The first Norwegian book on gardening is called 'Horticultura', and was written by Christian Gartner, who was a city gardener in Trondheim in the late 1600s. He wrote the book to promote gardening in Mid-Norway, which at the time was considered to be very far north.

Both the geometrical shape and the plants in the Renaissance Garden follow guidelines given in the book. The division into quarters and the symmetrical beds are expressions of the Renaissance idea that 'man can master nature'. Plants in the 1600s were all grown to be used, and are a mixture of vegetables, medicinal plants, herbs, fiber plants, and ornamental plants.

The Renaissance Garden holds 123 species, or variations of species, labelled with information on the traditional use of each plant.