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Root Crops

  1. Documentary References to Root Crops
  2. Discussion
  3. Root Crop Varieties
    1. Carrot
    2. Radish
    3. Parsnip
    4. Salsify
    5. Sweet Potato
    6. White Potato
    7. Jerusalem Artichoke
    8. Beet
    9. Skirret

I. Documentary References to Root Crops

References to Root Crops in the Virginia Gazette:

Nov. 30, 1759; Christopher Ayscough, Palace: Scarlet Radish, Black turnip radish

March 26, 1767, William Wills, Richmond, John Donley, Petersburg: Orange Carrot, Parsnip, Red Beet, Scarlet Radish, Salmon Radish

March 10, 1768, William Wills, Richmond, John Donley, Petersburg: Short Orange Carrot, Long Orange Carrot, Parsnip, Red Beet, Scarlet Radish, Salmon Radish

Oct. 10, 1771; Campbell's Store, Richmond: Carrot

Dec. 31,1772; John Carter Store: Carrot, Salmon Radish

Dec. 16, 1773; John Carter Store: Orange Carrot, Different sorts of Radish

Jan. 3, 1774; James Wilson, College of William and Mary: Red and White Beet, Early Carrot, Skirret, Salmon Radish, Short-topped Radish, White and Black Spanish Radish

Mar. 7, 1792; Minton Collins, Richmond: Large Orange Carrot, Large Parsnips, Red and White Beet, Salmon or short topped radish, White turnip radish

Oct. 17, 1792; Minton Collins, Richmond: Salmon short-topped radish, Turnip radish

Jan. 4, 1799; Peter Bellet Nursery: Carrots, Parsnip

Other Virginia references to Root Crops:

Nelson Letter Book, Feb. 27, 1767: Carrot, Parsnip

Nelson Letter Book, Aug. 29, 1771: Purple turnip, reddish

Wallace, Davidson & Johnson Order Book, 1774: Salmon Radish

William Byrd II, Natural History, c. 1730: Carrots, Beets, Radish, Horse Radish, Parsnips, Many species of potatoes

John Randolph, A Treatise on Gardening, 1793: Orange Carrot, White Carrot ,Scarlet Radish, Salmon radish, London short topped Radish, Turnep Radish, Salsify, Potato (Irish), Parsnip

Josph Prentis, Monthy Kalender & Garden Book, 1775 - 1788: Rhadish, Carrots, Parsnip, Salsafy

Major Thomas Jones Diary, Essex County, 1797: Carrots, Parsnip, Beets, Irish Potatoes, Virginia Potatoes, Salmon Radish, Short Top Radish, Turnip Radish

Jefferson's Garden Book (first citation) Carrots (1774), Early Carrot (1812), Large Carrot (1812), Orange Carrot (1809), Yellow Carrot (1811), Radish (1767), Black Radish (1812), English Scarlet (1794), Leather Coal Radish (1824), Oil Radish (1809), Rose Radish (1786), Salmon Radish (1774), Scarlet Radish (1774), Summer Radish (1809), Violet Radish (1817), White Radish (1786), Parsnip (1774), Salsify (1774), Sweet Potato (1782), Irish Potato (1772), Red Beet (1774), Scarlet Beet (1809), Jerusalem Artichoke (1794)

II. Discussion:

The root crops known to colonial Virginians have their origins from throughout the world. Radishes and Skirrets from Asia. Parsnip and Salisfy from Europe; Carrots from both Europe and the Near East. Red Beets seem to arise in Germany from the Chard or White Beet. Jerusalem Artichokes from North America, both the white and sweet Potatoes from South America. Some crops, such as Radish, Carrots and Parsnip seem to be almost universal elements in the kitchen gardens of all classes of people because of their easy culture, keeping ability and nutritional value. The use of others, such as salsify and Jerusalem Artichoke, seem to be determined more by individual taste and are not universally grown. The white potato does not become a staple until the second half of the 18th century. The Skirret falls out of fashion by the 18th century, just as the Beet comes into fashion. The Jerusalem Artichoke enjoys a brief period of popularity early in the 17th century, falls out of favor in the 18th and is rediscovered in the 19th. Many of these crops are as important for feeding livestock as they are for feeding people. Root crops, as group, have been a staple food for societies around the globe and throughout time. Unlike crops such as cabbage, which everyone in the 18th century seems to eat and enjoy, there is a far wider scope of preference for the various types of root crops. An interesting letter from George Divers to Thomas Jefferson in 1809 gives an idea of one man's preferences for several of the root crops. "I sow 200 feet each of parsnip and beet. 320 feet each salsafy and carrots…which is a very ample provision for my table and indeed, more than sufficient."

