New herb garden at Colvin Run Mill returns to natural roots

RestonNow.com July 10, 2023 at 2:18pm

Colvin Run Mill herb garden (via Friends of Colvin Run Mill) — An herb garden aims to promote awareness of medicinal uses of plants (via Friends of Colvin Run Mill)

A new herb garden inspired by a 1910 classic on home remedies has officially opened at Colvin Run Mill in Great Falls.

The garden was started by Larry Herman, the master gardener on the board of Friends of Colvin Run Mill. He was inspired by the book, “Mother’s Remedies: Over One Thousand Tried and Tested Remedies from the Mothers of the United States and Canada,” which offers guidance on how to grow and prep herbs to treat ailments by making teas, ointments, plasters, syrups and tinctures.

The garden officially opened up in early June. Friends of Colvin Run Mill are working with camps to teach children about homemaking in the late 1980s

“In addition to grinding corn and baking, they make butter and candles, pickle beets, etc,” a representative of the organization told FFXnow. “Recently we have redone the family garden with flowers. The medical garden is an extension of the educational program and garden renovations.”

Herbs in the garden include yarrow, hollyhock, chamomile, feverfew, parsley, peppermint and thyme. Stems of clematis, a flowering vine, were used to make rope to bind sheaves of grain in order to prevent mice from gnawing on it.

Located at 10017 Colvin Run Road, Colvin Run Mill is open every day from dawn to dusk and features a 19th-century, water-powered gristmill as its main attraction. The historic site also has the miller’s house and a general store.