Part #1 - "SEEDS & GRAINS OF TODAY COMPARED TO THEIR COUNTERPARTS OF YESTERDAY"

[Buck Conner1]

Part #1 - "SEEDS & GRAINS OF TODAY COMPARED TO THEIR COUNTERPARTS OF YESTERDAY"

The gentleman from Bondarbo Colorado is going to blink his eyes when he see's what he has done by turning me loose.

You guys wanted to talk foods of the mountain men, well I have lots of years doing research on the subject. I will share this information with you in a series of titles covering everything from what was cultivated, foraged to killed along with some quotes from some famous mountain men.

A topic seen recently here was titled "What did the mountain men eat".  To answer this correctly there are many subject lines; time period to start with, what was available, location, time of year and so on. Not as easy as one would think when first answering ???

I have been selling period correct foods, cultivated and foraged since 1984 when first opening a muzzleloading, mountain man shop near Estes Park Colorado. "Buckhorn Rendezvous" was a full service operation, if it was related to the 1750s to the 1850s we had wares to fill your needs and if we didn't we knew where to get what you wanted. Usually items not carried were specialty items that would be hard to move to the average customer.

I sold my store when transferred to Denver, drove it for 6 years, 75 miles each way and finally had enough. Once in Denver I became bored, was taking night classes to finish a degree and while in the library started doing more research on period correct foods. Nothing like going into a primitive camp and seeing the folks had spent thousands of dollar on equipage, then at night sitting around their camp fire eating not correct foods. What happened to period correct from day light hours? A new business idea was on the skyline ....  "Clark & Son Mercantile, Inc." was started being formed.

First lets look at the basics for edibles; vegetable and grains to start with. We'll call this section PART <a href='/tags/1' rel='nofollow' title='See all tagged subjects with: #1'>#1</a> - "SEEDS & GRAINS OF TODAY COMPARED TO THEIR COUNTERPARTS OF YESTERDAY".

That said, let's start out with a subject that will give you comparisons of grain seeds of yesterday with today seeds available. A note many of todays vegetables and grains are because of one of our first Presidents. Thomas Jefferson loved gardening, he traded seeds when in Paris on a regular base, brought back plants like the tomatoes which was not native to North America.

Here we go folks, enjoy.

CROSS REFERENCE - SEEDS & GRAINS OF TODAY COMPARED TO THEIR COUNTERPARTS OF YESTERDAY.​

(This was as close as a group of growers could come to correct Heirloom Seeds using Jefferson’s book and papers along with other known fanciers of cultivated edibles of the time).



GURNEY’S SEED or GRAIN               Thomas Jefferson’s Garden Book

BUSH BEANS

Blue Lake                                                        Delaware Valley

Kentucky Wonder                                           Early Kentucky

BUSH WAX BEANS

Rocdor                                                             French Yellow

POLE BEANS

Kentucky Blue                                                Virginia Blue Lake Pole

SHELL BEANS & COWPEAS

Pinkeye Purple Hull Cowpeas                        Lavender Hull Cowpeas

Swedish Brown Shell Beans                           Swedish Brown Bean

BEETS

Detroit Dark Red                                             Deacon Dark Red

BROCCOLI

Green Jewel                                                      Green Jewel

CABBAGE

Late Flat Dutch                                                 Early Jersey Dutch

Copenhagen                                                      Early Copenhagen

CARROTS

Red-cored Chantenay                                        Earlt Scarlet

CAULIFLOWER

Snowball                                                            Snowball

CUCUMBERS

Straight eight                                                      Big Eight

Lemon                                                                Lemon Yellow

LETTUCE

Black-Seeded Simpson                                       Black-Seeded Simpson

TOMATOES

Brandywine                                                         Red Brandywine

Yellow Brandywine                                            Yellow Brandywine

Mister Stripey                                                      Miss Stripey

SPINACH

Medania                                                               Broad-Leaved Green

JICAMA

Jicama                                                                  Jicama

BASIL

Sweet Basil                                                           Sweet Basil

Lemon Basil                                                         Lemon Basil

CHAMOMILE

Chamomile                                                           Daisy Chamomile

CHIVES

Chives                                                                   Tangy Chives

CORIANDER

Coriander                                                               Nutmeg Coriander

DILL

Dill                                                                         Feathery Dill