III. Root Crop Varieties

A. Carrot

Carrots (Daucus carota) have probably been known and used since prehistoric times. The wild carrot of Europe is white and branched and was originally used as a medicinal plant and perhaps as a fragrance herb. The purple and yellow varieties seem to originate in Afghanistan. The yellow or carotene carrot appears to be a mutant of the purple or anthocyanin carrot (Evolution of Crop Plants, Simmonds, 1995). The purple and the yellow carrots were not as bitter as the white carrot of Europe and these types form the earliest culinary carrots. It is from the yellow carrot that all modern varieties arise. In later years the French, in particular, develop sweet forms of the white carrot, which are probably better known in Europe than in this country.

In Williamsburg, John Randolph records in A Treatise on Gardening (1793); "there are two sortes, the Orange and white, the former being generally used, tho' the latter is much the sweetest kind." This is taken from Philip Miller's, The Gardeners Dictionary, written in England and from which Randolph borrows heavily and reflects a European rather than American sentiment.

The early history of the carrot in Europe is difficult to trace because the carrot and the parsnip both carry the name Pastinaca by Roman writers. This probably derives from the Latin verb pastinare, "to dig up" although it has also been speculated that it comes from the Latin noun pastinum, which was a two pronged dibble. In the first century AD Pliny, in his Natural History, describes a root; "resembling a pastinac asomewhat, called by us Gallicam, but by the Greeks daucon." The modern genus name Daucus derives from the Greek daucon while the species, carota, derives from the Latin word for the carrot. The Dioscoridae Pharmacorum, written by Dioscorides in the first century AD and translated by Ruellius in 1529 uses carota to refer to Pastinaca silvestris. Pliny's description of the root as Gallicam may indicate that the improved, or less bitter carrot had its source in modern day France. This carrot is distinguished by Galen as Daucus pastinaca in the second century AD when he writes that the wild carrot is less fit to be eaten than the domestic sort (Edible Plants of the World, Sturevant, 1919). Apicus Czclius who writes a book on cookery titled De Re Coquin in 230 AD is one of the first to adopt the word Carota to the plant.

The Roman carrot was almost certainly the white form of the root and as the wild carrot is native throughout much of Europe it was likely used by Europeans from a very early date. The Capitulare de Villis, prepared for Charlemagne around 800 AD includes carrots. The white carrot may have been carried to England by the Romans in the 2nd century AD and archeological excavations at the Viking settlement at Jorvile, (modern York) England has uncovered evidence of what may be carrot seeds. Aelfric, who writes a Latin vocabulary in England in 995 cites carrots.

The purple carrot has probably been known in Afghanistan since 5000 BC and an Egyptian tomb illustration from 2000 BC shows what appears to be a purple carrot. The Egyptian king Merodach-Baladan has what may be a carrot listed among scented herbs from the 8th century BC so it is possible that the first use of the carrot was not as a culinary plant but rather as a fragrance or medicinal herb.

It has long been held that Moorish invaders first brought the purple, and perhaps yellow, carrot to Spain in the 12th century and the purple is recorded in France and Germany by the 13th century. However, an illustrated English translation of Dioscorides' manuscript from late in the eleventh century titled De virtutibus bestiarum in arte medicinae shows what appears to be a purple carrot but little definitive evidence for the carrot, as a culinary plant, in England has been found until the 16th century. A Feat of Gardening by Master John Gardener (c 1400) does not list carrots among the vegetables he describes but Fromonds, Herbys necessary for a gardyn by letter (c. 1500) does include "karettes." Turners, The Names of Herbes (1548) writes; "Pastinaca is called…in englishe a Carot…Carettes growe in al countreis in plenty." In France, Ruellius in De natura stirpium (1536) describes purple and red carrots and in Germany, Fuchs, in De historia stirpiumm (1542) illustrates red and yellow carrots, although the red is definitely shaded towards purple. The half-long carrot, which eventually becomes the horn carrot, is first described by Matthiolus in Commentarii secuno (1558).

