Plants of the Bible: Aloe (Aloe vera aka Aloe barbadensis)
Karen Best known as aloe vera, this evergreen succulent perennial may be native to the Canary Islands, Madeira, and the Cape Verde Islands or the Arabian Peninsula. Plants grow 2-3′ high…
Gardens in Art: Monastic Garden-Il Fior de Virtu
This woodcut of a monastic garden is the title page from a Florentine verison of Il Fior de Virtu (Flower of Virtue) dating from 1491 and drawn up by friar…
Plants of the Bible: Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus aka Curcurbita citrullus)
Archaeological and artistic evidence suggests that ancient Egyptians enjoyed eating watermelons over 3,500 years ago. A tiny fragment of a watermelon leaf as well as tomb paintings indicate that the…
Plants of Colonial Williamsburg: Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare aka F. officinale)
Fennel is a herbaceous perennial and a member of the carrot family, Apiaceae that also includes parsley, celery, and Queen Anne’s lace. It is native to the Mediterranean region region…
Plants of the Bible: Lotus (Nelumbo nucifera)
The lotus is associated with Job in the Bible and some scholars have identified it as Nelumbo nucifera, the sacred lotus of Egyptian fame. It is an aquatic perennial native…
Plants of the Bible: Lentil (Lens culinaris aka Lens esculenta)
Lentil is a cool season annual domesticated in the Fertile Cresent and dating back to 7500-6500 BC. The many branched plants grow 12-20″ tall may be erect or spreading. The…
Plants of the Bible: Box (Buxus sp.)
Box is a slowgrowing evergreen shrub or small tree with small leaves and clusters of small yellow-green, apetalous male and female flowers in the leaf axils of the same plant.…
Plants of the Bible: Rue (Ruta graveolens)
Also called herb of grace, rue is an evergreen mounding subshrub native to the Balkan Peninsula where it grows on dry hillsides, often on limestone. The ancient Greeks used rue…
Gardens in Art: Medieval Secular Garden- Emily in Boccaccio’s Teseida
This scene by Barthelemy d’Eyck is from the manuscript, Teseida, an epic poem written by Giovanni Boccaccio c. 1340-1341. It shows Emily, the younger sister of the amazon Hippolyta, sitting…
Plants of the Bible: Bay (Laurus nobilis) or Cedar of Lebanon (Cedrus libani)
The Hebrew word אזרח (ereh) has been translated in various ways but actually means native born, i.e. a tree not transplanted, but growing on its native soil. Some authors assumed…