GARLIC CHIVES

Garlic Chives                                                         Garlic Chives

ROSEMARY

Rosemary                                                               Rosemary

TARRAGON

Russian Tarragon                                                   Russian Tarragon

OREGANO

Oregano                                                                  Italian Oregano

SAGE

Sage                                                                        Sage

PARSLEY

Champion Moss Parsley                                         Moss Parsley

PARSNIP

All-American Parsnip                                             New World Parsnip

PEPPERS 

Gypsy  sweet                                                          Golden Sweet

Madidarin       sweet                                               Pumpkin Pepper

Big Chile         hot                                                  Anaheim Mammoth

Pepper Mix      hot                                                  Santa Fe Mix

SALSIFY

Mammoth White Salsify                                        Mammoth White Salsify

RADISH

French Breakfast                                                    French Breakfast

PEAS

Green Arrow                                                          Early Risser Pea

LEEKS

Tasty Simmered                                                     Tasty Swiss White

TURNIPS

Hybrid Royal Crown                                               Royal Crown Turnip

ONIONS

Spanish Yellow                                                      Spanish Yellow

Copra                                                                      Long Keeper

CANTALOUPE

Hale’s Best                                                             Hale’s

Iroquois                                                                  Iroquois

PUMPKINS

Connecticut Field                                                   New England Field

Small Sugar                                                            Small Delaware Valley

GOURDS

Dipper Gourds                                                        Dipper

Birdhouse                                                                Santa Fe Birdhouse

WATERMELONS & MELONS

Crimson Sweet                                                        Ohio Valley Crimson

Sugar Baby                                                              Mississippi Valley Dwarf

SQUASH

Early Prolific Straightneck                                      Early Straightneck

Hybrid Jackpot Zucchini                                         Zucchini

Table Ace Acorn                                                     Acorn

Tastian Squash                                                         Mississippi Valley Sweet

ORNAMENTAL CORN

Pod Corn                                                                  Colored Pod Corn

SWEET CORN

Stowell’s Evergreen                                                 Stowell’s Enduring

Hybrid Quickie                                                         Ohio Valley Bicolor

POPCORN 

Laser                                                                         Striped French Popcorn

TOBACCO

White Burley Tobacco                                             Burley Tobacco

HEIRLOOM SEED LISTING​

We have mentioned the term, “research”, so many times that many of our friends and customers tell us, “they got the idea and stop mentioning it”. Sorry to keep repeating ourselves, but some new and old members of this sport just plain do not do any research at all. With a little research you will find volumes of information on gardens in the New World of the common man and of men that help form this country. One for example is Thomas Jefferson, see “Thomas Jefferson’s Garden Book”, a wealth of information covering an incredible number of different varieties of items grown in the late 1700’s and early 1800’s. The book gives the gardens in his journal and the data he recorded, names, scientific and common. Check your local library for period gardens, you’ll be please with what is listed.

LEGEND​

Approximate documented and dated items grown, foraged or traded in North America, we found something’s earlier than listed, but not that common for the working class or local trade.

#       VARITEY GROWN BEFORE 1680

*        VARITEY GROWN BEFORE 1760

+       VARITEY GROWN BEFORE 1850
      [seed packets contain like amounts in quantify to modern seeds packets]
@ We also listed several common names for many of the varied plantings, used in the past and some in the present, that are in very short supply, but hope to have available at a later time.

Reference:

THOMAS JEFFERSON’S GARDEN BOOK 1766-1824

Along with other sources from the collections of the Massachusetts Historical Society, Boston, Massachusetts.



GURNEY’S SEED & NURSERY CO.

P.O.BOX 4178  GREENDALE, IN 47025



This spring you now have a list of period correct vegetables and grains to plant. And have the bragging rights to tell friends and family you "did it the right way".



Watch the skyline ...

 

[exMember]

Re: Part #1 - "SEEDS & GRAINS OF TODAY COMPARED TO THEIR COUNTERPARTS OF YESTERDAY"

wooowee! I just got home after picking up a load of hay. Looks like Ive got some reading to do!

 

[Buck Conner1]

Re: Part #1 - "SEEDS & GRAINS OF TODAY COMPARED TO THEIR COUNTERPARTS OF YESTERDAY"

I need to add the LEGEND for time frames Jefferson received these plantings. Got tired of tying, sorry. Tomorrow is another day.