Gothic Gardening: Theme Gardens

The Botanic Cathedral

The architecture, the ceremony, the symbolism, even the mood of Catholicism make it a religion that attracts and fascinates the Gothic element, even if those Goths don't actually practice the religion itself. The gothic aesthetic is obsessed with gargoyles, rosaries, gothic arches and stained glass, Orthodox icons, candelabras, crucifixes, and many trappings of the Catholic and Orthodox religions. While Catholicism many not seem as grounded in the fruits of the earth as, say, the Druids of Ireland are, there do exist connections between the Church and green growing things. Monks were some of the greatest vintners that Europe has ever had; almost every cloister had an herb garden for culinary and medicinal purposes. There are many plants which had a symbolic link to the Virgin Mary, and entire gardens have been devoted to Her flowers. And there are plants which have no real symbolic or religious connection, but have names that reflect those elements of the Church which people saw in their horticultural visage. This garden contains many of the plants of Christian folklore, my version of a Botanic Cathedral.

Flowers of the Madonna

There is a very long list of plants that have associations with the Virgin Mary, and Mary Gardens were very popular in medieval Europe. Most of these plants are supposed to represent some aspect of the Virgin's wardrobe or household or part of her human form. Others have deeper religious meaning and symbolize certain aspects of spiritual life. The complete list of plants is staggering, and only a few flowers are listed here. A very comprehensive list of Mary's flowers can be found at Mary's Gardens.

Madonna Lily

This flower symbolizes the moral beauty and purity of Mary. The golden anthers represent the glory of her soul. These lilies were carried by the angel of the Annunciation.

Rose

The rose is the emblem of Mary, bearing the flower which is Christ. Both red and white roses are appropriate for a Mary Garden. When St. Thomas opened Mary's tomb, he found that her body had been replaced by roses and lilies. Originally, rosary beads had been made of rolled up rose petals.

Rosemary

The flowers of the rosemary were once white, but Mary spread her coat to dry on a rosemary bush, and the flowers were forever blue after that. Any blue-flowering plant is appropriate for Mary, since she is most often depicted wearing blu e.

Strawberry

This represents the "Fruitful Virgin", since the plant is in fruit and flower at the same time. Supposedly , the Virgin Mary accompanies children who go strawberry picking on St. John's Day. Mothers who have lost children should not eat strawberries on this day, or her child will not enter Paradise.

Impatiens

These are "Our Lady's Earrings", which adorn the ears of she who heard the word of God and kept it.

Lady's Smock, or Cuckoopint

In Europe, this flowers at Ladytide, March 25. The silver-white blossoms resemble little smocks hung out to dry.

Ladyslipper

This flower is symbolic of Mary's visit to Elizabeth; "All her steps were most beauteous."

To further outfit Our Lady:

• Our Lady's Mantle: Ipomoea
• Our Lady's Ribbons: Ribbon Grass
• Our Lady's Laces: Dodder
• Our Lady's Nightcap: Canterbury Bells
• Our Lady's Tresses: Quaking Grass
• Our Lady's Cushion: Armeria
• Our Lady's Candlesticks: Oxlip
• Our Lady's Thimbles: Campanula
• Our Lady's Bedstraw: Galium verum

Milk Thistle

Once known as 'Our Lady's Thistle', Carduus marianus gets its name from the white veins in its leaves. Legend has it that one day Mary stopped to feed the Holy Child, and was so tired from her long ride that she fell asleep. The babe was also soon slumbering, and some drops of milk escaped from Her Breast, and fell upon a thistle, which forever bears the imprint of this accident.

Plants Associated with the Savior

A small selection of plants that have some connection to the Son of God....

Passion Flower

When the Spaniards came to the New World, they found a vine which they called Maracoc, but we know as Passion Flower. They saw in the flower the symbol of Christ's Passion, and assigned each part of the flower a meaning. The leaf was a symbol of the spear, the five anthers were the five wounds, the tendrils were cords and whips, the column of the ovary was the pillar of the Cross. The circle of threads in the center of the flower was the crown of thorns. The ten petals were the ten apostles who did not deny or betray the Lord. The life span of the flower was only three days, which resonated with the three days and nights that "the Son of man be...in the heart of the earth."

