What is a Physic Garden?

Known originally as “apothecaries gardens”, many monasteries and large estate mansions had gardens where plants were grown for cooking, healing and dyeing wool and fabric. They were also known as kitchen gardens or potagers (in French: Jardin Potager).

The tradition of physic gardens stretches back several centuries; in Britain, the first to be established was the University of Oxford Botanic Garden, founded in 1621.

Medicinal plants are grown in Physic Gardens to inform and educate about plants and their healing properties.

Plants have been a source of healing and nutrition for centuries; we have monasteries from the Middle Ages to thank for many of the medicinal remedies that must have originally been based on trial and error. Plants such as sage, rosemary, mint, thyme, and borage were grown in the infirmary garden of monasteries and used to prepare ointments, cordials, infusions, and purgatives for the treatment of the monks themselves and the local people in the vicinity. Today, around 50% of our medicines are based on plants.

Visitors may be surprised to see what they may consider to be “weeds” thriving in the garden – but plants such as dandelions and nettles are regarded as important in medical herbalism, and deserve their place in any physic garden, together with the more “romantic” plants such as meadowsweet, lemon balm and comfrey.

You may also wish to find out more about our Anton Chekhov Garden at the rear of the building.