John Tayloe III, Minute Book for the Year 1805 - Gardeners’ Work
From the Tayloe papers at the Virginia Historical Society, Mss1 T2118a8
The primary property he is concerned with here is Mt. Airy in Warsaw, VA, but he also records work done at six other properties: Old House, Forklands, Marske, Menoken and Doctor’s Hall in Richmond County and Hopyard in King George County. (Much other work by a variety of workmen is recorded in addition to the gardener’s work transcribed below.)
January 5, 1805
Gardeners Work – grubbing Plumb trees, cutting wood, cleaning snow from about the houses, cutting ice, etc etc.
January 9
Boys mending gardeners shoes
January 12th
Gardeners Work Viz –
Cutting wood, cleaning out greenhouse, wheeling manure, sweeping chimneys. Getting trees to plant in lawn and nursery, etc.
Saturday, January 26th
Rainy day
Mt. Airy Gardeners Work Viz—
Cutting wood, watering Green and hot Houses – making Bean sticks – getting Broom Straw
Saturday, February 2nd
Joiners repairing wheelbarrows for Gardeners
Gardeners Work Viz—
Making hot beds. Getting mould for ditto. making Bean poles and Pea Sticks – cutting wood, cleaning in the Lawn. picking large Grass from Bowling Green
Saturday 9th February
Gardeners Work Viz—
Wheeling manure and making hot beds. picking the Bowling Green. Cutting wood for hot houses. watered Green and hot houses and cleaned them out etc
Saturday 16th February 1805
Gardeners work as follows Viz—
Grubbing up apple trees and set them in the Nursery
Sowed Peas picked and raked large Grass off
Bowling Green walks & made hot beds. cut
wood. watered Green & hot houses etc
Saturday 23rd February
Gardeners work as follows Viz—
Wheeling manure making Hot Beds
Picking walks & wheeling off the Grass
took up young trees at Menokin and set
them in nursery watered Green and
Hot Houses etc etc
Saturday March 2nd
Gardeners Work Viz—
Monday 25th [February] Made hot bed & picked walks
Tuesday 26th Planted onions, Sow’d Beets, Carrots, etc.
Wednesday 27th Dug ground. Sowed Onions, Watered Gn & H House
Thursday 28th Wheeled manure made hot beds
Friday March 1 Raked and Rolled the Bolling Green
Saturday 2nd Dug Ground watered Green & hot houses
Saturday March 9th
Gardeners Work
Getting the Squares in order for Peas etc
fitting up Cucumber fraimes
planting apple trees at [illegible] Sowed Peas etc etc
Monday March 11
Jobbers & hands from other properties are trimming up in the park
Saturday March 16th
Gardeners Work Viz as follows—
Planted Apple Trees at Marske. uncovered
Asparagus and forked up the Bed
Dressed the Borders. wheeled manure lined
the hot Beds. Sowed Peas and Beans. cutted
Wood. Watered Green & hot Houses etc etc
Saturday 30th March
Gardeners Work Viz—
Dressed up Front Yard. dug
Ground in Garden. Sewed Peas. Beets. Carrots
and Parsneps. Dressed up Green & hot houses.
Saturday, 6th April
Gardeners Work Viz—
Made 2 hot Beds for mellons. Dressed up the Pleasure . planted Potatoes. sticked Peas. Picked Broom Grass, watered and Cleaned out Green & Hot houses etc
Saturday 13th April
Gardeners Work Viz— worked the Kitchen Garden dressed the Borders – Hoed Gravel Walks Cleaned Nursery & Kitchen Yard. watered Green & hot houses etc etc
Saturday 20th April
Gardeners Work Viz—
Monday 15th – Holy Day
Tuesday 16 – Rolled the Grass & Gravel & cleaned Walks
Wednesday 17th – ditto
Thursday 18th – ditto
Friday 19th –ditto
Saturday 20th –Watered Green & hot houses and weeded Kitchen Garden
Saturday 27th April
Gardeners Work Viz—
Worked the Kitchen Garden Picked Grass. Dressed the flower Borders Rolled the Bowling Green & Walks. planted Beanes, watered Green & Hot houses, frames etc etc
Saturday 4th May
Gardeners Work Viz—
Mowed the Garden. Hoed the Gravel walks [pricked ?] the edging cleaned out & watered the Green & Hot houses. planted Beanes Dressed up the court. Made up compost for Gne House Plants etc
Saturday May 11
Gardeners Work Viz—
Monday – Mowed the Bowling Green & Gravel Walk watered the Green House & Frames
Tuesday – Mowed and weed in the Kitchen Garden
Wednesday – ditto, Hoed & Raked the Gravel Walks
Thursday – weeded in the Kitchen Garden and dressed the Borders round the Bowling Green
Friday – mowed the Banks in the Garden and wed the asparagus Beds
Saturday – Watered & Cleaned out the Green House etc
Saturday May 19
Gardeners Work Viz—
Monday Dug ground etc—
Tuesday – wed in the nursery timed trees etc
Wednesday – dug Ground in Kitchen Garden etc
Thursday – [illegible] take trees out G. H.
Friday – ditto
Saturday – Ditto
Saturday 25th May 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Monday 20th – Finished taking the plants out G’ House
Tuesday 21 – Mowed, watered & wed in the Kitchen Garden
Wednesday 22 – Mowed & Rolled the Bolling Green, watered the Green House Plants &
work ‘d the K. Garden
Thursday 23rd – Mowed in front the Green House. Hoe’d the flower Plats
Friday 24 –Mowed in the Kitchen Garden
Saturday 25 – ditto & Dressed up the court
Saturday 1st June 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Cleaned the Serpenhtine Walk. Shifted the young pines. Cleaned before the Green House watered the Green House plants. Wed in the Kitchen Garden. Raked the Gravel Walks.
