Ideas for Garden Plants With Biblical Connections Please?

Hi everyone,

I'm currently working on a garden for a friend of mine who is a vicar for the local church. His borders are pretty bare and I've had this idea of planting the borders with a few plants with a biblical connection. This could be plant names or varieties of plants

So far I have.....

Jerusalem Sage
Crocosmia Lucifer

and I thought it would be nice to have a few more dotted about.

The bed faces south but has trees in a neighbours garden which provides a bit of shade, so likely not full sun in the summer months. There is a leylandii hedge on his other neighbours side so ideally plants that like low nutrient and dry soil.

Thanks everyone

 

St John's wort (Hypericum) is pretty tough shrub.

 

Passion flower. Sorry, that is all that comes to mind.

 

There are lots of different plants referenced in the bible. A quick google will give you lots of sources. Probably some which are more reliable but as a starter here’s wikis effort List of plants in the Bible - Wikipedia

There may also be ones associated with certain Saints?

 

Burning Bush - Dictamnus

Judas Tree - Cercis siliquastrum

There are loads listed here that may give you some ideas-
Biblical Garden Design: Tips For Creating A Biblical Garden

 

What a lovely idea!
I did a quick search in Wikipedia, and the following plants look possible/desirable/useful:
Bay
Anemone
Apple!!
Broom
Crocus
Fig
Iris
Lily of the valley
Mallow
Mint
Myrtle
Tamarisk

 

Pasque Flower
Lenten Lily

 

Madonna lilies, goes without saying!

 

Solomons Seal.

 

Euonymus Alatus … also known as Burning Bush. (It’s a long time since my primary school days, but I remember a burning bush was involved somewhere along the line.)

 

Hellebore, Christmas rose
Michaelmas daisy.

 

Jacob's ladder, Polemonium caeruleum.
Bullrushes (if there's a big enough pond)
Maybe one of the hardier palms if the climate is OK.

There's also Euphorbia milii, Crown of Thorns, but it's not hardy in the UK so would have to be in a pot and brought into a conservatory or similar for the winter.

 

Mary's milk thistle, Silybum marianum (annual but self-seeds).

 

Please consider Rosa sancta - The Holy Rose. It was discovered in ancient Abyssinia, probably of Phoenician origins [Syrian]. It was planted in Christian church gardens.
It's available as a bare root rose from Trevor White Roses in Norwich under the alternative name R. richardii the holy rose.

Here's a photo I took of it in a Norfolk garden. I should add, it's not fussy as to soil conditions.

 

Bishop’s weed?