On about six acres of land, Mariane Desjardins Roy grows medicinal plants on her farm. This year she is celebrating her 10-year anniversary since she started her business, La Fée des Bois Apothecary, in 2012.

A certified herbalist, Roy is one of the few here in the Pontiac. Originally from Quebec City, Roy moved to Clarendon, bought a farm to start her business here, after studying in Montreal to become a herbalist.

Graduating from her three-year condensed program, she was already building a business idea in her mind and was simultaneously looking for a farm to settle on, she said. Knowing she didn’t want to go . . .

back to the city, the Pontiac stood out to her because she liked being surrounded by nature and its affordability drove her to purchase the farm.

She gravitated towards the profession because it allowed her to be in nature and give back to it. She said, “It’s taking care of the human body or even animals, you know, and so you’re growing something that will feed your body, heal your body and maintain your body.” And by doing that, you take care of nature and the whole system, and that is what pulled her in, she added.

Starting her business she found that not many people knew what herbalism was and what her job actually entails, and highlighted that it is more than just making soaps or skincare products.

Herbalism is one of the oldest professions. A traditional medicinal practice based on the use of plants and plant extracts rooted in preventative measures for illnesses rather than curing illness. When studying herbalism, you are taught human anatomy and how it works. Often people will come with a diagnosis and rather than taking pharmaceutical medicine, people can visit a herbalist to see if there is a natural option available, explained Roy.

When she first started selling her products at events and farmers’ markets, she highlighted that if she told people a product could help them sleep she was met with odd stares and people were often wary of her products. “With medicinal plants, you need to talk like forever, people are still very misinformed. I find it got better in the last 10 years though,” she said.

A big portion of why people are still hesitant about the use of medicinal plants is due to the inaccessibility of credible information, Roy said. As well as the fact that people do not equate science and the practice of herbalism together, she added.

“Plants are very good to maintain and prevent. We go to pharmaceuticals when we are sick, but with plants, we should go to them before we are sick. It’s like supplements. You’ll take them to keep healthy,” she said.

One of the ways people can get introduced to plants is to try some if you have something such as digestive issues or insomnia, as a way to test how your body reacts to plant based medicine without a huge commitment, she noted.

Her product line includes 30 plant extracts, 12 teas, and 15 different lotions and ointments, with a shelf life of one to seven years, depending on the product, she added. With direct selling down due to covid, she decided to expand her operation so that her products are on shelves in many places. Doing so she felt that being organically certified would benefit her business.

When making her products from start to finish, Roy is very aware of her ecological footprint and tries to ensure at every stage of her operation she is being sustainable, she explained. She grows her plants locally. When buying ingredients to make her body line, for instance, she buys fair trade organic butters.

She grows every plant under the sun, harvests it, and sells it, she explained. Doing everything herself was an important aspect of her business plan, she pointed out. “My goal when I started was to be able to do everything from scratch, you know from the seed, so I know the quality of the plant that goes in the product,” she said.

For her the most fulfilling aspect of her business has been the positive customer feedback, when receiving an email praising her product and that it worked and helped them. When the work seems a lot an email like that is reassurance that she is on the right path, Roy said. “I really just need to keep pushing.”

For her 10th anniversary, she is currently offering free workshops all through April and May in English and French. People who subscribe to her website will be entered in a draw to win a $150 basket worth of products.

At the farm people can also pick up caged free eggs, get a farm tour, see some animals, buy some herbs along with all the products in her store.

In the next 10 years she hopes to make her farm more accessible for people. Since she has established a clientele, Roy said she is now focusing on beautifying her land to invite more people in and host more workshops, activities and teaching opportunities for people to see what she does on her farm.

“I find the business is somewhere where I can kind of delegate way more to employees, so I can focus more on making the farm prettier and give my time to teaching people,” she said.

These three oils are some of her best sellers that tackles digestive, insomnia and other issues.

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