Medieval Story

The Scroll of the Medieval Herber:

Your Medieval Herber contains plants that were used in the Middle Ages for food, medicine, paints, and other household purposes. Herb and pleasure gardens – herbers – were nearly always rectangular and raised, as your garden is. Plants were not grouped by type (i.e., "flower," "tree," or "shrub"), but by use; there were plants for “kitchen and seasoning", "vegetables and salads," "brewing," "medicinal," and "magical/religious."

Planting Instructions:

Fill planter with planting mixture to ¼” of top; water until moist;
Sprinkle seeds on top of planting mixture; mist; put cover on top; place in bright light;
Seeds will start sprouting in 3 days; remove cover after two weeks; water once per week.
After the first month, apply a layer of decorative gravel between plants;
Continue to water thoroughly once per week, or when dry to touch.

Background Information:

Medieval gardening was heavily influenced by the writing of ancient Greeks and Romans

An Herber is defined as an herb garden or pleasure garden. The primary characteristic of all herbers was that they were enclosed- stone, brick, hedges, hedges and ditch, rammed earth, Wattle, and lattice. They were raised to improve drainage- especially vegetable and medicinal gardens. Herbers had walks that were grass, dirt, brick, and gravel and were nearly always rectangular.

Plants were drunk, inhaled, pressed on the flesh, and ingested for all sorts of medical problems. Some were later proven to have no medical benefit while some are still used today, such as foxglove and belladonna.

Utilitarian gardens contains food, medicinal, as well plants for strewing on floors, making hand water, quelling insects and other household purposes. Plants were grown for a range of functions and used for dyes for cloth, food, inks, and paints. They were the equivalent of the supermarket, pharmacy, bath and body shop.

There was no distinction between flowers, vegetables, or plants, instead were arranged by use: kitchen and seasoning, vegetables and salads, food dyes, brewing, medicinal, and magical/religious.

Lavish gardens were done with elaborate water features and a viewing house, called the “gloriette” were a symbolic display of the landowners wealth and power.

Check out www.dunecraft.com for more exciting products as well as additional information on your Medieval Herber!