Historic Tree Grove: A 19th Century Medicinal Garden

Clara Barton portrait by Holly Bird

"The conflict is one thing I've been waiting for. I'm well and strong and young -- young enough to go to the front. If I cannot be a soldier, I'll help soldiers."

Beginning in 1862, Clara Barton worked along the front lines of the Civil War, bringing aid to wounded soldiers and organizing nursing on a scale never seen before. She earned the name "Angel of the Battlefield" as she moved from place to place, helping all she found with little concern for her own welfare. By 1881, when she founded the American Red Cross, Barton was well-known around the world for her dedication to bringing better medical care to people in all circumstances.

"I have an almost complete disregard of precedent and a faith in the possibility of something better. It irritates me to be told how things always have been done .... I defy the tyranny of precedent. I cannot afford the luxury of a closed mind. I go for anything new that might improve the past."

Red Cross First Aid Kit, c 1903. Learn more about this kit at the Clara Barton National Historical Site website.

While Barton was always open to new ideas, she began her nursing at a time when medicine was almost unrecognizable to us today. Doctors rarely washed their hands between patients, as an understanding of germs was still some time in the future. Amputations and other surgeries were performed with minimal anesthetic, if any at all, and doctors and nurses could expect to spend their days covered in the gore and grime of battlefields and operating rooms. Barton worked hard to bring better standards of cleanliness to her medical facilities, and to provide such medicines as were available to help heal the wounded and ease the pain of the dying.

"A ball had passed between my body and the right arm which supported him, cutting through the sleeve and passing through his chest from shoulder to shoulder. There was no more to be done for him and I left him to his rest. I have never mended that hole in my sleeve."

Clara Barton visited Tampa in 1898 when preparing to accompany troops to Cuba during the Spanish American War. Here she is shown picnicking with Red Cross colleagues. Image courtesy State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory

In the area beneath our Clara Barton Redbud, we have established a 19th century medicinal garden, containing some of the plants used during that time for healing. While herbal medicines have largely fallen out of favor today as better synthetic drugs have been discovered, some of these old remedies still have value and have retained their popularity in certain circles. We do not endorse any of the medical remedies listed here, and recommend you seek advice from your doctor before using any herbs medicinally.

Whiskey Barrels and Wine Casks: In Barton's time, alcohol was still used and indeed often prescribed as medicine. It dulled the senses before an operation which otherwise might use no anesthetic, and it calmed people when they were nervous or in shock. A "hot toddy" containing whiskey and spices was frequently prescribed for throat maladies, and wine was found in many otherwise-abstemious houses "for the sake of invalids". A good nurse heading into the battle lines would almost certainly have carried a flask or bottle with spirits or wine, so our medicinal herbs are planted in whiskey barrels and wine casks in homage.

Foxglove (Digitalis spp.) Foxglove has long been recognized for its medicinal properties. Most often, it has been used to treat heart conditions. John King notes in The American Family Physician (1858): "Palpitation of the heart may be lessened or checked by the administration of 10 or 15 drops of Tincture of Digitalis, repeated three or four times a day." Maud Grieve wrote, "[Digitalis] increases the activity of all forms of muscle tissue, but more especially that of the heart and arterioles, the all-important property of the drug being its action on the circulation. The first consequence of its absorption is a contraction of the heart and arteries, causing a very high rise in the blood pressure." (A Modern Herbal, 1931) Today, digitalis is frequently grown as an ornamental garden plant. It is a biennial, flowering in the second year.

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium): Yarrow's medicinal history is even older than foxglove, and its common names include Soldier's Wound Wort and Knight's Millefoil. It was often used to stop bleeding in the field, but was essential to the home herbalist as well. Grieve noted, "Another popular name for it is Nosebleed, from its property of stanching bleeding of the nose, though another reason given for this name is that the leaf, being rolled up and applied to the nostrils, causes a bleeding from the nose, more or less copious, which will thus afford relief to headache." (A Modern Herbal, 1931) She also noted that some considered it a cure for baldness. Yarrow is another popular garden plant today, and is a good draw for pollinators like butterflies.

Wormwood (Artemesia spp.): Wormwood is well-known for its extremely bitter taste, but has remained popular in herbal medicine for centuries. Grieve suggested using it as "a nervine tonic, particularly helpful against the falling sickness [epilepsy] and for flatulence. It is a good remedy for enfeebled digestion and debility." (A Modern Herbal, 1931) As its name suggests, it was often used to drive away fleas and other pests, and to treat internal parasites as well. Artemesia absinthe is used to make the alcoholic beverage absinthe, a green herb-infused drink once thought to have hallucinogenic properties, leading to its ban in many countries. Those bans have largely been overturned with better research into absinthe and its effects. Some artemesia varieties have gained popularity as garden ornamentals in recent years.

Horehound (Marrubium spp.): Horehound is among the most familiar of herbal medicines, used even today to treat sore throats and coughs. King recommends, "For troublesome cough, a decoction of Hoarhound and Pleurisy root, equal parts, sweetened with honey, may be given." (The American Family Physician, 1858) Grieve agreed, saying, "For ordinary cold, a simple infusion of Horehound is generally sufficient in itself. The tea may be made by pouring boiling water on the fresh or dried leaves, 1 oz. of the herb to the pint. A wineglassful may be taken three or four times a day." (A Modern Herbal, 1931) NOTE: Our garden contains a Florida native known as False Horehound (Eupatorium rotundifolia), which is easier to grow in this climate and resembles White Horehound in appearance.

Photo via Native Florida Wildflowers

St. John's Wort (Hypericum spp.): Although familiar today as an herbal treatment for chronic depression, St. John's Wort was used for other medicinal purposes in years past. Grieve advised readers that St. John's Wort could be "used in all pulmonary complaints, bladder troubles, in suppression of urine, dysentery, worms, diarrhoea, hysteria and nervous depression, haemoptysis and other haemorrhages and jaundice." (A Modern Herbal, 1931) The St. John's Wort growing in our garden is a native species known as Scrub St. John's Wort (Hypericum tenufolia).