By the 17th century both the purple and yellow carrot are well established in England. John Gerard writes in the Herball (1597); "The root is long, thicke and single, of a faire yellow colour, pleasant to be eaten, and very sweet in taste. There is another kind hereof like to the former in all parts, and differeth from it only in the colour of the root, which in this is not yellow, but of a blackish red colour." This seems to indicate that the yellow carrot starts to replace the purple by the beginning of the 17th century. Giacomo Castelvetro writes in The Fruits, Herbs & Vegetables of Italy (1614): “We prepare salads from pink and yellow carrots, roasted or boiled in the same way, and turnips as well." After this time there is a development of many colors and shapes. Parkinson writes in Paradisi in sol (1629); "the roote is round and long, thicke above and small below, wither red or yellow, eyther shorter or longer, according to his kinde; for there is one kinde, whose roote is wholly red quite throughout; another whose root is red without for a pretty way inward, but the middle is yellow." He describes several yellow varieties with both long and short roots saying that one of the long yellow varieties is; "of a deepe gold yellow colour, and is the best."

The evolution of the orange carrot is confusing because the color cited by various authors as either orange or yellow are not always reliable. One of the earliest references to the orange carrot in Europe comes from the Menagier of Paris who, in the 14th century, writes a series of instructions for his wife. The carrot at this time was apparently fairly new to the market for he feels it is necessary to describes for her how one may recognize the carrot and adds that they are either white or orange. This is carrot would probably be considered yellow today.

The Dutch develop the orange carrot, which we are familiar with today, from the yellow carrot in the early 17th century. Popular legend has it that the orange carrot was developed as a tribute to the House of Orange, or the royal Dutch family, but it is more likely that the impetus behind the development of the orange varieties was that they would not give the purple brown coloration to soups that the more ancient purple varieties would. The orange carrot is introduced to England from Holland in the late 17th century (Weaver, Heirloom Vegetable Gardening, 1997). The earliest orange carrots had a long tapered root but by 1740 the Early Horn carrot is developed in Holland. This is a shorter carrot that terminates in a blunt point rather than the long tapered point of earlier carrots. By 1763 carrots were classed as one of four varieties. The long orange, and the three varieties of Horn carrot; Late Half Long, Early Half Long and Early Scarlet Horn. The modern carrots all derive from these four types (Simmonds, Evolution of Crop Plants, 1995).

By the 18th century the orange carrot is the primary variety grown for the table though other varieties are known. Stephen Switzer records in The Practical Kitchen Gardiner (1727) yellow or Sandwich, red and orange carrots. Bradley, in the Dictionarium Botanicum (1728) writes;"we have four or five Sorts of 'em, but I esteem the Orange-Carrot, and a kind which they have in the Isle of Wight, to be the best; besides which, we have the white Carrot, which one would not be without for the Rarity of it." Even in the 18th century the confusion over color descriptions persist in that yellow often seems to mean what we would call orange and red seems to refer to purple. For example, in Batty Langley's New Principles of Gardening (1728) he describes the two primary varieties of carrots this way: "Yellow Carrots…The root is of an Orange (rather than a limon) Colour." He also records that the root of this carrot is 22" long and 12 ½" in diameter, a huge root by today’s standards. . The red carrot he describes as; "its Root of a Blackish red without, and yellowish within; and is very seldom cultivated in our Gardens." This is probably in reference to the purple carrot, which by this time is disappearing in England.

Hale describes three types of carrots in The Compleat body of husbandry (1757): “The dark red Carrot, The Orange Carrot And The white Carrot. The first and last of these Terms are somewhat improper, the first Kind being only a very deep Orange, and the other only a very pale Yellow. The first is the most generally esteemed; People, who are critical in these Matters, usually preferring the deepest coloured Carrots; the white Kind is more common in FRANCE and ITALY.” By 1768, when Philip Miller writes in The Gardeners Dictionary; "the Orange Carrot is generally esteemed in London, where the yellow and the white Carrots are seldom cultivated."

