Exploring the Chelsea Physic Garden

Andrea here, Where I live in New England, the weather has been unseasonably chilly, so the unfurling of Spring hasn’t yet burst into full bloom. But the flickers of nascent green and tantalizing hints of color from early flowers in the local gardens give promise that my daily walks will soon be alive with the sights and scents of the natural world cycling into its peak season.
 
Now, I’m not gardener. I’m too impatient to wait for several years for tiny plants mature into the original vision for the space. And weeding, mulching, deadheading feels like drudgery . . . I am much happier appreciating the work of others!
 
Which is to say, I very much enjoy gardens for the pure sensory pleasure of seeing the colors and textures, and savoring the scents and sounds of the bees busy at work pollinating. But I also find that I have a special appreciation for “practical” gardens, like herb gardens. And my very favorite are physic gardens, which are designed for medicinal purposes.
 
So in the spirit of celebrating the start here in the Northern hemisphere of gardens come to life, I thought I'd give a quick look at the history of Chelsea Physic Garden, one of Britain’s oldest gardens devoted to medicinal plants.

I’m intrigued by the “cutting edge” concept that sparked the creation of physic gardens. In an age where medical practices were still ruled by the ideas of ancient Greeks—the four humors that must be balanced  by purging or bloodletting, to name just one ghastly guiding principle—there were a number of people who were beginning to understand through empirical knowledge the potent healing properties of plants.
 
And so, wishing to establish an abundant source of useful plants close at hand, the Worshipful Society of Apothecaries established the Apothecaries’ Garden in 1673 on a four-acre plot of land leased from Sir John Danvers, who had his own well-established garden situated along the bank of the River Thames in Chelsea, a rural enclave in London.
 
The Society deliberately chose the river location, as the water setting ensured a currents of warmer air. Building a high wall around the garden perimeter also helped form a microclimate conducive to growing a variety of plants. Some of the notable exotic specimens including a fruit-bearing olive tree and hothouse pineapples.
 
The river location was useful in other ways as well. It allowed a convenient way to travel upstream by barge and explore the countryside for local medicinal specimens, and as London was a major port city, with ships arriving all the time from both the New World and the East, it made it easy for exotic specimens to make their way from the dockland to Chelsea.

 
In 1713, Sir Hans Sloane purchased the land on which the garden was located, and in 1722, he leased it in perpetuity to the Society for the yearly fee of £5. (Today the garden still pays the fee to Sloane’s descendants!) His only requirement was that the Society supply the Royal Society with 50 herbarium samples per year for their collection.
 
The 1700’s were the golden age of physic gardens as more and more connections were made with like-minded gardeners both in Britain and abroad, and seed exchange programs were initiated. (Many of which still continue to this day.) The sharing of botanical knowledge knowledge was hugely important and led to a number of important developments in both medicine and economics. For example, cotton is thought to have been introduced to Georgia as the result of early seed exchanges.
 
Sir Joseph Banks, the great naturalist and one of the founders of the Royal Botanic Gardens, helped advise the head gardener on the Society’s collection from the late 1700s until 1814. The Society continued to evolve and pursue its mission throughout the 19th and 20th century as a private Society, and the garden itself was not open to the public. That changed when in 1983 it became a registered charity. It’s now open to all! Today, it features close to 5,00 different edible and medicinal plants.
 
I have a balcony garden of planters filled with herbs, but that’s the extent of my gardening prowess. What about you? Are you a gardener? Do you grow edible plants, herbs or medicinals like chamomile for tea? Do you have a favorite historic garden?

Comments

[Jeanne Behnke]

I have no gardening prowess. I don’t even have the eminently practical herb garden. I love to see what other people do but I’m glad I have a gardener here in California who makes sure I have colorful flowers growing in my yard!

[Kareni]

Thanks for your lovely article, Andrea.

I have no interest in gardening; however, I am fortunate to be married to a man who happily grows lettuce, potatoes, beans, zucchini, and more. He even grows tomatoes for me even though he cannot eat them himself. In the last few years, he's also begun to plant decorative flowers on our mini front deck. I'm lucky to have him and his plants!

[Andrea Penrose]

I'm like you, Jeanne. I admire the lovely gardens around me, I have no prowess—or patience— to dig in the dirt myself.

Managing a few planters of herb is the full extent of my green thumb.

[Lynn Pollard]

I am a mad keen gardener in the middle of England where spring has arrived, the tulips are beginning to go over and the peonies have fat buds.
Having spent three years in South Africa as a child and having had several happy holidays touring New Zealand I have an irresistible urge to grow plants that need winter protection. My tree ferns are unwrapped and all but one are showing hairy humps in their crowns, the precursors of new fronds.
I garden in heavy clay; not ideal for herbs. I have seen many of those growing on the slopes of the Sierra Nevada in Southern Spain in stoney mountain soil. I dug out my herb bed to begin with and replace the top later of subsoil with sand and gravel (ditto with bed of South African plants). The smell on a summer's evening is wonderful but unlike anything else - sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, marjoram, sweet woodruff and many others all mingled together. A tonic in itself.

