Massachusetts, USA
Dr. Thomas Avery Garran has been studying plant medicine for over 30 years. He received his PhD in Materia Medica Studies and Plant Pharmacy at the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences in Beijing, at the National Center for Materia Medica Resources and Daodi Herbs—becoming the first non-Chinese recipient of this degree. From 2007 to 2023, he lived in China, where he conducted clinical studies and research on daodi herbs and ecological cultivation practices.
Thomas holds a Master’s degree in Traditional Oriental Medicine and a certificate in herbal medicine from the American School of Herbalism, where he trained under renowned herbalists such as Michael Tierra, Christopher Hobbs, Roy Upton, and Holly Guzman. He began his clinical practice in 1996 and later served as head of the Herbology Department at the Institute of Clinical Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine in Hawai‘i, also advising the University of Hawai‘i’s Department of Alternative Medicine.
He is the author of two books on Western herbs in Chinese medicine (2008, 2014) and the translator (with annotation) of both the first published book on growing and processing daodi Chinese herbs (2019) and the first Chinese medicine text on men’s health, originally published in the 17th century (forthcoming). His work has been featured in peer-reviewed journals, herbal monographs, and academic publications.
Dr. Garran is currently the Executive Director of the East West School of Herbology and President of Herb Whisperer, Inc., a company focused on medicinal plant agriculture and education. Now based in Western Massachusetts, he and his wife Holly are developing an herbal sanctuary and learning center in the foothills of the Berkshires.
Website: herb-whisperer.com