Plants in Early American Gardens - Great Blue Lobelia

Great Blue Lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica)

This native wildflower has been grown in American flower gardens since at least the beginning of the 19th century. At one time it was thought to be a cure for venereal disease, thus the botanical name. Philadelphia nurserymen John and William Bartram sent seed of the Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis) and the Great Lobelia (L. siphilitica) to Europe in 1784. In The American Gardener’s Calendar, 1806, Philadelphia nurseryman Bernard McMahon named “Lobelias of various kinds” first among the “beautiful ornamental plants [that] may now be collected from the woods, fields, and swamps [to] embellish the Flower-garden and Pleasure-grounds...” McMahon advertised seeds of this species in his 1804 broadsheet and the William Prince Nursery on Long Island offered it in 1818. Bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds are attracted to the tubular flowers, but deer typically avoid this plant due to its toxicity.

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Garden History - Location--Command

The word command appeared very frequently in 18th century America describing the situation and prospect of a gentleman's house or property.

In the South Caroliana Gazette in 1734, an advertisement for property for sale in Charleston, South Carolina, emphasized both the garden and the view, To Be Let or Sold...on an island which commands an entire prospect of the Harbor...A delightful Wilderness with shady Walks and Arbours, cool in the hottest seasons. A piece of Garden-ground where all the best kinds of Fruits and Kitchen Greens are produced planted with Orange, Apple, Peach.

In 1759, traveler Andrew Burnaby noted of Mount Vernon in Virginia, The house is most beautifully situated upon a very high hill on the banks of the Potomac; and commands a noble prospect of water, of cliffs, of woods, and plantations.

Mount Vernon in Virginia, high on a hill overlooking the. Potomac River.

As we noticed in the Location, Location, Location posting, the Governor's House in Annapolis, Maryland, garnered alot of attention. William Eddis also described the unfinished governor's house in 1769, The garden is not extensive, but it is disposed to the utmost advantage; the center walk is terminated by a small green mount, close to which the Severn approaches: this elevation commands an extensive view of the bay and the adjacent country.

In 1764, Lord Adam Gordon described the still unfinished Maryland governor's house in Annapolis, "commanding the view of the Town, the River Severn, the Bay, and all the Creeks." Lord Adam Gordon (1726–1801) was a Scottish general. During 1764, he toured the West Indies, the American colonies, and Canada, looking to invest in land & recording his impressions. He returned to England in 1765.

A plantation in King and Queen County, Virginia was offered for sale in the 1770 Virginia Gazette, "The manor plantation is beautifully situated, commanding a fine view of the river and marshes for many miles... a large falling garden inclosed with a good brick wall." Vistors could stand in the garden and survey the surrounding countryside.

The Rev. Mannasseh Cutler viewed, Robert Morris' The Hills near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the 1780s, giving this report, ...the gardens and walks are extensive, and the villa...has a commanding prospect down the Schuylkill.
From Philadelphia a view of Lemon Hill, the house that replaced Robert Morris's house The Hills. by John Woodside in 1807. Historical Society of Pennsylvania.

In 1783, Thomas Lee Shippen described Westover on the James River in Virginia, noting that it had a ...commanding a view...about 300 by 100 yards in extent an extensive prospect of James River and of all the Country and some Gentlemen's seats on the other side.
Westover on the James River in Virginia.

British Lt. John Eyns wrote of Governor John Hancock's house in Boston, Massachusettes, in 1787, ...there are a number of houses situated on Beacon hill which stand high and command elegant prospects particularly at high water. That of Governor Hancock stands the most conspiculus just at the top of the common with a full view of the Mall before it besides its distant views of the harbour and adjacent country.
The Hancock House on Beacon Hill in Boston with its terraced entrance garden was built in 1737, close to the State Capitol building.

In 1788, Lt. Eyns described Mount Vernon, Virginia, in much the same manner, It had the Command of a View each way of some Miles up and down the River Potomack which is here about two miles broad On which during the Summer there are ships constantly moving.
Mount Vernon by Susan Whitcomb in 1842.

Thomas Anbury wrote of the Virginia house he was visiting early in 1789, The house that we reside in...a commanding a prospect of near thirty miles around it, and the face of the country appears an immense forest interspersed with various plantations.

Willliam Loughton Smith wrote in his journal on September 8, 1790, of General Schyler's house & grounds in Albany, New York, I took a walk to General Schyler's: his house...stands on a rising ground above the river and enjoys a commanding view.

Garden Facade of Gunston Hall in Virginia walking up the hill from the Potomac River.
And the following year, Smith described Colonel George Mason's Gunston Hall to the south of Alexandria, Virginia, The house is rather an ancient brick building, with a neat garden, at the end of which is a high natural terrace which commands the Potomac.

