Biblical Botanical Garden celebrates 30 years of teaching

The sweet fragrance of honeysuckle drifts through the air at the Rodef Shalom Biblical Botanical Garden in Oakland. Rabbi Walter Jacob is sitting in the shade at the entryway talking about the garden he created 30 years ago with his late wife, Irene.

Rabbi Walter Jacob created the Rodef Shalom Biblical Botanical Garden with his late wife Irene. It’s the 30th anniversary of the garden. Photos by Doug Oster

Hibiscus blooms in the Rodef Shalom Biblical Botanical Garden.

While visiting more than 1,000 gardens for their book “Gardens of North America and Hawaii: A Traveler’s Guide,” the couple realized there wasn’t one that was biblical.
“We decided that was something that needed to be done,” Jacob says. “So we came up with the idea, why not do it here.”
They knew it would be a struggle for many of the plants as the climate in Pittsburgh is far from that of ancient Israel. After services one Saturday, they poked around the front of the temple startling some men sleeping off the previous night’s fun.
“We asked them, ‘What do you think of a garden on this spot.’ They said sure as they raised up a whiskey bottle,” he says laughing.
At 87, the sense of humor the rabbi’s wife fell in love with and impish grin when he finishes a story are still there. It’s accompanied by a twinkle in his eye as he reminisces about building this place. They came up with the design with the help of a friend who was a retired architect. They used a large piece of wrapping paper at their dining room table to sketch a plan that shaped the garden like Israel. It includes the River Jordan, which meanders through the garden from Lake Kineret to the Dead Sea.
The rabbi found funding pretty easily and proposed it to the congregation. “With a little bit of hutzpah,” he says flashing his grin, “I decided we don’t want a long campaign, let me just ask a dozen people and see if we can do this.”
The plan was approved and a garden was born.
The couple started researching, digging, planting and also did all the maintenance on the garden over the years. Each season, the garden would have a theme showcasing different plants from the Bible. When churches or synagogues would call to get advice on what they needed for their own religious garden,” he would reply, “Just a shovel.”
It was Irene who had the knowledge of the climate and soil conditions, after living in Israel for a decade. “We decide we would only use plants that were mentioned in the Bible,” Jacob says. “We can’t say Abraham tasted this, but it’s likely.”
Some of the tender and tropical plants would be stored at their home under lights for the winter and some were stored at the temple.
“She established it,” Jacob says of his wife who died in 2012. “She worked at it for 30 years very diligently.”
And without her, things have changed. “It cuts the labor force in half,” he says smiling. But he knows how much more is missing. “There’s knowledge, enthusiasm and the ability to attract a whole group of people.”

Helena Nichols is the associate director of the Rodef Shalom Biblical Botanical Garden.

Hosta ‘River Nile’ is one of the biblical plants growing in the Rodef Shalom Biblical Botanical Garden. It’s the 30th anniversary of the garden.

Helena Nichols, 22, walks the circular path around the garden pointing out the plants and explaining how they relate to the Bible. She’s associate director of the Biblical Garden and has an unbridled enthusiasm for the garden that’s infectious. She grew up in her mother’s organic garden.
“We were the weird people in the city that had a compost pile in the backyard,” she says.
This year’s theme is “Pleasing God and Man: Taste and Smell, Spices and Incense.” There’s a bed with many different herbs that are referenced in the Bible. Interpreting the plants and researching the varieties is a collaborative effort she shares with the rabbi.
“Dill was referred to as anise in the Bible,” she says. “Hyssop was called either marjoram or oregano.”
Each plant is labeled throughout the garden. If specifically mentioned in the Bible, a quote from the passage is used on a white marker. Other plants have names that reflect a biblical reference — like the hosta ‘River Nile’ — that are labeled with black signs. Irene’s writings and horticulture library also play an important part to identify the correct varieties.
“She had the signs made 30 years ago and had done a lot of the research for us,” Nichols says.
The young associate director spends time carefully combing through the garden publications to select the right varieties. “Dr. Jacob has books that are older than I am,” she says. “You’ll find little references here and there that help you figure out what each of these plants really were. I find it fascinating.”
Nichols visited as a child and enjoys watching young children explore the garden. People have travelled from every continent except Antarctica to see the garden.
The garden is filled with perennials, annuals, tropicals and more, all with some connection to the Bible. There’s a pretty red annual penta (Egyptian star) that has been wintered over for seven years. Roses, figs, the herbs and many others grow here too.
Nichols says visitors don’t need to be biblical scholars or even devoted to a particular religion to get the most out of their visit.
“I just want a place where people can come and just take a breath, take a break from their hectic lives. We have people who come in on their lunch breaks just to have a moment of peace and to refresh themselves.”
At 7 p.m. June 18, the congregation is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the garden with complimentary kosher food, drinks by Wigle Whiskey and Doug Oster as guest speaker. Find out more here.
Doug Oster is the 535mediarack home and garden editor. Reach him at 412-965-3278 or doster@tribweb.com or via Twitter at @dougoster1. See other stories, blogs, videos and more at everybodygardens.com.