The Julie and Barney Feinblum Herb Garden
Honoring Colorado’s Natural Products Industry
A Gift Rooted in Gratitude, Values, and Plants
The Julie and Barney Feinblum Herb Garden is an endowed, living classroom that celebrates Colorado’s influential role in the natural and organic products movement, while educating future generations of students through hands-on plant science. Inspired by CSU’s trial gardens, Barney saw the College of Agricultural Sciences as the perfect partner thanks to its commitment to scientific rigor and innovation in agriculture and food systems.
About Julie and Barney Feinblum
For Julie and Barney Feinblum, the Herb Garden is deeply personal, forward-looking, and inseparable from the life, family and work they built together.
Since first meeting and marrying in Colorado in the early 1970s, Julie has been foundational to Barney’s career as a leader in the state’s natural and organic products industry. Julie, a dedicated natural products enthusiast, encouraged Barney to join Celestial Seasonings when it was still a small herbal tea company. His role grew over the years, ultimately serving as President of the company, now recognized as a national brand. Through simple, healthful plants like chamomile, peppermint, and hibiscus, Celestial Seasonings helped introduce millions of Americans to herbal wellness and plant-based living. Those same herbs now return, decades later, as living teachers for students at Colorado State University.
Julie and Barney Feinblum’s influence in Colorado’s food and agriculture industry extends beyond herbal tea to include helping to develop the first national organic milk brand, Horizon Organic, where Barney served as CEO in the mid-1990s. Through these leadership roles and board service on pioneering natural and organic products businesses, Barney’s work shaped how natural and organic products reach grocery store shelves nationwide, bringing values like transparency, environmental stewardship, and farmer partnerships into mainstream retail.
Together, the Feinblums have shown firsthand how thoughtful entrepreneurship and consumer advocacy can transform not only products but entire industries.
At the heart of their commitment to healthy living and thriving communities is a shared belief: that plants are not merely commodities, but teachers that quietly demonstrate resilience, interconnection, and the power of small things to create lasting change. That belief is evident in the Feinblum Herb Garden.
Their gift to CSU reflects a belief that education should be tangible, values-driven, and rooted in the natural world. By creating a living herb garden for students, the Feinblums pass forward what plants have given them: curiosity, purpose, and the confidence to build something meaningful.
“Colorado changed our lives. We built a good life here, and this is our way of giving back.”
— Barney Feinblum
A Garden With Purpose
The herb garden features a diverse collection of plants representing a wide range of cultural traditions, geographic regions, and historical uses:
Medicinal herbs used in traditional and modern herbal medicine
Culinary herbs central to global food cultures
Tea herbs that reflect Colorado’s historic role in the herbal tea movement
Together, these plants support experiential learning, interdisciplinary research, and community engagement, bridging classroom theory with real-world application.
A Living Legacy for Students
At its core, the Feinblum Herb Garden is designed for students. Here, students:
- Study herbs in their living form, not just in textbooks
- Explore how plants connect agriculture, wellness, and business
- Learn how science, ethics, and entrepreneurship can reinforce one another
By walking through the garden, students encounter a simple but powerful idea: meaningful change often starts small—with curiosity, values, and a few plants.
Help This Garden Grow
The Julie and Barney Feinblum Herb Garden is designed to expand its plant collections, educational programming, and student impact over time. While endowed in perpetuity, its long-term vision is shared by a broad community of supporters who believe in the power of plants, science, and values-driven leadership.
There are many reasons to be part of this living legacy:
- Support student learning through experiential education and research
- Honor Colorado’s natural products community and its pioneering role in shaping how we eat and live
- Help expand one of the nation’s leading university-based herb collections
Whether you are an alumnus, industry leader, grower, researcher, or simply someone who believes that small plants can spark big change, your support helps ensure this garden continues to inspire future generations.
Support the Feinblum Herb Garden
If you have questions about supporting the garden, please contact Karrie Butler for recognition opportunities at karrie.butler@colostate.edu or (970) 217-2740.
Honoring the Community That Helps This Garden Grow
The Julie and Barney Feinblum Herb Garden is supported by a growing community of individuals and organizations who believe in the educational power of plants and the importance of stewarding Colorado’s natural products legacy.
“We are grateful to each supporter whose contribution, large or small, helps this living classroom thrive.”
— Julie & Barney Feinblum
