Thomas Jefferson: our fellow gardener

I wrote an article “Comparing with young Abe Lincoln: a grandiose delusion of mine?” back in 2007,

http://doctorjytsai.blogspot.com/2007/04/comparing-with-young-abe-lincoln.html  

 

And now I am writing to tell our gardening work is similar to what Jefferson did when the country was still very young.  This proves my grandiose delusion hasn’t been cured.  We plan to visit Jefferson's beloved Monticello to see his restored garden later this summer; it will be a pilgrimage for us as gardeners.

 

 

In a letter to his friend, Charles Peale, Jefferson wrote, “I have often thought if heaven had given me choice of my position and calling, it should have been on a rich spot of earth, well watered, and near a good market for the productions of the garden.  No occupation is so delightful to me as the culture of the earth, and no culture comparable to that of the garden.”   I cannot say any better than this to tell why I am a ‘young’ gardener.

 

Jefferson had both vegetables and flowers in his garden.  One year he wrote to Samuel Harrison that he made no progress in his works of ornament since he had been forced to attend to those of utility.  He made detailed records as to the vegetable planting and harvesting (utility) in his garden book, but not about flowers (ornament).  However, he often talked about flowers in the letters.

 

Monticello's garden

Writing to his granddaughter at age of 68, he wrote,

 

“The flowers come forth like the belles of the day, have their short reign of beauty and splendor, and retire like them to the more interesting office of reproducing their like.  The hyacinths and tulips are off the stage, the Irises are giving place to the Belladonnas, as this will to the Tuberoses &c.”

 

We often exchanged seeds, bulbs, and seedlings with our garden friends; one good friend also gave us lily bulbs when she visited a garden show this spring.  I have mentioned many of he residents in our garden came from a distinguished family.  Jefferson also got the seeds and bulbs from friends, although he bought some, so did we; we bought seeds of ethnic Chinese/Taiwanese veggies when we visited China Town stores in Boston or Chicago.

 

The following is from Dumas Malone’s Jefferson and his time: The sage of Monticello,

 

“He [Jefferson] had seeds from everywhere: from county neighbors like George Divers of Farmington; from nurseryman Bernard McMahon . . . from Justice William Johnson . . . from Philip Mazzei in Italy; from Lafayette’s aunt, Madame de Tesse, and Andre Thouin, director of the Jardin des Plantes in Paris.  . . he had seeds from Lewis and Clark sent by Bernard McMahon.”

 

beauty and splendor

Jefferson once wrote, “The greatest service which can be rendered any country is to add a useful plant to its culture”.   Malone wrote he “perceived no conflict between utility and beauty”, so do I.  What he said suits me well had I changed  ‘country’ to ‘county’ as we have been introducing ethnic Taiwanese veggies to Greene County.  My way of mixed gardening is certainly not original; or may I say like minds think alike :- )
 

Taiwanese pumpkin

Italian squash

Luffa   絲瓜, 菜瓜

Taiwanese winter melon

Taiwanese pumpkin

Taiwanese bitter melon