John Forti tends to the past and the future in the gardens of Strawbery Banke Museum 

John Forti, curator of historic landscapes at Strawbery Banke Museum in Portsmouth for a little more than three and a half years, almost seems to be on a first-name basis with the plants he tends.

Strolling through the gardens at the historical neighborhood, he eyes his photosynthetic creations like children, and as he talks about one, his hands reach toward another, almost without his notice. This one, he says, has medicinal properties well-known for centuries that are only now being recognized by science. That one tastes like celery, and this other one like licorice. Occasionally he shoves a leaf, or a handful of leaves, into his water bottle and shakes it as he talks; by the end of our walk, the bottle contains more leaf than water.

There’s more than a bit of Bob Ross in the man, not only in his laid-back and genial manner, but also in the gentle obsession he exhibits toward his work. Forti does not end his days by washing the dirt from his hands and going home to a separate life. Rather, he goes home and cultivates his own gardens. To Forti, plants are for use, not just for display.

When making a meal, he says, often he will first glance outside to see what herbs and flowers are in season, then form his cuisine around them.

The gardens at Strawbery Banke contain an overwhelming diversity of flora. Though the number of different plants varies somewhat from year to year, Forti says there are nearly a thousand different species represented. His mastery of the uses for and history of each plant is staggering, but not surprising once you understand his approach to his profession.

“Each plant,” he says, “tells a story about the inhabitants that grew and used them. You can look at any plant and see how people used it a thousand years ago.”

Learning and telling these stories is Forti’s passion. Herbs are his specialty; he loves to educate others about them, and not just to improve their martini chatter. Forti believes that knowledge of plants can improve people’s lives in very concrete ways. He shows me Solomon’s Seal as an example, telling me that its flowers taste like a garden pea. (I try one later, and it’s true—very tasty.) It also used to be used to treat wounds; the roots, he explains, contain chemicals that can help cuts and bruises to heal.

Though Forti tends the majority of the landscaped grounds with the help of an assistant, an inspired group of volunteers and the occasional intern, he encourages outsiders to get involved by maintaining personal crops in the museum’s community garden beds, which measure about 4 by 10 feet. The apprentice gardeners, ranging in age from elementary schoolers to nursing home residents, receive a small plot and get to choose the sort of plants they want to grow, though they are encouraged to grow at least one heirloom plant and use organic gardening practices.

With the exception of a couple of 20th century exhibits, all of the gardens at Strawbery Banke use heirloom seeds—seeds, that is, that have been passed down through at least three human generations. Forti is concerned about the lack of variety in today’s commercial produce, and though he acknowledges that people may be able to save money by buying fruits and vegetables grown from cloned or “hybrid” seeds, he follows his grandmother’s creed: “It’s better to pay the grocer than the doctor.” The museum is generous with the seeds, encouraging people to grow them at home: seed packets are available for purchase at the museum store, and visitors taking tours through the gardens often walk away with a handful offered by their guide.

The seeds of Forti’s own work were planted early in his life, growing up on the banks of the North River, between Cape Cod and Boston. He recalls doing the very same thing for recreation as a child that he now does for work: playing in the dirt and learning stories of the past. Now at 42 years old, he credits a childhood environment of nature and rivers for his interest in gardening, and supportive parents for helping him to follow it.

If you’ve eaten at the Dunaway Restaurant on the grounds of Strawbery Banke, you may have enjoyed a meal that would not have existed without Forti. He has worked with Mary Dumont, executive chef, to help find good sources for ingredients and innovative ways to use herbs to create gourmet meals. He says the Dunaway is his favorite restaurant, though it faces serious competition. “I have never lived in a place with so many amazing restaurants. This town is dangerous for me. I eat my way through town and then start over again.”

Imagining a landscape curator of Strawbery Banke 50 years in the future, John Forti says he would hope his professional descendant would “(teach) about preservation and stewardship from the roots of garden history in this region,” that they would continue the museum’s tradition of being a community resource through both functional and educational projects, and perhaps above all, that they would maintain an array of interesting and well-cared-for gardens. In short, though Forti would be the last to put it this way, he hopes the future curator would be just like him.

Strawbery Banke Museum Garden Tours, daily at 1 p.m.
John Forti guides the tour each Monday and usually one or two other days out of each week. Call the museum for details at 603-433-1100.
To learn about volunteer opportunities, space in the community garden or to join the Historic Landscapes mailing list, e-mail This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it or check out  www.strawberybanke.org.