In 1793, Patrick Campbell wrote of Mr. McIntyre's house at Albany, New York, I went along with Mr. McIntyre from Albany to his house...we ascended a high hill, of a thin and stony soil, partly clear and inhabited, and which commands a fine prospect of the country all around.
Philadelphia The Woodlands, William Strickland after William Birch, ca. 1809.

Duc de La Rochefoucauld-Liancourt, Francois, visiting in 1795, described William Hamilton's Woodlands in Philadelphia, Woodlands...stands high...It commands an excellent prospect.
A View of the The Woodlands from the Rocks on the Schuylkill River.

In 1799, Isaac Weld passed through Washington, D. C. and noted of the White House, The house for the residence of the president stands north-west of the capitol, at the distance of about one mile and a half. It is situated on a rising ground not far from the Patowmac, and commands a most beautiful prospect of the river, and of the rich country beyond it.
The view of the Potomac from the porch at Mount Vernon.

After George Washington's death, visitors were still making pilgrimages to view his home Mount Vernon in Virginia. In 1813, Elbridge Gerry, Jr. wrote, Back of the mansion is a summer house, which commands an elegant view of the Potomac.

Plants in Early American Gardens - Double Red Peony

Double Red Peony (Paeonia officinalis 'Rubra Plena')

The Common or European Peony, Paeonia officinalis, was found in the gardens of France and Britain since the sixteenth century when they were grown in the medicinal gardens of monasteries. Thomas Jefferson most likely was referring to the European Peony when he noted “Piony” in a list of hardy perennials as early as 1771. The ‘Rubra Plena’ has been documented in cultivation since at least 1581 and is considered the first peony variety documented in American gardens, specifically in New England and the Middle Atlantic states. Peonies are deer resistant and their flowers are attractive to butterflies.

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Garden History - Trees-Wood

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A wood is a collection of trees growing more or less thickley together, of considerable extent, usually larger than a grove or copse (but including these), and smaller than a forest. In colonial America wood referred to a piece of ground covered with trees, with or without undergrowth.

In the 16th century, a wood in a pleasure ground was described in J. Manwood's Lawes Forest as a place "Where the trees do grow scattering her and there one, so that those trees do not one of them touch an other."


In 1762, Hannah Callender wrote in her diary of William Peters' Belmont near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, "We left the garden for a wood cut into vistas. In the midst is a Chinese temple for a summer house. One avenue gives a fine prospect of the city...Another avenue looks to the obelisk."

New Yorker John Nicholson emphasized the practical use of a woodland in The Farmer's Assistant in 1820, every plantation or farm "ought to have a piece of woodland, or forest, sufficient for fuel and other purposes. Raising timber, for the purpose of fencing, will not often be found advisable. Farmers must eventually depend on waking stone walls, or hedges, for the purpose of enclosing their lands.

"But wood and timber sufficient for fuel, for building, for carriages and implements of farming, cannot be dispensed with. Of these, the Farmer will always find it most advantageous to keep the requisite stock himself, and not rely on others for purchasing it. Nor is it advisable to have his woodlands separate, and at a considerable distance from his farm; unless it be in parts of the country where part of the lands are too valuable to be kept in wood, and other adjacent parts are only fit for that purpose.

"When the Farmer is clearing up his farm, he ought to reserve, for woodland, that part which is least adapted for tillage, or for grass. Land which is swampy with a thin soil over a sandy bottom; that is rocky and hilly; or that is dry, poor, or very gravelly, may do well for woodland; while it would answer but indifferently for tillage.

"The quantity of ground to be set apart for this purpose must depend on the size of the farm; the quality of the soil of the woodland; the nature of the climate; and, frequently, according to the demand or market for wood; for, in some cases, it may be found more profitable to keep tolerably good land in wood, than in any other cultivation.

"Of the natural growth of wood, it will require as much as twenty acres, or more, to keep two fires, according to the common method of using wood for fuel."
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Plants in Early American Gardens - American Sycamore

 Bare Root American Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis)

Bare Root American Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis)

Recorded as early as 1636, this fast-growing, long-lived giant of eastern North American forests is often found in lowlands and along waterways, where its gleaming white bark is easily identifiable in the winter landscape. Also called Buttonwood, this native tree was offered in the 1783 Catalogue from Philadelphia’s Bartram garden and nursery. Thomas Jefferson listed the “Plane-tree” as an Ornamental native plant in his Notes on the State of Virginia (1781), and sent seeds to his French friend, Madame de Tessé in 1805, saying “a noble tree for shade, of fine form, its bark of a paper-white when old, and of very quick growth.”

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Garden History - Tools - The Dibble

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Plants in Early American Gardens - Sarah Bernhardt Peony

Sarah Bernhardt Peony (Paeonia lactiflora cv.)

