This is usually a busy time of year for us, as we prepare for a Heritage Open Day, with tours of the building and garden. The limited space inside the building makes that impossible this year, so we have had to think of ‘virtual’ alternatives. We have therefore been just as busy, but with fingers on keyboards, learning new skills, rather than with garden tools and putting up marquees. We have sorted through some archive photos of the building and garden prior to restoration, in order to tell more of the story of the last 20 years. Here is one of the garden from 2002, after the allotmenteers had departed, leaving behind their creative constructions of fencing and cold frames. A slideshow of these photos will be available to view on our Virtual Open Day page from 19th September, during Heritage Open Days 2020, and will also form part of the biennial Congleton Heritage & Antiques Festival at www.congletonheritagefestival.com (also now a virtual event). Let’s hope that we can get together in reality next year, which will mark 20 years since the land and buildings were acquired, and about 200 years since the Bath House was built.
There has been plenty of colour still be found in the garden, with the Veronicastrum looking particularly good against the Fennel. Also known as Apothecary’s Root, it is native to North America, where the roots were used to treat liver disorders and constipation. The Fennel seeds, which will develop after the yellow flowers die back, have a pleasant taste and are a useful aid to digestion.
Throughout the garden, wild plants appear of their own accord, as if in the knowledge that they will stand a fair chance of being accepted into a Physic Garden on their merits. The Officinalis border is home to some tall and lush examples of Selfheal, normally regarded as a weed, but given a free pass due to their medicinal properties, although strictly speaking in the wrong place. A Wild Angelica plant has also appeared from nowhere, near the meadow. Find out more about Wild Angelica here.
Bank Holiday Mondays are usually an occasion for the Physic gardeners to bring food to share at the Bath House, since our normal eating establishments would be closed. As the weather was fine on August Bank Holiday, the lawn was a better place in which to maintain social distance. Since we sat under the gaze of the stone head of Bacchus on the Garden Shelter, it seemed appropriate to raise a glass of English Bacchus wine to celebrate. This had to be bought in, as our own Bacchus grape vine is still in its first year, and yet to bear fruit.
Progress has been made on the utility building, with a plywood liner now in place for the storage area. Work has also been done on making door and window frames.
We have been tidying up the area around the new steps, and are planning a rockery, to help retain the soil and make use of spare stone offcuts. That will give the garden volunteers the task of researching medicinal, shade loving rockery plants.