Carrots are introduced to Virginia with the first colonists. They are recorded by Whitacker, Good Newes from Virginia (1612), Berkeley, A Perfect Description of Virginia (1649), Bannister's Natural History (1681) and Glover's An Account of Virginia (1688). By the 18th century the orange carrot is the primary garden carrot of Virginia, the most common sorts being the Long Orange and the Horn. In Philadelphia, Bernard McMahon records in American Gardener's Calendar (1806); "There are several varieties, of the garden carrot; differing in the colour of their roots; such as orange, white, yellow and dark red. There is another variety called the horn-carrot, differing in the form of its root, the lower part terminating in a round, abrupt manner, and not tapering off gradually, like the others; this is the earliest sort, is of an orange colour, and very delicious; and should always been sown for the a first crop. The long orange carrot, is the best for a principle crop."

) The carrot was equally important as a field crop for feeding livestock. The Complete Farmer, compiled by A Society of Gentlemen in 1769 records: “Mr. Billings observes, that the use of carrots for the winter feed of cattle has been long known and practiced in the eastern parts of Suffolk, where it is common to make carrots serve the same purpose turnips have many years done in most parts of the country of Norfolk…our intelligent farmer finds them a more certain crop, both for growth and duration, than turnips: the latter are exceedingly apt to fail, as well as rot, towards the spring, when most wanted.” In this county George Washington writes to Benjamin Fitzhugh Grymes, April, 10, 1787: “I am convinced that in a proper Soil, the culture of Carrots will be found very advantageous for feeding the farm horses, and every species of Stock…I am inclined to think that the rows of Carrots will yield five, 8, or I do not known but 10, bushels of Carrots for every one of Corn.”

While always a popular crop, Americans never develop the sophisticated taste for carrots that the Europeans do. In 1865 Fearing Burr records in Field and Garden Vegetables of America; "though not relished by all palates, carrots are extensively employed for culinary purposes." Henderson writes of carrots in Gardening for Profit (1867);"This may be classed more as a crop of the farm than the garden, as a far larger area is grown for the food of horses and cattle than for culinary purposes."

B. Radish

There has been much speculation over the years about the ancestral home of the radish (Raphanus sativus). Early writers give the Near East as it place of origin and as late as 1928 a study done in Japan by Sinskaja concluded that the Near East was the likely home of the radish. This has since been disputed by later studies showing a greater diversity of wild forms in China. There is a wide diversity of the wild forms of Raphunus raphanistrum, R. maritimus and R. landra that occur between the Mediterranean and Caspian Sea so it is possible that it evolved in both the Near East and China (Evolution of Crops Plants, Simmonds, 1995). Egyptian tomb illustrations from 2000 BC may show black skinned radishes and the Greek Historian Herodotus (648 - 625 BC) writes of the radish being known to the early Egyptians but this has been called into question in recent years (Heirloom Vegetable Gardening, Weaver, 1997).

Whatever their origin, the ancient Greeks knew at least three varieties of radish. Theophrastus (371 – c 287 BC) records in Enquiry into Plants (Sir Arthur Holt translation, 1916): “Thus the radish they recognize these various kinds – the Corinthian, that of Cleonae, the Leiothasian, amorea the Boeotian. The Corinthian is said to be the strongest in growth, and it has an exposed root; for it pushes upwards, and not downwards like the others. The Leiothasian is called by some the Thracian radish, and it stands the winter best. The Boeotian is said to be the sweetest and to be round in shape, not of a long shape like that of Cleonae. Those kinds whose leaves are smooth are sweeter and pleasanter to the taste, those whose leaves are rough have a somewhat sharp taste.” Radishes were esteemed as the most important of the root crops. In offerings to Apollo at Delphi, turnips were presented on lead platters, beets on silver ones and radishes on gold (History of Cultivated Vegetables, Phillips, 1822). The Greek physician Moshion wrote an entire book on the radish. Columela, in De re Rustica from the first century AD names the radish, radicula, from the Latin radix, or root.

Radishes were, perhaps, the most common of all root crops in Europe after the Roman period and are listed by virtually all references. The Capitulare de Villis (800AD), prepared in modern day France lists radish. Hortulus written by the Benedictine monk Walahfrid Strabo "Wahahfrid the squint-eyed"(c.809-848) in modern day Germany says under Radix; "Here in the last row of all, the radish - roots itself strongly and raises its leaves in a broad canopy. Chew the root - though it's rather hot - to check a spasm of coughing." In England the radish is recorded in Aelfric's Latin Vocabulary (995), Alexander Neckam's De Naturis Rerum (1200) and Friar Henry Daniel's De re Herbaria (1375). Master Jon Gardiner lists Radish in the Feat of Gardening (c. 1400) and it is included in Fromonds Herbys necessary for a garden by letter under Also Rotys for a gardyn (c.1500). By 1577 Thomas Hill writes in The Gardener's Labyrinth; "The Garden Radish with us, is better knowne, then I with pen can utter."