Dogwood

This is one of the trees on which Christ was supposed to have been crucified. The tree pitied his suffering, so He promised it would never again grow large enough to be used for such a nefarious deed. The blossoms of this tree form the shape of a cross, and the dark spot present on each petal represents Christ's wounds.

Holly

Its common name is a corruption of 'holy'. The bark is bitter, as in the bitterness of sin. The prickles are the sufferings of Christ. And for those with red berries, they represent the blood of Christ.

Crown Imperial

This flower supposedly stared boldly at Christ while He was on the way to His Crucifixion. It was later so shamed by this action that it has forever since held its head down.

Rush and Jujube

These two plants were the most likely combination used to form the crown of thorns. Rush, a bog-loving grass, was most likely used to form a circlet, and then the thorns from the jujube, Ziziphus rhamnus christi, were add ed to the circlet. An ancient crown made in this manner is found at Notre Dame in Paris.

In a Monastery Garden

A monastery normally had more than one garden. There was a vegetable garden, which was used to (obviously) to grow food and herbs such as onions, garlic, leeks shallots, celery, parsley, chervil, coriander, dill, lettuce, poppy, savory, radishes, parsn ips, carrots, cabbage, beets, and corncockles. The physic garden, usually located right next to a window of the doctor's house, contained plants which were used by him. These herbs included rose, watercress, sage, peppermint, rosemary, pennyroyal, watercress, rue, tansy, and others. Many of these herbs were aromatic, and the location of the garden would allow the patients the benefit of their scents. Not wanting to waste space, the cemetery area of the monastery would have many trees planted in it, where ever there were not graves. Fruit trees were often grown in this area, including apple, pear, plum, fig, peach, and quince. Some nut and ornamental trees would also be grown in the cemetery. The cloister area would often have the physic herbs growing in it, as well as 'church herbs': those plants used primarily for decoration of the church and celebration of feast days and processions. These 'church herbs' would also be planted in the area known as the 'field of Paradise', which was an open space at each end of the church. All monasteries would have an orchard, and many larger monasteries had a vineyard. Other gardens which might found in a monastery included a Mary Garden, dedicated to the Virgin, or a Rosary, which originally just meant a rose garden. All the gardens would be under the care of the gardinarius, who had an assistant for each garden.

Flowers of the Saints

Monks once compiled a catalogue of the flowers dedicated to each saint, and every day of the year, save one, has a saint/flower combination. Poor St. Sylvester, whose feast day is December 31st, is the only one whose entry reads "No flower appropriate d". An old verse gives many of the most important flowers associated with the Christian year:

The Snowdrop, in purest white arraie,
First rears her head on Candlemas daie;
While the Crocus hastens to the shrine
Of Primrose love on St. Valentine.
The comes the Daffodil, beside
Our Lady's Smock at Our Lady-tide.
Aboute S. George, when blue is worn,
The blue Harebells the fields adorn;
Against the day of Holie Cross,
The Crowfoot gilds the flowerie grasse,
When S. Barnabie bright smiles night and daie,
Poor Ragged Robin blooms in the hay.
The Scarlet Lychnis, the garden's pride,
Flames at S. John the Baptist's tide.
From Visitation to S. Swithin's showers,
The Lillie White reigns Queen of the Floures;
And Poppies, a sanguine mantle spred
For the blood of the Dragon S. Margaret shed.
Then under the wanton Rose, agen
That blushes for Penitent Magdalen,
Till Lammas daie, called August's Wheel,
When the long Corn stinks of Camamile.
When Mary left us here below,
The Virgin's Bower is in full blow;
And yet anon, the full Sunflowre blew,
And became a star for Bartholomew.
The Passion-floure long has blowed,
To betoken us signs of the Holy Roode.
The MIchaelmas Daisies, among dede weeds,
Blooms for S. Michale's valorous deeds;
And seems the last of floures that stode,
Till the feste of S. Simon and S. Jude--
Save Mushrooms and the Fungus race,
That grow till All-Hallow-tide takes place.
Soon the evergreen Laurel alone is greene,
When Catherine crownes all learned menne.
The Ivie and Holly Berries are seen,
And Yule Log and Wassaile come round agen.

One other saint's flower that might be of particular interest is Nigella, also known as Love-in-a-Mist, which is dedicated to St. Katherine. It looks like the spokes of a wheel, which is what was used to torture and martyr this saint.