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How Medieval Herbs Were Used |
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Written by Lee Dobbins
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Thursday, 03 July 2008 |
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Cultures across the globe have cultivated herbs for several millennia, but nowhere were herb gardens elevated so high as an art form as in Medieval Europe. The healing qualities of Medieval herbs were crucial to the Middle Ages while people lived without the medical advancements and technology of the Greeks. While much of what they knew came from practice by mixing fact and fiction, quite a bit of what they did actually worked.
by LeeDobbins
Cultures across the globe have cultivated herbs for several millennia, but nowhere were herb gardens elevated so high as an art form as in Medieval Europe. The healing qualities of Medieval herbs were crucial to the Middle Ages while people lived without the medical advancements and technology of the Greeks. While much of what they knew came from practice by mixing fact and fiction, quite a bit of what they did actually worked.
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.
Even though New York's seasons vary greatly from freezing winters, hot and humid summers, and soggy Spring and Fall, the Cloisters flourish; including the herb garden, an important piece of the Bonnefont cloister.
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.
During the Middle Ages, people grew herbs for warding off evil spirits, which they viewed as a very useful purpose. They associated many herbs with special abilities. For instance, they thought Dill in particular possessed magical powers. They also thought some herbs had healing properties. For instance, they believed rosemary could prevent the plague and that sage could treat epilepsy.
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.
Some types of herbs were used for art and purposes such as encouraging love and marriage. These were thought to be 'magic' plants. The final group contains cooking herbs like Caraway, Fennel, Parsley, and Borage.
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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