Both European and Asian peonies have been cultivated since ancient times. Those native to central China and Siberia (varieties of Paeonia lactiflora) were first introduced to the West by the 18th century and by 1784 breeding with the European peony was occurring in France and Britain. Because peonies are such long-lived plants, many 19th-century cultivars are still available. Thomas Jefferson noted “Piony” in a list of hardy perennials as early as 1771. The highly fragrant ‘Sarah Bernhardt’ was introduced in 1906. Peonies are deer resistant, and their flowers attract butterflies.

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Primary Source - 1729 Garden for Rent

To be Let very Reasonable, A Handsome convenient House, two Story high, containing Six rooms, Three Fire Places, with an Oven, and Well before the Door, and a handsome Garden, with choice Fruit Trees, Joining to the Ship Carpenter's, next Society Hill. Enquire of Elizabeth Benny, at the said House.

Pennsylvania Gazette, February 25, 1729

Plants in Early American Gardens - White Balloon Flower

White Balloon Flower (Platycodon grandiflorus 'Albus')

Indigenous to China and Japan, Platycodon grandiflorus, the only species in the genus, was grown in European gardens by 1782. Philadelphia nurseryman Bernard McMahon included Campanula grandiflora (syn. Platycodon grandiflorus) in the General Catalogue of his American Gardener’s Calendar (1806). ‘Albus,’ the white variety of balloon flower, was first offered by the Ohio nursery Storrs, Harrison, & Co. in 1896. The botanical name is from the Greek platys, meaning “broad,” and kodon, meaning “bell,” in reference to the showy flowers.

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Primary Source - 1768 Runaway Gardener

RUN away...a likely young negro man named BEN, about 27 years old, near 6 feet high. Carried with him a pair of leather legging, and a variety of other cloaths, by trade a farmer and gardener, and is very handy at many other businesses.

Virginia Gazette (Rind), Williamsburg, March 3, 1768.

Plants in Early American Gardens - Wild Blue Phlox

Wild Blue Phlox (Phlox divaricata)

This North American species was introduced to British and European gardens as Phlox Canadensis in 1746. Bernard McMahon listed it as the “early flowering phlox” in the 1806 edition of his book, The American Gardener’s Calendar. In The American Flower Garden Directory, 1839, nurseryman, florist, and author Robert Buist considered the American genus Phlox to be one of the most handsome in cultivation. Buist included the Wild Sweet William among the species he considered the finest. The flowers are attractive to butterflies.

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Primary Source - 1729 Garden Vandalized

One Night this Week, some vile Miscreants got into the fine Gardens of the Honourable Clement Plumstead, Esq; and cut down many of the fine Trees, and tore up the choicest Roots &c. and as 'tis said, the Damage whereof comes to a very considerable Sum.
Pennsylvania Gazette, March 20, 1729.

Garden to Table - Home-Made Two Damson Wine Recipes

 

John Greenwood (American artist, 1727-1792) Sea Captains Carousing, 1758.  Detail

Old-Time Recipes for Home Made Wines Cordials & Liqueurs 1909 by Helen S. Wright

DAMSON WINE
Gather the fruit dry, weigh, and bruise it, and to every eight pounds of fruit add one gallon of water; boil the water, pour it on the fruit scalding hot. Let it stand for two days; then draw it off, put it into a clean cask, and to every gallon of liquor add two and one-half pounds of good sugar. Fill the cask. It may be bottled off after standing in the cask a year. On bottling the wine, put a small lump of loaf sugar into every bottle.

DAMSON, OR BLACK CHERRY WINE
Damson, or Black Cherry Wine may be made in the same manner, excepting the addition of spice, and that the sugar should be finer. If kept in an open vessel four days, these wines will ferment of themselves; but it is better to forward the process by the use of a little yeast, as in former recipes. They will be fit for use in about eight months. As there is a flatness belonging to both these wines if bottled, a teaspoonful of rice, a lump or two of sugar, or four or five raisins will tend to enliven it.

Old-Time Recipes for Home Made Wines is a cookbook for those who want to make their own wines & liqueurs from available ingredients, including fruits, flowers, vegetables, & shrubs from local gardens, farms, & orchards. It includes ingredients & instructions for making & fermenting spirits, from wine & ale to sherry, brandy, cordials, & even beer. 

Colonial Era Cookbooks

1615, New Booke of Cookerie, John Murrell (London) 

1798, American Cookery, Amelia Simmons (Hartford, CT)

1803, Frugal Housewife, Susannah Carter (New York, NY)

1807, A New System of Domestic Cookery, Maria Eliza Rundell (Boston, MA)

1808, New England Cookery, Lucy Emerson (Montpelier, VT)

Helpful Secondary Sources

America's Founding Food: The Story of New England Cooking/Keith Stavely and Kathleen Fitzgerald Chapel Hill : University of North Carolina Press, 2004.

