What Herb Experiences Does Jekka's Offer?

Updated

Jekka's runs herb experiences at its family herb farm near Bristol, aimed at educating and inspiring gardeners and cooks of all ages. The programme ranges from open days you can book as a casual visit to master classes built around Jekka's Herbetum, the farm's herb collection. Dates are published on the farm's events calendar rather than being fixed year-round, so the practical first step is to check that calendar before planning a trip.

Types of herb experience

Jekka's describes its offer as "a variety of herb experiences from open days to master classes based around Jekka's Herbetum." The named formats in the site content are:

  • Open Days – seasonal visiting days at the herb farm, including a plant sale.
  • Discovery Days – listed among the experiences on offer.
  • Master Classes – longer, teaching-focused sessions, developed alongside the farm's other activities.

All of them are built around the Herbetum, so the content is tied to the living collection of culinary and medicinal herbs rather than being a generic gardening course.

What an Open Day involves

The site gives a concrete example: the September Open Days on Friday 11 and Saturday 12 September 2026, run as an Open Day and Plant Sale.

What the description says you can do there:

  • Explore the herb garden as it transitions into autumn.
  • Browse a wide selection of herbs grown at Jekka's.
  • Buy plants, seeds and books.
  • Eat and drink at the farm café — cakes, coffee and herbal infusions.

Tickets are limited morning and afternoon e-tickets, and the site states they are released on 16 August. If you want a specific time slot, that release date is the constraint to plan around.

How to find dates and book

  1. Go to Jekka's events calendar — the site directs visitors there for experience and open day dates.
  2. Check which format is running (Open Day, Discovery Day or Master Class) and whether it is ticketed.
  3. For Open Days, note the stated ticket release date and book an e-ticket for a morning or afternoon slot, since numbers are limited.
  4. If nothing is scheduled, use the newsletter ("All About Herbs") as the recurring channel for announcements.

Who these experiences suit

  • Gardeners wanting to see how culinary and medicinal herbs are grown sustainably — the farm states all herbs are grown following organic principles.
  • Cooks interested in flavour and using herbs, which is the farm's stated focus ("cultivating flavour, creating experiences").
  • Beginners who want inspiration for their own herb garden before buying plants or seeds.

If you mainly want to buy herbs, seeds, kits or gifts rather than visit, the online herb shop covers that separately and does not require attending an experience.

One thing to know before you plan

Jekka's states it has stepped back from large-scale plant production after more than forty years and is now focused on sharing knowledge through the herb garden, the Herbetum, herb experiences, talks, books and a curated range of seeds and products. In practice, that means the visit-and-learn side is the core of what's offered now, and plant availability at events may be more limited than in the farm's earlier years. Check the events calendar for current dates rather than assuming a standing schedule.