The Healing Herb Garden sits in the heart of the Sussex countryside, where our medicinal plants grow in a mixture of pots and open ground. It is not a perfectly ordered show garden—and I would be suspicious if it ever became one. It is a living, working garden where plants are grown, harvested, observed and occasionally allowed to make their own decisions.
We grow organically, using a no-dig, polyculture approach. Rather than separating every plant into an immaculate little square, we allow medicinal herbs, vegetables, flowers and fruit to share the garden. Some combinations are carefully planned. Others begin with me standing in the garden holding a plant and thinking, “You might be happy here.”
A Garden Divided by Purpose—but Still Connected
The garden is divided into several distinct areas:
- Fruit trees
- Medicinal trees
- Our vegetable garden
- Medicinal-herb beds
- Pots and containers for plants that need their own space
Although these areas have different purposes, they are not isolated from one another. The medicinal herbs make excellent neighbours for the vegetables, while flowering plants bring colour, fragrance and pollinating insects into the productive parts of the garden.
This is what I love about polyculture. A garden does not need to choose between being useful and beautiful. The same space can give us vegetables for dinner, flowers for a summer drink, herbs to dry for winter and plenty of food for bees and other wildlife.
Why We Grow Without Digging
Our no-dig approach is simple: I try to disturb the soil as little as possible and add organic matter to the surface instead of repeatedly turning the ground over.
That means less disruption beneath the soil and, happily, less back-breaking digging for me. The mulch helps protect the soil surface, retain moisture and suppress weeds. Worms and other soil organisms do much of the work below ground, which seems only fair—they are much better equipped for it than I am.
No-dig does not mean “do absolutely nothing”, tempting though that interpretation may be. The garden still needs mulching, watering, planting and observation. It simply means working with the structure and life of the soil rather than continually resetting it.
From the Garden to the Kitchen
One of the pleasures of growing an edible and medicinal garden is being able to step outside and gather something fresh when inspiration strikes.
In summer, I can walk into the garden to pick grapes, then become distracted by flowers that would look beautiful floating in a drink. This is a genuine occupational hazard of growing edible flowers: you go outside for one thing and return carrying an entirely different arrangement.
This year we used our southernwood to make a homemade botanical cola. Its distinctive fragrance makes it one of the most entertaining plants to introduce to visitors—especially when they realise why the ‘Coca-Cola’ cultivar has its name.
→ Try our Southernwood Cola recipe
We also made a flower salad using edible blooms from the garden. It is difficult for an ordinary bowl of leaves to remain ordinary once you add fresh, colourful flowers. The result feels generous and summery, even when the rest of the meal is very simple.
→ Explore the Edible Flowers Seed Collection
Growing for Everyday Life
Our garden is not intended to be admired from a distance. I want it to be walked through, touched, smelled, tasted and used.
There is something grounding about picking grapes directly from the vine, brushing past an aromatic herb or gathering a few flowers for the kitchen. These small moments are why we grow. They turn plants from something decorative into part of everyday life.
The garden changes from week to week, and there is always another experiment underway. Some are carefully recorded. Others begin with the sentence, “I wonder what would happen if…” Those are often the most interesting ones.
Follow Our Growing Stories
This is the first in our Growing Stories series, where I will be sharing more of our own garden, our container-grown healing herbs, our mint apothecary and the community gardens growing with plants from The Healing Herb Garden.
→ Return to Gardens We Grow
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