Colonial Kitchens, Their Furnishings, and Their Gardens/Frances Phipps Hawthorn; 1972

Early American Beverages/John Hull Brown   Rutland, Vt., C. E. Tuttle Co 1996 

Early American Herb Recipes/Alice Cooke Brown  ABC-CLIO  Westport, United States

Food in Colonial and Federal America/Sandra L. Oliver

Home Life in Colonial Days/Alice Morse Earle (Chapter VII: Meat and Drink) New York : Macmillan Co., ©1926.

A Revolution in Eating: How the Quest for Food Shaped America/James E. McWilliams New York : Columbia University Press, 2005.

Plants in Early American Gardens - Bare Root Blue Damson Plum

Bare Root Blue Damson Plum ( Prunus insititia)

The name Damson derives from the Latin Prunus damascenum, “Plum of Damascus,” where the species was believed to have originated before its introduction into England and Ireland. In 1778 Thomas Jefferson planted a number of fruits, including the “Damascene” plum in the south-facing orchard at Monticello. The Damson was brought to America by English settlers long before the American Revolution and was a favorite of the early colonist. The tart fruits are especially desirable in jams and jellies. Bees are essential for good pollination and abundant fruit production.

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South Carolina - Living near Water

30 May 2, 1796. Charles Fraser (1782-1860). The Carolina Art Association Gibbes Museum of Art, Charleston, South Carolina

The watercolors of Charles Fraser allow us feel the South Carolina landscape around us as we learn how it was being groomed & planted. Thanks to South Carolina native Fraser, we have a chance to see, through his eyes, the homes & gardens there as he was growing up. Although he was primarily known his miniature portraits, he also created watercolors of historical sites, homes, & landscapes. He painted while working as a lawyer, historian, writer, & politician. Today, many of Fraser's works are displayed at the Carolina Art Association & the Gibbes Art Gallery in Charleston.

Plants in Early American Gardens - Chickasaw Plum

Bare Root Chickasaw Plum (Prunus angustifolia)

Called “Cherokee plumb” by Thomas Jefferson, this tough, prolific fruit tree is native to the southern United States. Jefferson received this plum from nurseryman Robert Bailey of Washington and planted it at Monticello on March 17 and 18, 1812. He also included it in a list of edible native plants in his book, Notes on the State of Virginia (1780s). The tart, acidic fruits are best when cooked or preserved, and are also attractive to birds. The mass of white flowers in spring are magnets for bees and butterflies.

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Nuseryman -James Lockwood Belden 1774-1847

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James Lockwood Belden–1774-1847-Wethersfield, Connecticut–

Established Wethersfield Seed Gardens in 1820 (or possibly 1811).  Belden sold the company in 1838 to Judge Comstock and his son, William G. Comstock.

Information from the Smithsonian Institution Libraries and private research.
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Plants in Early American Gardens - Ducher China Rose

'Ducher' China Rose (Rosa x chinensis cv.)

Formerly called Rosa indica ‘Ducher’ and Bengale Ducher, this white China rose was bred by Jean-Claude Ducher (1829-1874), of Lyon, France, and introduced in 1869. Like most China roses, ‘Ducher’ flowers in flushes throughout the season, but most reliably if the spent blossoms are removed; otherwise it will produce persistent, orange-red hips. The China roses bloom on new wood, so prune early to promote growth and flowering.

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Primary Source - 1736 Gardens in Georgia

Frederica in Georgia the 12th of April, 1736.

THERE is a Town laid out here, and 37 Palmetto Houses built, in which all the People are sheltered till they can build better. The Town Lotts are already given out to each Family; those upon the Strand consist of 30 Feet in Front, and 60 Feet in Depth; those farther from the River are 60 Feet in Front; upon 90 Feet in Depth. The Garden Lotts of one Acre each which are within half a Mile of the Town, are already marked out, and Possession will be given to the People on Monday next; besides which the People in common plant Corn in an old Indian field of about 60 Acres. There is a Team of Horses and a Plough, with which there is some Ground turned up, and in it some Flax and Hemp seed sowed, as also half an Acre of Barley, which is come up very well, and some Lucern grass. We have a pretty deal of Potatoes in the Ground...

Pennsylvania Gazette June 24, 1736.

Plants in Early American Gardens - Mutabilis Rose

'Mutabilis' Rose (Rosa chinensis cv.)

‘Mutabilis’, also known as ‘Tipo Ideale’, is likely an old Chinese garden hybrid of mysterious origins. It was introduced to the West before 1894. The silken flowers are constantly transforming from copper-orange buds to lustrous pale peach when opened. Because the flowers are delicately poised on their stems, the rose is also called “the butterfly rose.” It is often associated with old Southern gardens and thrives in the Deep South.

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