Monthly Made: Buckner’s Botanica – A Plant-Based Path to Wellness

by Angie Kay Dilmore

In 2020, Donald Buckner transformed a passion for plants, an entrepreneurial spirit and a deep trust in the power of positivity into a cottage industry that promotes wellness and quality of life. In addition to formulating Buckner’s Botanica products, he writes a blog that he shares on social media and his website featuring various plants and herbs and how they facilitate healing. Born and raised in New Orleans, Buckner came to Lake Charles in 2005 to ride out Hurricane Katrina and decided to make Southwest Louisiana his home. 

Tell me more about your business. How did you get started? I’ve always enjoyed gardening and the hands-on, mixing-things-together side of science, especially chemistry. Around 2018, I learned about “nootropics” compounds like caffeine and L-theanine that can help support human performance. Not long after, a friend gave me an ashwagandha tincture that he had extracted himself. After talking with him and learning more about herbal medicine, I was hooked. There are hundreds of herbs on this planet that all serve a purpose in healing. After studying and planning, I started Buckner’s Botanica in 2020. My first product was the Level-Headed Formula, with ashwagandha as its key herb. That was a stressful time for people due to the pandemic and then back-to-back hurricanes, Laura and Delta. My aim was to use the effects of ashwagandha to help balance out people’s cortisol and relieve their stress. 

Describe the products you offer. Buckner’s Botanica is a small herbal boutique focused on products that provide high-quality, long-lasting effects. We currently offer four herbal formulas, each one a blend of multiple herbs designed to work better together; “Level-Headed,” “Better Rest,” “Moost” (mood boost) and “Energy Boost,” along with herbal lip balm currently in four scents, a pain relief salve and sea moss gel made to order. Our best-seller is our Number One Pain Relief Salve, followed by our lip balm and then our Level-Headed Formula. 

In what ways does Buckner’s Botanica bring you joy? Personally, I feel that we’re all put here to find fulfillment in some shape, way or form, and that’s what I’ve been chasing. I set out on a mission to help people heal themselves. Every time someone comes back and tells me I’ve helped them on their healing journey, I feel a little more of that fulfillment. Even the process of creating product, taking something from an idea to a tangible product that people actually like and enjoy feels like a dream come true. What keeps me motivated is knowing there’s even more fulfillment ahead, in continuing to learn, grow and share that growth with others. 

What are your goals for Buckner’s Botanica? Next steps short-term are to continue marketing and spreading knowledge about holistic herbal healing, as well as opening a storefront and warehouse so we can expand production. Long-term, I’d love to open a third space here in Lake Charles—a creative hub where people can come to make, learn, rest and connect. Part café, part studio, part workshop space. The goal is simply to create a space that supports creativity, wellness and community in a way that feels natural, accessible and genuinely useful to people. 

For more information, go to bucknersbotanica.com. Find Buckner’s products at Bux Kajun Korner and at area markets and events.