Living Apothecary
Posted on October 4, 2015 by bob in Yard 'N Garden
What do dancing girls, caterpillars, beautiful flowers, delicious fruit, bees, and medicine all have in common? Answer: Passiflora, commonly known as Passionflower or Maypop. Native to the Southeastern U.S., this vine, with flowers resembling ballerina costumes, plays host to several native caterpillars, has delicious fruit, and attracts bees to its delightful blossoms. All that, and it is believed to have medicinal properties too.
Visit the Auburn University Medicinal Plant Garden and within the 4,200 square foot planting area you’ll find Passiflora (Maypop) and nearly 100 additional species and varieties of plants with medicinal uses. There are fat purple beans, round red fuzzy ball blooms, and silky white flowers hidden at the base of a sheath of green leaves of the Turmeric plant, as well as the dancing-girl blooms of the Passiflora. The plantings also include Lemon Grass, Ginger, Lemon Balm, Purslane, Mountain Mint, and Blue Fortune.Through the ages, the leaves, buds, flowers, and rhizomes of these plants have been used to treat maladies ranging from upset stomachs and high blood pressure to migraines and skin cancer. Recent research indicates some of these plants may even have benefits related to cancer and Alzheimer’s Disease.
The Auburn garden is a valuable outdoor classroom to teach interested individuals about the medicinal uses of plants. Guided public tours of the garden are offered April through October on the third Thursday of the month, while private tours are available by appointment. Entertaining and educational, the tours are led by garden curator Tia Gonzales and start with a plant sale followed by a walk through this botanical wonderland. The Medicinal Plant Garden is also open daily for self-guided tours. All plants are labeled with Latin and common names and on-site handouts list both names, family, and medicinal uses of the plants in the garden.
Weekend workshops focus on garden-related projects, such as making herb-infused vinegars. Workshop information is available on the Auburn University Medicinal Plant Garden’s Face Book page. Researchers at Auburn and other universities use the garden as a source of plant materials, as do growers and other individuals who can obtain seeds and plants from the facility.
Originally created by Dr. Dennis Shannon as part of a research project, resources for the Medicinal Plant Garden have been extremely limited since the end of Shannon’s research. Support from the public is crucial to ensure the future of this valuable planting site for the people of Alabama.
Gifts to the Medicinal Plant Garden, from in-kind donations to cash donations and corporate support, are welcome and are tax deductible as allowed by law. To support the Medicinal Plant Garden, contact Jordan Moseley at AU’s Development Office for the College of Agriculture. (334-844-3472, jjmoo16@auburn.edu)
Directions to the Medicinal Plant Garden:
From the Auburn campus, drive south on South College Drive to traffic light at Woodfield Drive. Turn right and drive 0.2 mile. Turn right on gravel road. Turn right through first gate. Continue to grassy area to park. Garden is on right.
Contact Information:
Tia Gonzales, Garden Curator,
Gonzats@auburn.edu, (334) 444-2857
www.FaceBook.com/AUMedicinalPlantGarden
AUmedicinalplantgarden@gmail.com
Betsy Coley, a Master Gardener in the Capital City Master Gardener Association since 2005, lives in Montgomery. For more information on becoming a master gardener, visit our website, www.capcitymga.org or email capcitymga@gmail.com.
Capital City Master Gardener Association
FREE LUNCH & LEARN
“Trees for Montgomery Soils and Climate”
October 7, Noon – 1:00 p.m.
Bring a Sack Lunch. Drinks Provided
Armory Learning Arts Center
1018 Madison Avenue
For more information contact the Montgomery County Extension Office (334) 270-4133.
