The plants you see in the Historic Area gardens are either native to this area of the country, or they were brought over by the colonists and documented as having been here prior to 1800. Information comes from a variety of documents including letters, diaries, and advertisements in the 18th-century newspaper Virginia Gazette.

Grass was not grown in the 18th century like it is today and most people did not have lawns. Formal gardens with 'maintained turf' became fashionable among the nobility and landed gentry in 17th-century France and then in England. Wealthy colonists, such as Thomas Jefferson, brought this fashion of leveled turf areas to the colonies. In Williamsburg, lawns reflected status because only the gentry could afford to build lawns and hire the labor to mow them with a scythe, a long, curved, single-edged blade with a long bent handle.

We grow heirloom varieties of vegetables in the gardens for our Foodways department, a program that teaches guests about colonial food processing, cooking, and consumption. The landscape department tries to accommodate them by growing the appropriate crops. We also save seed of heirloom vegetable varieties for use the following year-just like they used to do for most of the vegetables in the past! This is why some of the crops in our kitchen gardens look 'past their prime'-we are waiting for them to go to seed!

Good day, Bill and thank you for your question!

You should start your cardoon seeds after the threat of frost has past, and the soil temperature has warmed up. Cardoon is a Mediterranean plant, so it likes warm temperatures. We do not have any cardoon seeds at this time, but you can purchase them from Monticello, or look in seed catalogues that feature vegetables. In the 18th century, cardoon was grown for the midrib of the leaf-that is the part of the plant that is used in cooking. It has a flavor reminiscent of artichoke, which is its first cousin! Once the plant is established, it should be able to overwinter. We successfully over winter the cardoon plants here in Williamsburg, but you will probably need mulching up in Pennsylvania. Good gardening!

Good day, Becky, and thank you for your question! We have many Bird Bottles in the Historic Area, and all of them are attached to buildings, usually close to the eaves. They usually attract small birds such as sparrows and wrens, but I have seen phoebes nest in them (or sometimes on top of them!). It may take a while for the birds to discover their new digs, but if you have any inquisitive wrens around, they probably will not be able to help themselves. Do you have an area where you have berried shrubs planted near the house? Also, if you supply water in the yard, like a bird bath or some way for the birds to drink, that will encourage nesting. You can hang the Bird Bottles in trees, higher up (as the eaves of the house are high up)-we have used them in trees at our golf course. Good luck!

Good day Edward!
There are many flowers and shrubs that were commonly found in the gardens of Williamsburg in the 18th century that you can find today. Some of the modern versions of the plants grow better and have prettier flowers. I will give you a list, and mostly common names. You have not told me where you live, so keep in mind these plants live in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Thank you so much Leonora! I will pass your sentiments along to my staff. They work very hard to make your visits here memorable!!

You are correct, Dan. Tomatoes were not widely grown in the 18th century here in Williamsburg, but a large number of vegetables were grown here. The early colonists brought European vegetables with them, such as carrots, parsnips, onions, potatoes,cabbages, beans, and peas. Then they integrated vegetables the Indians were cultivating, such as pole beans, corn, and squashes. Other North American vegetables cultivated include hot peppers, other potatoes, such as sweet potatoes, various squash, and melons. The slaves brought vegetables from Africa and the Islands such as okra and peanuts.
Generally, poorer people ate a diet primarily of vegetables, with wild game and some domestic meats. The gentry, or wealthier people ate primarily meat-a combination of wild game and domestic meats, and used vegetables as condiments. Thomas Jefferson differed from his contemporaries in that his diet consisted primarily of vegetables and very few meats.

Kelly, this is something I wondered about while working in the gardens here in Williamsburg. What I found out is that the colonists grew vegetables that they brought with them-European vegetables, lots of root crops and cabbages and such, plus beans, much as they had in their homelands. They found the climate here in Virginia harsher than at 'home'-longer, hotter summers and drought periods. In a lot of respects, the climate provided a longer growing season if the water was available. They adopted growing techniques from the Native Americans along with adopting the crops they were growing here, such as corn, pole beans, squash, and pumpkins. They also started using some of the preservation techniques the natives used, like drying the fruits in front of the fireplace. We have been a 'melting pot' of cultivation for centuries!

Thomas, without a doubt, the most important thing in gardening is the soil. I would encourage you to do as much as you can to improve the soil in the areas you plan to garden in. Add in as much compost as you can afford. Depending on the size of the area you want to plant, either purchase bags of compost from any garden center or store in the spring, or if you have a larger area, I would suggest contacting Bennett's Creek wholesale garden supplies on Penniman Road. They can supply you with compost in bulk and arrange for delivery. They also sell a topsoil/compost mix that is a great product. Good luck!!

Yes, Pam, it is POSSIBLE to grow this magnolia from seed, but it is not an easy project. You must wait until the seed is ripe, which is when it is pushed out of the cone, and then the soft, fleshy outer coat must be removed. At our nursery when we are doing this, we soak the seeds in warm water, sometimes for days, until the coat is soft, and then we scrub the outer coat off. There is a hard seed inside and this can be planted outside in the early spring. It takes up to four months for the seeds to germinate, so you will need to mark the spot so you don't forget. Good luck to you! If you can do this, you have much more patience than I do!!

You do not say where you are located, but there is one source that can be found just about anywhere-a local farm co-operative. You can purchase bags of large-grade oyster shells used for poultry. This is a good source if you are not near the shore. We use shells, generally, not oyster shells, as we used to in the past. The oyster shells now are used in the seeding of oyster beds in the Chesapeake Bay. This year we purchased a few from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, because they had extra. We get the bulk of our shells from the eastern shore of Virginia, and they are dredged out of the bay. These shells are much softer than the oyster shells and more comfortable to walk on. I would think the poultry shell would be closer to this grade. I hope this is helpful.

Ellen, the paw paw is a tree that apparently needs a rhizo-bacteria with its root system in order to grow and thrive, so do not buy any bare root-only in container, and be careful transplanting it. I am not aware of a source immediately, but I consulted with Rollin Woolley, who is an expert on heirloom fruit trees and he suggested two places you could look or ask about this wonderful little tree; The Backyard Fruit Growers or the North American Fruit Exporters. Good luck!

Good day Brenda!

Thank you for visiting us this past weekend, and I also wish we had more 'spring' going on! Our weather is very unpredictable, and we had a major cold snap (and snow!) the beginning of the week you visited. It was in the teens for 2-3 days and did not get over freezing. This slowed down our blooming bulbs and trees considerably. I usually suggest people visit the middle of April. The bulbs I order for the Historic Area gardens are generally late blooming bulbs. We like to have lots of color for Garden Week in Virginia, which is the week of April 20 this year.

As for your interest in our Garden Symposium, we wanted to revise the length of the program to create a more affordable venue, while at the same time providing a slate of entertaining quality speakers. Offering a shorter program has been suggested by symposium attendees in the past so we added optional programs on additional days. I hope you will consider attending our 2009 program-it promises to be a great event! For more information about the program and speakers, please visit our web site.

Once again, thank you for visiting and please come see us again!