Medieval Herbs Are Still Useful Today
July 29, 2008
For millenniums, in all different cultures throughout the world, cultivating and reaping herbs has been performed. It was even considered a high art in medieval Europe. With the Greeks lacking medical know-how and technology, the Middle Ages relied heavily on Medieval herbs for medicines. The practice they used mixed knowledge through experience with balderdash, but they did know much that was well-grounded.
The Medieval herb garden was both beautiful and functional, providing herbs for medicinal purposes and cooking as well as a setting for calm reflection. These gardens have been reincarnated in New York’s Cloisters. Constructed in the 1930’s, it was carefully planned based on its Medieval predecessor. The result of the planners’ attention to detail resulted in a stunning accomplishment of that goal.
The herb garden is prominently featured among The Cloisters’ numerous sections. Despite the various types of New York weather that occur throughout the year, over 250 species are able to be grown.
These historical herb gardens were very original and had raised garden beds, wattle fences and a central wellhead along with the Medieval herbs. These gardens served as a magnificent centerpiece and were often surrounded by lush orchards and other pretty plants.
In the winter, many are placed inside pots that are similar to ones found in the period. This helps the fragile ones survive in the cold, harsh climate.
Medieval herbs were often used to keep evil spirits away or thought to have possessed magic powers, which was the case with dill. Rosemary was believed to prevent the plague, and sage was used to help epileptics.
The herb garden is arranged in nine sections. They are grouped according to their use in medieval times. One group is for household plants such as Thistles and Absinthe, next those used for healing or medicinal purposes like Liquorice and St. John’s Wort, and the third for such aromatics as Lemon Balm and Lavender.
Caraway and Fennel, Parsley and Borage were used for cooking. Other herbs like Meadow Rue were used for questionable reasons and there were herbs that were thought to be magical like Herb Robert.
Herbs were widely used in the middle ages, more so than today. But the same Medieval herbs remain available to modern herbalists. New research continues to identify medicinal properties of these herbs, often confirming that they are effective for the purposes they were used for centuries ago.
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