Their cup of tea: Whidbey couple grows herbs for steeping

Two green thumbs have transformed the mowed pastures of a historic South Whidbey property into blooming gardens that yield herbs for tea every year.

Mike Gerhardt and Sean Wilson craft small batches of tea mixes, striking a balance between flavor and healing properties of the plants. The two-man farm, Wilhardt Woods, is a combination of their last names. Gerhardt prefers planting, while Wilson enjoys harvesting.

“We try to plant things that are useful and beautiful,” Gerhardt said. “We grow a lot of things for insects and wildlife.”

The couple have planted hundreds of native trees and shrubs, encouraging wildlife diversity and ecosystem restoration. The bees buzz happily and sleepily through the gardens of annuals and perennials.

During the pandemic, they decided to add a section to their garden for culinary and medicinal plants.

Coyote mint, lemon balm, chamomile and linden flower are among the many herbs that grow on the Clinton farm. The four main tea mixes are named Nettle Mint Tonic, Coyote Mint, Uplift and Relief. Each has its own distinct set of benefits, whether it’s a heaping dose of vitamins and minerals, smooth minty spiciness for the throat or a brew to calm the nerves. Gerhardt recommends two teaspoons of mix per eight ounces of water.

“You get more benefits if you do a longer steep,” he advised.

Tea mixes from Wilhardt Woods started being available for sale on Whidbey Island Grown’s online Food Hub earlier this year. And there will also be another opportunity to purchase the mixes because this year for the first time, the couple’s property is part of the Whidbey Island Garden Tour on July 12.

“This will be a unique property because it will be the largest one they have and it will involve a lot of walking,” Gerhardt said.

“Someone mentioned a golf court,” Wilson said with a laugh.

But besides the herbs they grow for tea, Gerhardt and Wilson also grow plenty of things for their own consumption, including garlic scapes, mixed greens and strawberries.

In fact, the farm has a long history of strawberry production. According to a 1940 article from the Whidby Record, berries as big as thimbles grew on the seven-acre farm. The following owner, Florence “Skipper” Morrison, also tried growing strawberry plants, but they were devoured by caterpillars overnight, according to a 1960 article in the Seattle Times.

“Skipper was a character,” Gerhardt said. “A lot of people knew her. She just kind of made an impact.”

Morrison moved to the farm in 1945 at the ripe age of 26. It’s where she spent most of her life and even beyond, as her ashes are scattered in the woods. More than half of the land is a thriving second-growth forest.

Wilson and Gerhardt purchased the property in 2011, shortly before Morrison passed away in 2012. They discovered a diary written by June Parks, a past girlfriend of Morrison’s who lived on the farm with her two young children.

“She did so many fun things,” Wilson recalled. “They got a horse. They got goats. And the adventures that they had within that short period of time that June, her partner at the time, wrote about? Spectacular.”

Some of the challenges they faced with island living in the 1940s are all too familiar for today’s residents of South Whidbey.

“We caught the ferry OK but then we sat and sat there and the darn thing didn’t move,” Parks complained in one of her entries. Back then, a one-way trip to Everett cost $1.50 for a car trailer and its passengers and 71 cents for a car and its passengers.

Later that same day, the couple set out on a road trip to Ferndale during a windstorm, planning to drive through Deception Pass after stopping at home for a bite to eat and a change of clothes. The power was out and trees were falling.

“Luckily, the island is crisscrossed with roads, so if one is blocked, you can always take another,” Parks wrote. “A little further on we picked up two sailors that had just got out of the car ahead. They said the radio reported this to be a bad storm. People were being killed by the fallen trees and electrocuted by broken power lines.”

As the diary went on, Parks’ entries grew more and more sparse, perhaps indicative of a growing weariness for the farming life. The Seattle Times article about Morrison noted “that friend didn’t care to stay.”

Morrison herself is described as a “newspaper dealer, part-time postman and ‘Miss Fixit.’” During World War II, she worked in the electrical department of a shipyard, where she picked up many of her handywoman skills. She did all of her own repairs on her automobile and operated a service station in Clinton, according to her obituary. She installed a bathroom in her farmhouse and was fond of cats.

But while she could tinker with anything mechanical, gardening wasn’t her strong suit. Morrison would no doubt be amazed to see how her farm has blossomed thanks to Gerhardt and Wilson.

For more information about the business, visit wilhardtwoods.com.