Located in East Burnside's colloquially known “feminist mini-mall,” Hedgerow Herb Company is a unique dispensary that sets itself apart by offering consultations, classes, customized herbal blends, tinctures, and salves that can be used to treat any ailment. Opened in May, Hedgerow is essentially a female-owned and operated dispensary for people who prefer plant remedies.
“Pharmacies have traditionally been places where people go to treat allergies, period pain, headaches, basically anything you'd go to CVS for,” says Madrone McCarthy, who owns and operates Hedgerow with Theresa McKee. “Teresa and I are both interested in the accessibility and preservation of traditional methods, not just herbal medicine but also crafts. The benefits of herbs are so manyfold.”
McKee and McCarthy founded Hedgerow after the East Side herb shop they worked at moved online due to rent instability. The location had been a dispensary for almost 20 years, first as The Herb Shop, then Fettle, and finally Wildish Botanicals. “Theresa and I were torn,” McKenna says. “We didn't want to leave the East Side without a place where we could speak to herbal experts in person, so we decided to find a space ourselves.”
Wanting to find out how two entrepreneurial herbalists transformed one of the most conspicuous vacant storefront spaces in a feminist mini-mall, WW visited the newly opened Hedgerow Herb Co. What we found there was an atmospheric, mystical healing space, with shelves lined with dried herbs hanging from the rafters and amber-hued apothecary bottles, and a community-focused ethos that's indisputably valuable not just to the Lower Burnside Street neighborhood but to Portland as a whole.
WW: What should someone who doesn't have much experience with herbal dispensaries expect when they visit Hedgerow?
Madrone McCarthy: All of these plants have medicinal properties and can support the body's functions and relieve a variety of symptoms. The role of an herbalist is to relieve suffering as much as possible. We do in-depth consultations, but even just talking over the counter about what's going on with your body is almost free care. It's a vulnerable condition and people talk about whatever they feel comfortable talking about, but we really try to be soothing.
Where did your love for natural remedies come from?
We both have a deep love for ancestral techniques and traditional methods, and herbal medicines sold in pharmacies have been people's main medicine for a long time. Up until about 150 years ago, that's how everyone treated themselves. But even during that transition, when pharmacies started to decline in some ways, because doctors' fees became so expensive, people still went to their local pharmacy to get treatments, medicines, whatever you want to call them. We're not saying don't go to the doctor, but there are a lot of treatments that people can easily do at home.
What kind of community events are you two planning as the space becomes established?
We'll be hosting five events each month, each focused around a workshop with a particular plant. We held our first event just a week ago with a hawthorn tree, and it was sold out. Rose will be in July. Our friend from Olympia who runs Hyldyr Publishing is holding a book launch event here next month. We also have classes on medicinal horticulture coming up, and flower arranging classes will be starting soon. We have so many amazing people in our lives – artists and writers and musicians – who need to share their craft in a space like this, so we want to make it really easy to offer classes.
What has been the community's reaction?
Our previous store was in Hawthorne, which is a great neighborhood, but we didn't have a lot of connections with the neighbors. But while we were building here, we had a lot of neighbors, not just in our building, but on the block, come by and introduce themselves. They're all so happy to have a pharmacy in their neighborhood. We're really, really happy.
Good Berry Tea Blend: Lemon Balm, Peppermint, Chamomile, Fennel, Ginger, Orange Peel
I noticed that when I took a sip after a meal, it reduced bloating and intestinal discomfort.
Be Still My Heart Tea Blend: Hawthorn berries and flowers, hibiscus, rose petals and hips, spearmint
It's a very satisfying nightcap, but the bright notes of rose and hibiscus also make it a must-have summer sun tea.
No-hassle tincture: Motherwort, valerian root, blue verbena, sugarcane alcohol, spring water, wildflower honey
Taking this tincture sublingually before a big speaking event helped ease my intense anxiety without the brain fog.
Where to go: Hedgerow Herb Co., 811 E Burnside St., #116, 971-666-8693, hedgerowherbco.com. Daily noon-6 p.m.
