Sundials in the Garden

Herb Garden Luthy Gardens, Peoria, IL

I have a thing about sundials.  I love them!  I search them out when we are visiting public and private gardens.  I decided it was time to share a few of my favorites.

Luthy Botanic Garden one of two made in 1905

This sundial is nestled into a wonderful herb garden at the Luthy Botanic Garden.  It had great plants, a bee skiff, and a wonderful brass entry gateway with the word "HERBS" which is must say I would like to have a similar version of one day.

I find that many times Sundials get broken, the center item that casts the shadow (called a gnomon) can be snapped off.  This one at the Chicago Botanic Garden suffered this fate.

Chicago Botanic Garden

Another at the Chicago Botanic has a single spire in the center.  This is not a common style it is called a Equatorial Sundial, as it can be read in both summer and winter, but differently so it needs a center spike rather than an angled gnomon.  However they are usually mounted at an angle to match latitude and this one is mounted horizontally, so it may have been relocated.

Before we go too far, I thought I would explain how they work.

The Gnomon is the item which casts the shadow to tell the time.  The Style (surface) of the gnomon always points directly north.  One has to figure out north whenever placing a sundial in the garden and then adjust it due to the latitude you live at to get an accurate time. This is more important with a Vertical Sundial so that it remains pointing North and set at an angle to the horizontal equal to the Latitude of the Sundial location. The Gnomon therefore must be set at an angle to the 'dial' of 900. minus Latitude.

Sundials are categorized by how they are mounted - horizontal, vertical, circular or cylindrical.  Most garden sundials are horizontal, like those shown above.  They are easy to position.  You make them level and point them north.  Vertical sundials are often found on the sides of buildings.  To be placed on the building they must be on the south facing side  Circular (called Armillary actually) use spokes or wheels to tell time rather than a gnomon. They are a bit more actuate than those with a gnomon, but take some time to install and they must be placed at a proper angle. Cylindrical are the most rare and are more common in Europe than in the U.S.  I have yet to see one.

We saw a great Vertical Sundial in New Harmony, Indiana on one of the restored buildings in this former Utopian village from the 1820s.

I used to drive by this one when I lived in Indianapolis, Indiana.  It is on the Publix Theater Building.

This sundial is Armillary.  I actually found two of them on the same trip, but it was sunny when I found this one, so you can see the time which shines as a number.  The in-between minutes are judged by the thin line on the surface of the sundial. This one is located in a formal garden at the Rotary Gardens in Janesville, Illinois.

Rotary Garden Janesville, WI

Most armillary sundials have an axis arrow (gnomon) and a series of circles being the equator, Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn, making it resemble a globe.  The gnomon is angled to the latitude of the location the sundial resides. This one is located at the Master Gardeners display garden at Purdue University.

Purdue University, Fort Wayne, IN

A new trend in Sundials at Botanic gardens is an interactive style called Analemmatic.  These dials are larger sundials on the ground where the visitor stands to become the gnomon.  You stand on a spot based on the season or month to make the time reading accurate.

Quad Cities Botanic Garden

My husband, who is 6 foot 8 makes a great gnomon. Here is another one:

Klehm Gardens in Rockford, Illinois

Sundials are often placed in public gardens as a memorial.  I have found several in cemeteries as remembrance.  This one was placed in Dellwood gardens in memory of George C. Fox Sr. a Lockport District Park Commissioner from 1945 to 1958. It was the quote I found most interesting: "Dedicated to Serving his Community   Service is the Golden Coin of Life"

Here is the surface of the sundial. It has my favorite saying on it. The garden it stands in looked great even in the fall.

If you are interested in more information on mounting and using sundials or on the locations and history of memorial and antique sundials, check out the North American Sundial Society https://sundials.org  They have a nice article about the maker of the 1905 sundial in Peoria.

