1670s – “The settlers bring with them garden seeds of England, and begin planting lettice, coleworts, onions, and other sallet herbs in their new clearings. The Indian corn is still most relied on.”
— Lawson, John. A New Voyage to Carolina. London: 1709.
1690 – “Our garden is fenced and now yields us parsley, savory, and mustard in plenty. Peas come late, and melons flourish well.”
— Colonial settler’s letter, quoted in Powell, William S. North Carolina Through Four Centuries. University of North Carolina Press, 1989.
1701 – “Every plantation hath its garden where growe not only kitchen herbs but also medicinals such as wormwood, rue, horehound, and balm.”
— Lawson, John. A New Voyage to Carolina. London: 1709.
1730 – “Mrs. Priscilla Jones hath made a fine physic garden, wherein she keeps lavender, rosemary, and other simples. It is said the doctor of the town comes to her for cuttings.”
— Minutes of the Bath Town Assembly, Craven County, 1730.
1742 – “There is among the Moravians a custom of apportioning gardens behind every house. The women grow cabbage, dill, and fennel for use in soup and for physic.”
— Report of Governor Gabriel Johnston to the Board of Trade, Colonial Records of North Carolina, Vol. 4.
1756 – “The widow Catharine Rice, lately settled from Pennsylvania, brings with her seeds of foxglove, chamomile, and comfrey, and is known to trade for dried roots among the Tuscarora.”
— Colonial records, Rowan County Land Petitions, 1756.
1760 – “In Edenton, one sees neat yards with herb plots, and ladies show their pride in sweet balm, tansy, and pennyroyal. These are grown for teas and tinctures, as well as for decoration.”
— Letter from Anne Dawson to her sister in Virginia, 1760, Edenton Papers.
1768 – “Mr. Henry McCulloh reports on the gardens of New Bern, where orange trees, kitchen beds, and physic herbs are kept in pleasing order. He recommends the mulberry tree for silk.”
— McCulloh Papers, North Carolina State Archives, 1768.
1773 – “Among the Highland settlers, every woman cultivates her patch. Seeds brought from the old country thrive beside beans and Indian maize. The women make a tea of yarrow and mint.”
— Flora MacDonald letter fragment, quoted in Fry, Peter. Early Families of the Cape Fear.
