The Gardener's Kalendar of Martha Daniell Logan 1704-1779 South Carolina Gardener & Teacher

Martha Daniell Logan (1704-1779), teacher and gardener, was born in St. Thomas Parish, S.C., the 2nd child of Robert Daniell and his 2nd wife, Martha Wainwright.  Her father arrived in South Carolina from Barbados in 1679; already propertied, & he increased his holdings in real estate, slaves, and ships over the years. In 1704 and 1705, he had a stormy term as lieutenant governor of North Carolina; & he served twice in the same capacity in South Carolina from 1715 through 1717.

Nothing is known of his daughter Martha’s education, but it surely consisted of reading & writing along with the skills of needlework. Her childhood was not prolonged. In May 1718, when she was 13, her father died; and on July 30, of the following year she was married to George Logan, Jr. At about the same time her mother married the senior Logan, an Aberdeen Scot who, like Daniell, had held offices of trust in the province.

The younger Logans spent their early married years on a plantation some 10 miles up the Wando River from Charles Town, on land which Martha had inherited from her father. There, between 1720 and 1736, eight children were born to them: George, Martha, Robert Daniell (who died as a child in 1726), William, John, Frances, Anne, and finally another Robert who also died before reaching adulthood.

As early as Mar. 20, 1742, Martha Logan advertised in the South Carolina Gazette that she would board students who would be “taught to read and write, also to work plain Work Embroidery, tent and cut work for 120 l. a year,” at her house up Wando River.  Twelve years later, after she had removed to Charles Town, the Gazette of Aug. 4, 1754, carried her proposal for a boarding school in which a master of writing and arithmetic would supplement her instruction in reading, drawing, and needlework. Tradition had it that she also managed the Logan plantation, though this is less certain, as her husband did not die until July 1, 1764.  Her first advertisement for a school did, however, offer for sale the home estate and other properties, an offer which she repeated on Mar. 13, 1749, when she announced that she acted as attorney for her son George Logan of Cape Fear.

She is best known for her interest in horticulture. She is assumed to be the “Lady of this Province” whose “Gardener’s Kalendar” was published in John Tobler’s South Carolina Almanack for 1752, according to the South Carolina Gazette of Dec. 6, 1751.  Here is her Kalendar from 1756.

Tobler's South Carolina Almanack of 1756.

Directions for Managing a Kitchen Garden every month of the year Done by a Lady

January
Plant peas and Beans: Sow Spinage for Use and for Seed: that which is preserved for Seed
must never be cut: a small Quantity will yield plentifully in rich ground. Sow Cabbage for
Summer Use, when they are fit transplant them into rich Earth. Sow Parsley. Transplant
Artichokes into very rich mellow Ground and they will bear in the Fall. This month all kinds
of Fruit-Trees may be Transplanted.

February
Sow Celery, Cucumbers, Melons, Kidney-Beans, Spinage, Asparagus, Radish. Parsley, Lettice,
to be transplanted in shady Places: they must be moved young and watered every Morning:
Pond or Rain Water is the best. If the season does not prove too wet, this Month is best for
planting all Sorts of Trees, except the Fig, which should not be moved 'til March, when the
suckers may be taken from the Roots of old Trees. The Fig will not bear pruning. The
middle of this Month is the best for Grafting in the Cleft. If Fruit-Trees have not been
pruned last Month, they must not be delayed longer. About the Middle of this Month, sow
Spinage, Radish, Parsley and Lettice for the last time. Plant Dwarf and Hotspur Pease. Sow
Onions, Carrots and Parsnips; and plant out Carrots, Parsnips, Cabbage and Onions, for
Seed the next Year. Plant Hops, Strawberries, and all kinds of aromatic Herbs

March
Whatever was neglected last Month, may be done in this, with good Sue. cess, if it is not too
dry; if it be, you must water more frequently. Now plant Rounceval Pease and all manner of
Kidney Beans.

April
Continue to plant aromatic Herbs Rosemary, Thyme, Lavender etc. and be careful to weed
and water what was formerly planted. Lettice, Spinage and all kinds of Salading may be
planted to use all the Summer but they must be frequently watered and shaded from the Sun.

May
This month is chiefly for weeding and watering: Nothing sown or planted does well.

June
Clip Evergreens, and Herbs for drying, Thyme, Sage, Carduus, Rosemary, Lavender, etc. Sow
Carrots, Parsnips and Cabbage. If the Weather is dry and hot the Ground must be well
watered, after being dug deep and made mellow. Straw or Stable Litter well wetted and laid
pretty thick upon the Beds where Seeds are sown, in the Heat of the Day, and taken off at
Night is a good expedient to forward the Growth.

July
What was done last Month may also be done this. Continue to water, in the evening only.
The latter end of this Month sow Pease for the Fall. Water such things as are going to seed,
is being very needful to preserve good Seed. Turnips and Onions may be sown; Leeks,
scallions and all of this Tribe planted.

