It’s cold and flu season, which means people turn to their preferred doctor to alleviate coughing, sore throats, runny noses, and worse. In late 1800s and early 1900s Winchester, one of the men who filled that role was Dr. William Joseph Whitlock (1849-1921). An herbal physician and his own best salesman, Whitlock left behind several small medicine cabinets that advertised his “Whitlocks’ Renowned Remedies,” including one in the MSV Collection.

by MSV Director of Gardens Perry Mathewes

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The annual MSV Heritage Plant Sale is just around the corner (May 18–19) and we are busy getting ready. Here are few of my favorites that will be available for purchase at the sale—all fantastic plants well suited for northern Shenandoah Valley landscapes.

In celebration of Women's History Month the MSV spotlights Native American artist Wendy Star whose works are featured in the exhibition Hear My Voice: Native American Art of the Past and Present. Guest blogger and Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Curator of Native American Art Johanna Minich, PhD, shares with us some insight into the artist's work:

In cold, snowy, icy January it is fun to dream about the spring and summer garden. Plant and seed companies know this and flood your mailbox with catalogs full of mouth-watering photos featuring gorgeous flowers and vegetables to entice you to buy their products. Well, I’m not going to do that … mail you a catalog, that is. Instead, I am going to share some alluring photos of a few great plants and simply tell you about the seeds for sale in our museum store.