Read in text form below or click on the arrow above to listen to the audio recording.
NARRATED BY CRYSTAL HAYNES COPITHORNE
INTERVIEW WITH DR. MOLLY EDWARDS, PLANT BIOLOGIST & SCIENCE COMMUNICATOR
Welcome to the Medicine & Ajuga banner. It shows a spike of Ajuga flowers sandwiched between equally ornamented leaves, with a mortar and pestle to represent its healing properties.
Volunteers from the Arlington Garden Club recreated a colonial garden at the Jason Russell House. Most of the 36 plants listed in their guide serve multiple purposes. Tansy, for example, was used to treat worms, aid digestion, repel insects, and embalm the dead! While such versatility was desirable, healing properties were essential for households facing infectious diseases, injuries, and difficult births.
On the night of April 18, 1775 a Menotomy couple was melting their pewterware in their fireplace to reshape the metal into musket balls for the rebel militia. The story goes that the light in their window raised the suspicions of the British regulars marching by late at night on their way to Lexington. When a soldier knocked on their door to investigate, the couple hid the evidence. The wife claimed that she was merely making an herb tea to treat her husband’s illness, a convincing story since much routine healing fell to women using ingredients from their kitchen gardens.
The battles fought in Menotomy on April 19 are considered the bloodiest of that fateful day. Another plant found in the Jason Russell House kitchen garden is Ajuga, which was grown purely for medicinal purposes. Ajuga was thought to stem bleeding and its leaves could be used as bandages. A doctor worked to save the most severely injured, but local women also provided nursing care. Perhaps ajuga was used by the women of Menotomy to treat fallen fighters.
Another story from April 19 records the actions of Mrs. Butterfield. She returned home after the battle to find her best bed covered with blood and occupied by an injured British officer; a wounded militia man was in the next bed. She cared for both using her own resources as well as supplies that were brought for the officer from Boston under a flag of truce. In addition to ajuga, comfrey, hyssop, yarrow and sage could have been useful for treatment. All are found in the Jason Russell House garden today. The patriot recovered but the officer did not survive despite Mrs. Butterfield’s sincere efforts.
To further explore the medicinal wonders of plants, we’ll hear from Dr. Molly Edwards, a local plant biologist and science communicator who goes by ‘Science IRL’ on the internet and helped produce this audio tour. Molly has a passion for introducing science to young people, especially those who may not realize science could be a part of their lives.