The earliest use of the radish was as a medicinal plant and it continued to be recommended for its medicinal properties through the 18th century. Leonard Fuchs writes in De historia stirpium (1545); "Some people eat not only the stalk but the radishes themselves boiled with it, like beets. Moreover, I am surprised at the doctors, as well as ignorant laymen, who at dinner eat them raw to aid digestion…no one can follow their example without injury." In England, Thomas Hill records in The Gardener's Labyrinth (1577) a long list of ailments that the radish will cure and adds; "Tarentnius denieth that any can be harmed of a serpent, if the person afore be anointed with the juyce of a Radish, or that he hath eaten of the Radish...if any anointeth the hands circumspectly with the juyce of the Radish, he may after handle Scorpions, or any other venomous thing without danger."

The earliest radishes as well as those common in the 18th century were generally long rooted, much like a carrot and generally white. The white seems to be the earliest form used for culinary purposes. Some of these radishes were of tremendous size. Pliny writes of radishes that weigh 40 pounds in the first century AD. Fuchs writes in De historia stirpium (1545); "I remember seeing radishes of stupendous size at Erfurt, the famous city of Thuringia." Hill writes in The Gardener's Labyrinth (1577); "In Germany hath sometimes been seen a Radish, which grew in compasse so big as an infants middle."

The round rooted radish seems to reach England in the second half of the 16th century. William Turner writes in the Names of Herbes (1548); "There are two kindes of radice, the one is the commune radice with the longe roote…the other kynde hath a rounde roote lyke a rape…the former kynde groweth communely in Englande, but I have sene the seconde kynde no where els onely in high Almany" (Germany). The Black rooted radish also reaches England in the 16th century. Henry Lyte records in the1586 English translation of Dodoens Herball; "The radish with a black root has of late years been brought into England and now biginnith to be common." By the time Gerard publishes his Herball in 1597 there are several varieties of radish in England. "There be sundrie sorts of Radish, whereof some be long and white; others long and blacke; some round and white; others round, or of the forme of a peare, and blacke of colour." He lists and illustrates four sorts that seem to be the most common.
· "Garden Radish - leaves like a turnip but larger with a root that is long and white."
· "Small Garden Radish - like the first sort in all ways but smaller; except a little that sheweth it selfe above ground of a reddish colour."
· "Radish with a round root - The root is round and firme, nothing waterish like the common Radish, more pleasant in taste."
·"The Radish with a root fashioned like a pear - of a bright reddish colour." This is also a stronger, hotter radish than the others.

John Parkinson, in Paradisi in Sol (1629) writes;"There are two principall kindes of Garden Raddish, the one is blackish on the outside, and the other white." Of the white radish he writes; "the roote is long, white and of a reddish purple colour on the outside toward the top of it, and of a sharpe biting taste." Of the black he writes; "I have had brought me out of the Countries, where they sell them in some places by the pound and is accounted with them a rare winter sallet." His illustration of this radish shows a pear shaped root, probably the same as Gerard's, and after this the black radish becomes the winter radish of later authors. He is also the first to mention the propensity of the black radish of reverting to the white form, which is recorded by many later authors. These become the common Black and White Spanish radishes listed in all later works.

The trend towards a redder radish with smaller leaves, or what later became known as the short-topped radish, begins with the red topped varieties of the ordinary long white radish. John Evelyn writes in The Compleat Gard'ner (1693), a translation of the French work by De la Quintinye that seed should be saved only from those plants that have the Reddest roots and fewest leaves. The round or turnip rooted radish seems to be known from an early date but is never as common as the long rooted radish during the 18th century. Stephen Switzer writes in Practical Kitchen Gardiner (1727); "the round rooted radish is not very plentiful in England. I had some seed from Holland, about seven or eight years ago, and it is indeed a much better kind that the common radish," observing that it is not as hot and keeps better, by some call'd Hanover radishes, in allusion to its turnep shape.