August
Sow Turneps and another crop of Hotspur or Dwarf Pease. Still Continue to weed and water
as before.

September
Showers of Rain will be frequent. Now prepare the ground for the following Seeds viz.
Spinage, Dutch brown Lettice, Endive, and other crop of Pease and Beans. Now you may
inoculate with Buds.

The the calendar and a variant version appeared often in South Carolina and Georgia almanacs into the 1780’s.

The Pennsylvania botanist John Bartram met Martha Logan briefly in 1760; and, at least through 1765, they carried on an eager exchange of letters, seeds, and plants. “Her garden is her delight,” wrote Bartram to his London correspondent Peter Collinson.

It was also a source of income. The South Carolina Gazette of Nov. 5, 1753, gave notice that Daniel (Robert Daniell) Logan sold imported seeds, flower roots, and fruit stones at his “mother’s house on the Green near Trotts point,” but perhaps because of his death the nursery business soon passed into Martha Logan’s hands, as a diary reference of 1763 and a newspaper advertisement of 1768 attest.

Martha Logan died in Charleston in 1779. Martha Logan was buried in the family vault, since destroyed, in St. Phillip’s churchyard, Charleston.

Plants in Early American Gardens - Green Hubbard Winter Squash

Green Hubbard Winter Squash (Cucurbita maxima)

First cultivated in the late 18th century, Green Hubbard Winter Squash was introduced commercially in the 1840s by the seedsman James J. H. Gregory, who named it after his neighbor Elizabeth Hubbard of Marblehead, Mass. The fruits are bronze-green, 12-15 inches long, and the delicious flesh is golden yellow, thick, and fine-textured.

1764 Plants in 18C Colonial American Gardens - Virginian John Randolph (727-1784) - Mullin

A Treatise on Gardening Written by a native of this State (Virginia)
Author was John Randolph (1727-1784)
Written in Williamsburg, Virginia about 1765
Published by T. Nicolson, Richmond, Virginia. 1793
The only known copy of this booklet is found in the Special Collections of the Wyndham Robertson Library at Hollins University in Roanoke, Virginia.

Mullin

Mullin, Verbascum. The seed should be sown in August, in drills, about six inches asunder, and in the spring transplanted in a warm light situation.
.

Plants in Early American Gardens - Trumpet Creeper

Trumpet Creeper (Campsis radicans)

This vigorous North American vine was introduced into Europe by 1640. In 1771 Jefferson noted planting “Trumpet flower” on September 30th. At the time, its Latin name was Bignonia radicans. Philadelphia nurseryman Bernard McMahon included “Bignonia radicans-Scarlet Trumpet Flower” in The American Gardener’s Calendar, 1806.

Dried Squash & Gourds - 1797 Isaac Weld notes Native Americans using gourds

When Issac Weld toured North America at the end of the 18th-century, he recorded Indians using gourds in some of their rituals and ceremonies. (Travels through the States of North America, 1797): “Of Indian dances in Canada: the two others marked time equally with the drum, with kettles formed or dried squashes or gourds filled with pease.”

Plants in Early American Gardens - Lanceleaf Coreopsis

 Lanceleaf Coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata)

Lanceleaf Coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata)

Native to open woodlands, prairies, and meadows throughout much of the United States, Coreopsis lanceolata is easy to grow, drought-tolerant, and not favored by deer. The cheery yellow flowers can bloom from late spring through the summer, especially with regular deadheading, are great for use as cut flowers, and attract butterflies. The merits of Lanceleaf Coreopsis have been recognized in this country since at least 1804, when Philadelphia nurseryman Bernard McMahon listed it in his seed catalog.

Primary Source - 1737 Runaway Gardener

Richmond County, August 27, 1737...ran away ...an Irish Man, talks thick, and much upon the Brogue, and was known by the Name of Bryan Kelly. He is of a middle Stature, black Hair, fresh Complexion, much Pock-fretten, his Head close shav'd when he went away, and professes himself a Gardener by Trade ; and took with him a Gun and Ammunition; Two old Black, and One Yellowish Natural Wigg, One coarse Camblet Coat, of a greenish Cast, half trimm'd, with with white Pearl Buttons, and only fac'd with Shalloon ; a Man's Cloth Coat half trimm'd, with yellow Mettle Buttons, and only fac'd ; one red Penistone Jacket, trimm'd, with Mettle Buttons ; one grey Cloth Jacket ; one pair of Cloth, and one pair of Ticken Breeches, one pair of new Trowsers, 3 Check'd Oznabrig Shirts, Shoes, and Stockings; and an old fine Hat without Lining...

Virginia Gazette (Parks), Williamsburg, From August 26 to September 2, 1737..