Beijing will soon be home to the largest herbal garden the world has ever seen. The expansive garden will be constructed in Liuli Temple Village in the capital’s remote Huairou District. It will span nearly 40 acres and will reportedly boast nearly 2,000 types of herbs in accordance with the Compendium of Materia Medica, a scientific book written during the Ming Dynasty.
It was announced on Tuesday that the Li Shizhen's Compendium of Materia Medica Botanical Garden will be built by the Li Shizhen Traditional Chinese Medicine Culture Foundation under the guidance of the China Foundation for the Development of Social Culture and the Beijing Xiushi Foundation, China.org.cn reports.
The name of the botanic garden pays homage to Li Shizhen (1518-1593), a Chinese doctor, scientist and herbalist who lived during the Ming Dynasty. During his lengthy career practicing clinical medicine, Li penned the now-famous Compendium of Materia Medica. In the book he gave detailed descriptions of 1,800 Chinese herbal medicines and outlined 11,000 prescriptions.
Li Guoyong is a 17th generation descendant of Li Shizhen and the director of the foundation. Li believes the botanic garden can help educate the world about the importance of traditional Chinese medicine. He also strives for the garden to set an example for others, especially in China, that it’s not necessary to use fertilizers and pesticides when gardening.
"Now, reviving the tradition of the raw planting of herbs is the key for Chinese medicine to carry on. This botanical garden and future Li Shizhen academy are here to resolve the problem," he said in the article.
In honor of Li Shizhen’s 500th birthday, the foundation is also launching seven charity projects aimed at educating the world about Chinese herbal medicine and pesticide-free gardening.
[Image via China.org.cn]
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