Most people visit Old Salem which is just outside Winston-Salem, NC to see the period houses, but there are also interesting gardens which are the subject of this virtual tour. The gardens have been restored to their original design growing crops that were in use in the early 1800’s. The gardens are described in an article by Nikki Phipps which I found on the Gardening Know How website.

The Moravian town of Salem, now referred to as Old Salem, lays just outside the outskirts of the busy city of Winston-Salem, NC. While most people enjoy visiting this quaint museum town of Old Salem simply for its historical buildings and Moravian heritage, there is another reason to come here ? the gardens.

In Old Salem, every house had a garden, and everything grown had a reason for being there. All of Salem?s gardens today have been recreated on their original sites, targeting the specific time period; for instance, in the Single Brothers? Garden, is a kitchen garden, which fed men and boys of the Single Brothers? Choir and is laid out much like it was then ? in large squares on earthen terraces. As a result, Old Salem is considered to be one of the most authentic restorations in the U.S.

The landscape surrounding this town have been carefully researched and recreated to mimic life according to the German culture of these people. Here you will find growing together in perfect garden squares a variety of heirloom vegetables, herbs and ornamental flowers, all retaining blissful harmony with one another. An array of fruit trees can be found growing within orchards and family gardens. Additional interest can be found in the sections of split-rail board fencing or, my favorite, the snake-rail fencing that borders much of the area, outlining original property lines. Along the streets are native trees, such as red maples, replanted to imitate its history, and deeply rooted in local Moravian tradition.