The Herb Garden

In 2012, the Master Gardeners of Greene County and the Springfield Area Herb Society began a partnership to tend and co-manage the Herb Garden at the Master Gardener Demonstration Gardens in the Botanical Gardens. Master Gardener Barb Emge shared her love of growing herbs and educating people about their history and uses, while Rexella Bennett, president of the Springfield Area Herb Society, drew on the membership of the local herb society for knowledge and manpower. As a result of coordination between the two complementary organizations, the vast array of herb beds in the Herb Garden have flourished into a gorgeous public garden whose diversity changes through the seasons and from year to year.

Each bed in the Herb Garden has a specific theme that reflects what will grow in the Ozarks. There are culinary, salad, skincare, and wild edibles beds, as well as two beds devoted to basils and one bed each for mints and thyme. There are two beds for medicinal herbs, a tea bed, and exotics bed, which feature herbs from around the world. There is a whole bed for plants used to create fibers and dyes, and the scented geranium bed is a pleasure to behold and unlike any bed in the gardens.

Love for all things herbal and a willingness to dig and grow and learn make for a team of gardeners whose hard work is reflected in the beauty and quality of these herb beds. Workdays in the herb garden are open to the public and membership of both the Master Gardeners of Greene County and the Springfield Area Herb Society.