehips (hips)
Sage, common (leaf)

Saint Johns Wort (flowers and leaf)
Sea buckthorn (berries)
Sea buckthorn (leaf)
Stinging nettle (leaf)
Tart black cherry (berries)
Valerian (flowers and leaf)
Wormwood (leaf)
Yarrow (flowers and leaf)

"We feel so blessed that UCF reached out to us about herbal mutual aid. The donations of fresh herbs that we received from them enabled us to make larger quantities of commonly used herbal medicines, expanding our free clinic's apothecary stock. This had a direct positive impact on our community. The large quantity of herbs received at each pick up of donations forced us to have community medicine making days, creating more opportunity for community engagement, more opportunity to send folks home with fresh herbs and more opportunity for herbalists to learn medicine making and processing skills."

"It was amazing. It was a super clear process and we appreciated the ready postage. The herbs came in beautiful condition and we love that you are reusing the cooler. We're excited to make medicine with these offerings and share them with the people!"