Saturday June 8th 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Mowed round Serpentine walk. Watered Green House Plants. Wed in the Kitchen Garden. Cleaned fore Court. Dug Ground Planted Cabbages etc etc etc
Saturday 15th June 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Hoed the Gravel Walks and wed in the Kitchen Garden. Got [married?]
Saturday 22nd June 1805
Gardeners Work Viz— Mowed weeds in the Lawn. Wed in Garden Mowed and Rolled Bowling Green—mowed four Court Watered Plants etc
Saturday 29th June 1805
Gardening Viz
Mowed. Watered plants. Weeded flower Borders etc. Godfrey & dick in harvest field
Saturday 6th July 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Weed in Kitchen Garden, Dug Ground, dressed flower Boarders. Hoed and Raked Gravel Walks etc etc.
Saturday 13th July
Doctors Hall [crude drawing of a hand pointing at this entry]
Plough horse died Saturday morning—when cut open his maw was full Pby Worms
[other notes of livestock dead also marked with pointing hand]
Gardeners Work Viz—
8th Monday worked in the Kitchen Garden
9th Tuesday – watered the plants and cut wood for Lime Kiln
10th Wednesday – Put up a lime Kiln
11th Thursday – Dug Ground and watered plants
12 Friday – Ditto
13 Saturday – Ditto Watered plants Raked the Gravel etc etc
Saturday 20th July 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Dug Ground in kitchen Garden Cleaned fore Court. planted Beans Weed and Watered [peas? Pears?] Dick attending [sessions?]
Saturday 27th July 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Hoed & Raked the Gravel Walks Wed in the Kitchen Garden dug Ground Watered Plants – etc
etc
Saturday 4th August 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
[illegible] watered Plants, worked in the Garden. Dug Ground, Planted, Peas Beans & Sowed turneps
Saturday 10th August 1805
Gardeners Viz.
Mowed & weed the Kitchen Garden---Cleaned out the fraiming Ground – made up Compost, Planted Ceder trees weed the flower Borders etc etc
Saturday 17th August 1805
Gardeners Work Viz
Worked in the Kitchen Garden
Watered Green House Plants
Hoe’d Raked the Gravel walks
Trimed Hedges, pricked the Grass [illegible] the Walks
Saturday 24th Aug’t 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Watered Green house Plants. Dug Ground weed Turneps. Rolled the Walks. Mowed four Court. Hoed the Gravel
Saturday 31st August 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Watered Green house plants. Worked the Kitchen Garden. Mowed around the walks. Trimed hedging Rolled the Grass. Cleaned up Kitchen Yard etc etc
Saturday 7th September 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Worked in the Kitchen Garden Cleaned the fore court – Raked the Gravel etc etc
Saturday 14th September 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Triming the Hedges. Working the Kitchen Garden. Mowed the Grass watered the Plants. Wheeled Manure. Hoed the gravel Walks. Cleaned out Serpentine Walk Cleaned out the Framing Ground etc etc
Saturday 21st September 1805
Gardeners Work Viz
Monday 16th – Mowed & wed in Kitchen Garden
Tuesday 17th – Mowed the Bowling Green & rolled Walks
Wednesday 18th – Ditto
Thursday 19th – mowed the Banks in the Garden & Dug Strawberrys
Friday 20th – Ditto Kitchen & nursery yards etc
Saturday 21st – Layed down a Cistern in Garden
Saturday 28th Sept 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Putting Plants in Green House & made up Compost
Saturday 5th October 1805
Gardeners Work Viz
Monday 30th – mowed & made up compost
Tuesday 1st October Ditto
Wednesday 2nd – Gathered apples at Old House
Tursday 3rd – Wheeled Manure
Friday 4th – Ditto—
Saturday 5th – Ditto
Dick sick 3 days this week
Gardeners work –
Putting Plants in Green & fixing [fitting?] it out for Winter
Saturday 12th October 1805
Gardeners Work
Monday 7th --- Dug Ground Watered Green house assisted in packing up things for [Gdy?]
Tuesday 8th – assisted in loading carts & Waggons
Wednesday 9th – Wheeled manure and trimed hedges
Thursday 10th – Dug up asparagus Beds
Friday 11th – Cleaned up before the Greenhouse
Saturday 12th – Cleaned the fore court
Saturday 19th October 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Watered Green & Hot houses. Wheeled manure covered asparagus Beds Dug Ground in Kitchen Garden etc
Saturday 26th October 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Dug Ground Wheel’d manure. Cleaned the flue of Hot Houses dug holes around the house for
Scaffold poles, watered & cleaned out Green & Hot Houses etc etc.
[At Mt. Airy, Maisons are getting posts from the woods and jobbers are setting posts for scaffold]
Saturday 2nd November
Gardeners Work Viz—
[Cut?] away the Greens Dug wheel ‘d manure trimed trees, watered green & hot houses Dug up & set out Rasberry Buses etc
Saturday 9th November 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Dug Ground. Wheeld manure. Trimed trees & bushes. Planted trees around the Serpentine Walk. Watered & cleaned out Green & hot houses—assisted about raising scaffold
Saturday 16th November 1805
Gardenrs Work, Viz
Planting trees of different kinds in fruitery
Planted Plumb & Apricots at Bottom of Garden
Dug Ground Watered and Cleaned Green & hot houses
Saturday 23rd November
Gardeners Work Viz—
Dug Borders in Kitchen Garden. Wheeled manure. Began to Dig the flower Borders assisted to raise Scaffold planted a row of different kinds of Shrubs around the Bowling Green. Watered the Green & hot houses – cut wood for the Sheds etc etc
Saturday 30th November 1805
Gardeners Work Viz—
Began to dig the flower Plats Planting edging watered green & hot houses
