Greetings everyone!

My name is Taylor Rae and I am an herbalist, storyteller and clayworker passionate about rekindling the land relationships of myself and my communities. I have come to understand much of the separation from land that happens, specifically in the Black community, as rooted in the lack of safety and agency that has been central to our land relationships in the past. This was apparent in my youth as I observed much of my immediate family feeling disconnected from and fearful of the natural world. As I grew up, I continued to see this separation as I entered the world of plant science during my time at Northwestern University. I noticed how few Black and Brown voices were credited, acknowledged, or called on within the field. My hope is to tell the stories of our ancestors and help community find safety and solace in the land once again. These relationships are as old as the plants themselves. All we must do is remember.

Why the name Raeflower Holistics?

My university education is in botany and environmental science. As an undergrad, I had the privilege of doing research in pollination biology at the Chicago Botanic Gardens, both in the lab and in the field. Field research had my heart for a long time. Much of my job then was trailing the roads of the Chihuahuan Desert, keeping my eyes peeled for species of Oenothera, a radiant yellow flower that easily captured the attention of pollinators near and far. Many species of Oenothera were adaptive, as many keen species of the desert have to be, and adjusted to the dry heat of their environment and opened their blooms only in the evening. So, there I would be, in the early mornings or right after dusk sitting with Oenothera. Listening. Watching. Waiting for visitors to come round and do the dance of pollination. This is when I learned the power of sitting with plants.

Now to the name, Raeflower. After this trip, sitting with plants became a common pastime for me. And who is constantly around, ready to commune at any given time? Good ole Dandelion, thats who! Whether it be in the grasses of parks or along sidewalks, I began reveling in the moments I would come across these tiny beams of sunshine. As I was beginning my deep dive into herbal traditions, I kept this companion in the forefront of my mind. I was shocked to learn of the deep nourishing medicine dandelion so freely offers. Dandelion, a plant so often villainized by modern society; scoffed at in disgust and thrown away.

Dandelion: one of the first medicines to greet us in the spring, who feeds the pollinators when nights are still frigid. Dandelion: one who teaches lessons of enduring as they grow in the most tumultuous of settings. Contrary to popular opinion, dandelion offers of lessons of care and steadfastness. Dandelion whose distinctive feature is not its many yellow petals, as some would mistake their yellow sunshine for, but its upwards of 200 of individual rayflowers, all creating their own individual seeds. It is the name we share, Ray~Rae, that my life’s work is named after. May dandelion teach us of the power held in the mundane and the abundance of healing that exists in our world.