"Let's go to the house,
for the linen looks white,
​and smells of lavender,
and I long to lie in a pair of sheets that smell so."
                                                    from The Compleat Angler by Izaak Walton, 1653
  

​Members of the North Carolina Unit, the Herb Society of America, Inc. installed and maintain a Kitchen Garden appropriate to the period of the McNairy House (~ late 1700s).  The little garden area, between the house and the kitchen dependency, holds an assortment of herbs and ornamental plants used for medicines, household purposes (insecticides, fragrance, ornament, cleaning), and for cooking.  You are invited to touch, but please don't pick flowers, remove stems, or attempt to taste leaves - some are toxic.  The plants feed insects and birds, and left alone, many will regenerate.  A small pamphlet pointing out the different plants and explaining their uses is under development and when ready, will be added to the website as well.
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In 2020, the Greensboro History Museum began restoration work on both the McNairy House and the Kitchen Dependency. In preparation for that work, all plants were removed and many kept in the gardens of Herb Society members.  In Spring of 2022, the work was completed and we began the process of re-planting, with a few design changes. 

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UNFORTUNATELY, CIRCUMSTANCES REQUIRED THAT THE N.C. UNIT RETIRE
FROM MAINTAINING THIS GARDEN, BEGINNING FALL 2024.

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OCTOBER, and still the Dianthus and marigolds are blooming.
The Pineapple sage is gorgeous, and a lovely fragrant plant to have by the door!

Thanks to Regina, Mary Jo, and all the volunteers who keep everything tidy and healthy.

Regina encountered, at long last, the creature that has been taking shelter under the Kitchen..,a chubby woodchuck who is guilty of ravishing the Comfrey!

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- - wildlife at the Museum ----
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An ailanthus webworm moth, Atteva aurea, that looks like a bug when resting.  Noticed by Elaine C. while she was weeding in the garden.  The photo with open wings is by  JJ Wilson et al and is on Wikimedia (CC BY 3.0 )

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MONARCH BUTTERFLY CHRYSALIS

While Regina C. was tending the garden, she noticed this Monarch chrysalis attached to the siding of the McNairy House.
​It was seen on September 5th, so by now (September 21), the butterfly has emerged and is on its way.

This chrysalis has appeared, in almost the exact spot, for two years!

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---herbs and flowers at the Museum----

Above is a lush Pineapple Sage plant (Salvia elegans) getting ready for Autumn blooming with a wonderful fragrance (photo by Regina C.     To the right is a Mullein rosette of leaves, ready to start growing next spring for it's third year (photo by Elaine C.)
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Lavender blooming in September, with a visiting bumblebee. Elaine C.

Pineapple sage and marigolds add to a colorful Autumn, with artemisia across the path.   Fall photos are the work of Libby R.

Top row above:  Left - Tarragon, Artemisia dracunculus                Right - Fall clean-up team Amy and Regina, Libby is taking the photo
Middle row:  Left - yellow and russet marigolds                              Right - one of the two rather elderly rosemaries
Bottom row:  Left - Comfrey filled out & ready for winter              Right - what the comfrey blooms look like in spring
​Thanks again to Libby R. for the photos (except the comfrey blooms)

Visit the Greensboro History Museum:
     http://www.greensborohistory.org 

Lavender held in the garden of Elaine C. for two years. Photo: Kathy S.

Calendula. Kathy S.

Thyme settling in. Kathy S.

Dianthus superbus, Fringed pinks. Favored not just for their beauty, but for their sweet fragrance of cloves.  The flowers were often added to wine, salads, and desserts.  From seed purchased at Monticello and grown out by Mary Jo.

Sweet woodruff doing well. Kathy S.

The comfrey still has a few flowers! Kathy S.

Mullein, a roadside weed to us, but a useful plant in years past. Before the flowers set seed, we will cut it back, but notice the large fuzzy leaves. Kathy S.

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After much debate, we left the rosemaries flanking the back door of the McNairy house in place, and they continue to do well after MANY years. Kathy S.

Many other herbs are growing in the garden and by mid-summer will be in full leaf and flower. Kathy S.

A Collage from Nannette W., photos taken 5-30-2022:

From top left - Dill, Mullein, Chamomile, Artemisia, Comfrey, Basil, Sage, Sweet, woodruff

Fall 2019 clean-up crew: Amy, Mary Jo, Elaine, Regina, Libby, Roman (Kathy - photographer)

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