Kyle Denton is an herbalist. His expertise revolves around all that grows from the ground: plants, flowers, fruits and more. He owns Tippecanoe Herbs & Apothecary, a Walker’s Point boutique-style store selling herbal medicines, trinkets, household items and more. Throughout the summer, Denton leads Milwaukeeans on herb walks, where he teaches them about herbs and plants to forage around the city.
Watch the video and listen to the audio story below to join Kyle Denton on an herb walk.
Denton opened his shop last fall on 3rd and National. The Walker’s Point shop is small but stocks a ton of herbal medicines and remedies. On shelves you can find trinkets to help with anxiety, depression, digestive health and to help you fall asleep. Handmade soaps and teas cover walls offering similar health benefits.
Denton has opened his store’s doors to the community by providing intimate classes in his shop. He teaches folks firsthand how to create some of the same herbal products he sells in his classes so that when they go home, they can forage and create for themselves.
Another aspect of his life as an herbalist, which he says is his favorite part of his work, is leading herb walks in the Milwaukee community. He’s led walks during the summer through Lynden Sculpture Garden and Seven Bridges. On this walk, the group met on the East Side.
It started at the Charles Allis Art Museum. A group of nearly 30 people gathered into the courtyard behind the museum to follow Denton on a walk. After the group hit the Oak Leaf Trail, the number crept to 40.
Denton periodically made stops near trees, sidewalks, along a trail all the way until the group arrived at the Villa Terrace. He showed and taught the group about ginger roots, monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot) and when they arrived at the final spot of the evening, he showed them some lavender.
Aside from herbal remedies, he also teaches the group how to use these herbs when preparing meals at home. Watch the video above to learn how to use monarda fistulosa, a purple flower commonly found around Milwaukee.