Dr Caren Hauptfleisch has worked in herbal medicine for 37 years. At Spier, her knowledge of plants has become part of a wider approach to wellness shaped by the farm itself.
This short documentary follows Dr Caren through the gardens where she works and into the spa, where herbs grown and prepared on the farm find their way into herbal teas and experiences such as the Cape Bath House.
She has known this land for decades and has watched it change from the depleted soils of conventional monoculture farming into a farm alive with renewed biodiversity. That relationship with the land informs the way she works and the way we think about wellness at Spier.
Through Dr Caren’s story, the film explores what becomes possible when we pay closer attention to the plants around us and make nature part of daily life.