“Nature itself is the best physician” - Hippocrates

Nestled in the middle of Red Butte Garden’s three Terrace Gardens, between the Fragrance and Herb Garden, the Dr. Ezekiel and Edna Dumke Medicinal Garden is home to plants known or believed to have medicinal properties.

This garden area includes medicinal plants used by various cultures throughout history, and many that are relevant in modern medicine. For instance, Foxglove (Digitalis) is the origin of the commonly used heart medicine, Digitalis. New medicines are being discovered every day and many are derived from plants.

There are great concerns about plant diversity and plant extinction throughout the world—thus the need for us to research, protect, and educate others about the importance of conservation not only of the plants but their ecosystems including pollinators and decomposers.

The Medicinal Garden was originally built and planted in 1996 around a planetree (Platanus), under which, according to legend, Hippocrates taught his pupils the art of medicine on the Greek island of Kos.

This garden was redesigned in 2017-2018. As part of the new design, interpretive signage will change semi-annually to share more stories about medicinal plants.