[Karin]

Yes, I am a lifelong gardener! I've been cultivating my perennial borders at the house we've lived in for almost 30 years. I used to collect exotic varieties of daylilies, and I also cherish my peonies, lilacs and other flowering shrubs. Recently I've developed an interest in native plants, so as I replace things in my garden, I use plants that are native to the Mid-Atlantic coast.
I grow vegetables in some small raised beds, and I do have herbs, including mint, cilantro, dill, thyme, parsley, and more. I also have several berry bushes which were planted by the birds!

[Karin]

Yes, many herbs do thrive in poor soil, without a lot of water. I always avoid fertilizing my herbs, and give them less water, because supposedly the resulting slower growth intensifies the flavor. I am trying to fool my oregano into thinking it's in Greece!

[Karen S. Clift]

I've always loved to garden & for many years, until I bought a house, I gardened at a friend's--they didn't know how to garden or want to know but they did love the veggies! I planted veggies for them & flowers for me (well, a few veggies for me). When I got my own place, I said forget the veggies--give me flowers & color! But I bought a place that's mostly shade. However, the colors of the wide variety of spring bulbs are so wonderful--I love seeing crocus and snowdrops appear in the grass & daffodils, plus a wide variety of other flowering bulbs! My hellebores & bleeding hearts are doing well now as the others fade. In the summer, it's the hostas that add more shades of green & texture, and I go for bright colors in the potted geraniums on the front porch--it's sunny there! It's so much fun to sit out & watch the birds in the yard--and those two rabbits the other day--hey, they're fun too! The grass is full of clover so they leave everything else alone! Time to put the hummingbird feeders up & move the house pots outside!

[Annette N]

Once upon a time I was a gardener. Then I moved to my present home and had to do all my gardening in pots. I planted trees in pots. And they all grew like weeds. But, that means they were large and the pots had become bigger and I could no longer move them. I gave away all my trees. The people who took them were asked to return the large pots, it will not surprise anyone that not a pot was returned.
This year I have planted wild flowers in order to draw bees and butterflies, and it has worked. The flowers are lovely and I have had many visitors to my patio.
Because I had a period of being emotionally down, my African violets are not looking as lovely as they should. I need to repot most of them.
I love plants and seeing the results. I believe that is one of the greatest gifts to man, to see seeds produce wonderous gifts for us.

[Karen S. Clift]

Oh, as for a local one to hang out in--Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Gardens is a wonderful place to be, esp in the spring--they have lots of blooming bulbs as well...and I always loved going thru when the wisteria was blooming because I couldn't keep one going here! Such a beautiful plant!

[Teresa Broderick]

I find gardening so therapeutic. When we moved to our present home we grew our own vegetables for a number of years. The taste of home grown has to be sampled to be believed how different it is to shop bought. I also grew lots of flowers and as we have some land, my husband grows lots of trees which he loves. A couple of years ago I had to stop with most of the garden due to family commitments. I missed it so much. Now I'm getting back into it again. Was hoping to do veg this year but it got too late. I have flowers and am setting more as we go alone. Hopefully the veg will be back next year.
A great post Andrea. I've always been fascinated with plants as medicine.

[Christina Courtenay]

A wonderful post, Andrea! I do have a garden and do my best, but I'm not the world's best gardener so it's a bit hit and miss. Mostly I'm happy if my roses flower and the birds and wildlife enjoy the place!

[Andrea Penrose]

Glad you enjoyed the post. Kareni.

Your hubby is DEFINITELY a keeper!

[Andrea Penrose]

I'm in awe of your talents. Lynn. I wish I wasn't so lazy, because when you describe the scent of your herb garden on a summer evening, it makes me swoon. Your whole garden sounds amazing!

[Andrea Penrose]

Karen, your labors and all the wonderful things that come to life sound wonderful. Watching the wildlife interact with Nature is always such a pleasure, and you help make the synergy even more special. Bravo!

[Andrea Penrose]

Annette, the wildflowers sound gorgeous, and the bees and butterflies must be a joy to watch (and hear!) I love the sound of bees in summertime around bushes and foliage. Such a calming sound. I agree that plants a an elemental part of a world in harmony with itself.

[Andrea Penrose]

That sounds heavenly, Karin. I LOVE the scent of wisteria.

[Andrea Penrose]

So glad you enjoyed the post, Teresa. So many people I know feel that gardening is hugely therapeutic. I think I would probably feel the same way if I ever got into it. Growing vegetables really does make a difference. Such a treat! I hope you get in a crop next year!

[Andrea Penrose]

Christina, I've seen pics of your garden and it looks perfect! Having the birds and wildlife enjoy it is great fun, too. I'm now inspired to hurry to the garden center and get the flowers and herbs for my planters, now that it's finally warmed up enough to put them out!