02/20/2026
Please join us for Herb Day 2026, “Celebrating 10 Years of Growing Together!”
Saturday, February 28
9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens at Burden
4650 Essen Lane, Baton Rouge, LA 70809
Herb Day is the Herb Society of America Baton Rouge Unit’s big annual event that raises funds to support our work in creating and maintaining two public herb gardens in Baton Rouge. The two gardens, the Heritage Garden at the LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens on Essen Lane, and the Sensory Garden at the Independence Park Botanical Gardens on Independence Blvd. showcase various native, culinary, and medicinal plants and are open to the public year-round.
From Herb Day’s humble beginnings in 2016 to the extravaganzas of recent years, the event has become a wildly popular early-spring destination for garden lovers across South Louisiana! And it’s not just an herb sale—we have many other exciting things going on during Herb Day!
Gates open at 9:00 a.m. (sorry, no early admission or sales) and the event continues until 2:00 p.m. Cash is preferred (small bills if possible), but we also accept credit cards, Venmo, and Zelle. Community Coffee is graciously helping sponsor our event by providing bottled Espresso + Cream drinks, so be sure to pick up yours before you start shopping.
Bring a wagon and plan to spend some time among the thousands of herb plants we’ll have for sale! Kickstart your spring planting with everything from culinary favorites to fragrance plants and more, plus some vegetables and a selection of tomatoes grown by the LSU AgCenter. This is a great place to find all your favorite herbs under one open-air pavilion!
After gathering your herbs, be sure to visit the vendors set up outside the Orangerie. We have a fabulous line-up of talented local artisans and craftspeople who’ll be on hand with a myriad of products this year. We have vendors who specialize in a wide variety of creations, from fine art to jewelry, pottery, textiles, and more, as well as homemade jams and jellies, breads and other baked goods, condiments, and flavored oils and vinegars, to name just a few. You can even find food for your plants in the form of worm compost and worm tea!
Representatives of other kindred organizations, from garden clubs to beekeepers, will also be on hand to tell you about their groups and show what you can do besides herb gardening.
After wandering outside, take a break in the Orangerie and visit our Herb Society’s Tea Bar. We'll have six new herbal teas this year, several returning favorites, and a variety of homemade pastries.
Food trucks will offer popcorn, pralines, lemonade, gelato, cotton candy, and other local delicacies.
And don't miss the informative educational programs in the Conference Center!
Session 1: 10:00 a.m.
Bees in the Spring, by Kevin Langley, President of Capital Area Beekeepers Association
Interested in attracting pollinators to your garden? This is the program for you! Kevin will speak about plant/bee compatibility to maximize the impact of your gardening efforts.
Session 2: 11:00 a.m.
Beginning with Herbs, by Art Scarbrough. HSABR Program Chair
Art will cover the basics of getting started with herb gardening, from choosing containers and sites, the best potting medium for various plants, water and sunlight requirements, fertilizers, and more.
Session 3: 12:00 p.m.
The Ancestral Apothecary of the Acadians, © Jennifer L. Blanchard, 2026
Jen’s talk explores the rich herbal traditions carried by Acadian settlers from the shores of Nova Scotia to the bayous of Louisiana, highlighting the medicinal plants central to Acadian healing practices, how these remedies evolved through new landscapes and cultural exchanges, and the enduring role of botanicals in Cajun folk medicine.
We hope you all can visit us on our big day and enjoy Burden's early-spring gardens as you browse our offerings!
See our website at https://www.hsabr.org/ for more information and lists of herbs.
