Gardens in Art: Medieval Hermit Garden-The Thebaid of Gherardo Starnina
Karen This Thebaid attributed to Gherardo Starnina (1354-1413) is one of many such painting that told the stories of some early Christian monks and hermits who went in the areas of…
Plants of the Bible: Twisted Acacia (Acacia raddiana aka Vachellia tortilis aka Acacia tortilis)
Also known as umbrella thorn and Israeli babool, this medium to large tree is native to arid and semi-arid regions of Africa but is also found in the Middle East…
Plants of the Bible: Coriander (Coriandrum sativa)
Also known as cilantro and Chinese parsley, coriander is a warm weather annual native to southern Europe and the eastern Mediterranean but is widely cultivated elsewhere as a culinary herb…
Plants of the Bible: Cumin (Cuminum cyminum)
Cumin is a herbaceous annual native to the eastern Mediterranean east to India and has been known from ancient Egyptian times. Although there have been many claims about the medicinal…
Plants of the Bible: Apple (Malus domestica aka M. pumila)
The domestic apple is a deciduous tree native to central Asia and has been grown for thousands of years in Asia and Europe. The trees grow 6-15′ tall in cultivation…
Gardens in Art: Medieval Garden in Songe du Vergier
A miniature from a 15th century French illuminated manuscript shows six people in a garden. The manuscript, Songe du Vergier, is a treatise on the rules of succession to the…
Plants of the Bible: Mustard (Brassica nigra)
Native to areas of northern Africa, Europe, and Asia, this winter annual grows 4-8′ tall and has a dull gray branchless stem and 10″ long stalked leaves that are obovate…
Plants of the Bible: Black Mulberry (Morus nigra)
Black mulberry is a deciduous tree originally from southwestern Asia and a member of the mulberry family that also includes figs, Osage-orange, and banyan. It has wide spreading branches that…
The Language of Flowers: Milkweed (Asclepias spp.)
Asclepias is a genus of herbaceous perennials and a member of the dogbane family, Apocynaceae, that also includes blue star (Amsonia), periwinkle (Vinca), and oleander (Nerium). There are over 140…
Plants of the Bible: Date Palm (Phoenix dactylifera)
Date palm is a tender evergreen tree that probably orginated in the Fertile Crescent and has been cultivated since 7,000 BC. It is a member of the palm family, Arecaceae,…