Historic Garden – Powhatan
The Historic Garden was a joint effort between the Goochland Powhatan Master Gardeners and the Powhatan Historical Society and was dedicated in June 2006 as a legacy project for the 400th anniversary of the founding of Jamestown. All the plants selected for the garden would have been found in Powhatan between 1777 (the founding date of Powhatan County) and 1830 (when the Old Jail was built on Courthouse Square).
In England, wealthy families of this time period had very formal, decorative gardens. The Historic Garden retains this formal style, with raised beds to separate the various types of gardening , and for ease of use. The planting beds however, are divided into functional areas, as was the custom in Colonial times, and filled with plants grown in gardens in Powhatan during the time period 1777 to 1830.
The garden planting beds have something for everyone. There are vegetables, culinary and medicinal herbs, heirloom roses and irises, a shade garden, native plants bed and of course a bed we call “grandmother’s garden”, usually flowers planted by the lady of the house.
The garden is located behind the Old Jail building – now the home of the Powhatan Historical Society and can be accessed from Main Street by a short walk to the rear of Courthouse Square or from Route 300 (Scottville Road) off Route 60. A map and brief history of the garden is located in the pocket hanging on the fence post by the bench.