Luthy Botanic Garden - National Garden Month Series

In August 2016 my husband took me on a road trip when we were quite a ways from home we decided to spend the night and go home the next day.  On the voyage home we stopped in Peoria.  It was raining, so we decided to go to the Luthy Botanic Garden and Conservatory because the building was indoors, so I could look at plants in a heavy rain.  While we were there, the rain stopped and I was able to take in the Herb garden and the other outdoor displays.

The Luthy Botanic Garden opened in 1951 and is run by the Peoria Park District.  It off the main road on a side street you would never guess was taking you to a glass conservatory set among trees and flowers.

Living in Illinois I do not get the chance to grow or enjoy many tropical plants so I was fascinated with the offerings inside the Conservatory.  The Bird of Paradise was in bloom and I must have taken 30 pictures of it trying to catch the best view of the blooms.

There were plants I'd never known about like the miraculous plant that changes your tastebuds (temporarily) to make sour things taste sweet called Miracle Berry.

There were blooming orchids and other tropical plants I cannot identify that have exceptional flowers.

 There were banana and plantains almost ready to be harvested.

And this lovely variegated shrub that I think I know the name of?

There were umbrellas made available that we used to go outside when the rani slowed down.  This is Hubby approaching a green house that I am guessing was the original 1951 era conservatory.

Tucked away under the trees in the outdoor area was a children's garden.  Some of it had been put to bed for the year, but there was the cutest train and other fun garden art and play areas.

There was a lovely display garden of Dwarf Conifers installed in 1997.

Now to the herb garden.  This was a pretty garden tucked along the side of the conservatory that had a metalwork entrance arch that spelled out "Herbs." The center sported a sundial and the formal four square layout had a variety of herbs and garden art to explore and enjoy.

The garden included Lemon Verbena and Rosemary planted in the ground, looking like they wintered over in place.  I was curious if this was true, but no one working that day was well versed in herbs to be able to answer that inquiry.

Rosemary

Lemon Verbena surrounded by catnip and lavender

There were some unusual plants like Lungwort, Hyssop and Rue.

Being August the Garlic Chives were ready to bloom.

There was a bush of Meadowsweet an herb I would like to grow when I have more room for it to spread out like this one has. The herb is a go-to for stomach and intestinal ailments and can be used in tinctures as well as dried and taken in tea form.

I don't have another picture of it, but you can see the willow branches placed diagonally in the ground to the right of the Meadowsweet that were keeping other herbs like Yarrow from creeping into the space.  I thought it was clever and not at all distracting.

There was a Costmary (Bible leaf) plant. This lastly minty smelling and tasting leaf can be sniffed to increase wakefulness.

And the most interesting Thyme Bed -- Sofa? A most clever way to display Thyme and a perfect memorial sculpture - a scented seat.   The "planted seat" is an old herb garden item, used often before the 1800s to scent clothing. It was created of carved stone, much like a heavy church pew. The seat was hollowed out into a cavity about 6 inches deep and into this was packed earth planted with either chamomile or thyme. When a person sat down and crushed the plants, resulting oils soaked into breeches or skirts. The seat would be replenished as needed.

I did not notice the arch with HERBS until I was leaving the herb garden as I entered from the back side like this view.

The sundial in the center is registered with the North American Sundial Society is said to be only one of two designed by Grant Hood of the Bradley  It is inscribed "TIME FLIES LAT 40 43 DESIGNED BY GRANT HOOD, PEORIA, ILL."  The granite pedestal includes a dedication plate reading, "Presented by - Mrs. S. A. Kinsey - October 1905"  Grant Hood worked for Parson School of Horology (founded in 1886.) Horology is the study of watchmaking and time keeping the school was part of what is now Bradley University in Peoria.  The other sundial was at the school but was later removed and sold.

The George L. Luthy Memorial Botanical Garden, usually just Luthy Botanical Garden, is a 4.5 acres botanical garden and conservatory located in Glen Oak Park, near the corner of Prospect Avenue and Gift Avenue in Peoria, Illinois, United States. The garden was established in 1951. The street address is 2520 N Prospect Rd, Peoria, IL 61603