By 1768 Philip Miller in The Gardeners Dictionary describes many varieties of radish including; "the smaller oblong or common radish which includes the small topped, deep red, pale red or Salmon and long topped striped." He also lists the Round rooted or Naples or small round, Greater round called Turnep rooted or White Spanish and Black Spanish. He writes that the Spanish are used primarily as medicinal radishes. The Rev. William Hanbury, in A Complete body of planting and gardening (1770) lists; "Short Topped, Long Topped, Deep Red, Salmon, Sandwich, Turnep, White Spanish and Black Spanish," observing that the last two are the least planted. He also recommends that; "Radish pods…are accounted excellent pickles."

There is some confusion as to the difference between the Turnep and Spanish radishes. Miller equates the Turnep radish and the White Spanish while other authors record them as distinct varieties. Justice lists the Black and White Spanish radishes separately from the Turnip radish in British gardener’s new director (1771) and gives different cultural requirements for the roots: “The turnip radishes should be sown February and March, and as they are hardy, and come in early, they will be fit for use in April and May…The two kinds of Spanish radishes must be sown each sort by themselves, for the white are eaten in October, and the black are eaten in winter.”

By 1822 when Henry Phillips writes the History of cultivated vegetables the turnep radish is described as the Scarlet Turnip as distinct from the black and white forms of the Spanish radish. The red topped turnip radish seems to arise late in the 18th century and is advertised in the Newport Mercury (Rhode Island) newspaper by Mary Dunbar as the “Red turnip rooted radish.” The Scarlet turnip radish available today is a red radish with a large red root shading to white at the bottom.

In this country it is curious that the radish is not often included in the early accounts of imported vegetables. "Raddish" is included in Ralph Hamor's A true Discourse of the present State of Virginia (1615) and it was almost certainly an early introduction given its great popularity in England. By the 18th century it is represented as frequently and in greater variety than the carrot in the survey of Virginia references. The varieties listed in Virginia, in the 18th and early 19th century are very similar to those known in England. In Williamsburg, Randolph lists, in A Treatise on Gardening (1793), the "Scarlet or Salmon, London short topped &c." as well a "Turnep Radish, being very like one, called in England the round rooted radish." In Washington DC, Gardener and Hepburn record in American Gardener (1804); short top'd, salmon, turnip-rooted (white and red), Black and White Spanish. In Philadelphia Bernard McMahon records in American Gardener's Calendar (1806); Early Frame, Early Purple, Short-top, Salmon Short-top, Common Salmon, White Short-top, White Turnep-rooted, Red Turnep-rooted, White Winter Radish, Black Winter do, White Naples, &c.

The Scarlet, Salmon and Short-topped radishes are the most frequently cited radishes in the survey of Virginia references. These are all long slender roots as described by Gardener and Hepburn in American Gardener (1804) under instructions for saving seed where they write; "choose long straight roots with short tops, the roots of a pale red colour." Fearing Burr, in Field and Garden Vegetables of America (1865), describes the Long Scarlet Radish (syn. Early Scarlet, Short-Top, Early Frame) as; "of a beautiful, deep-pink color, becoming paler towards the lower extremity." This radish is 7 - 8" long with a 5/8 - ¾" diameter at its broadest dimension and is l the most commonly cultivated radish in Americaat that time.. He also states that the Long Salmon is generally considered as synonymous with the Long Scarlet although he feels it is distinct in being of a paler red color.

Most of the long radish varieties have disappeared. The Long Scarlet Radish is still available although that offered by seed companies today is a red throughout. While most 18th century descriptions of this radish seem to agree with Burr’s description as red at the top and becoming paler towards the bottom, the Radish illustrated in Elizabeth Blackwell’s Hebarium Blackwellianum published between 1750 and 1773 shows a radish that is a deep red throughout.

The small, round radishes we are familiar with today are not known in the 18th century. Philip Miller writes in The Gardeners Dictionary (1754);"The small round-rooted Radish is not very common in England; but in many Parts of Italy it is the only short cultivated." This is apparently a larger radish than the modern types as he describes them as being as large as a small turnip. He also adds that; "The other round-rooted Radishes are rarely cultivated in England." Robert Squibb records in The Gardener's Calendar for the Carolinas and Georgia (1787) a small round radish which is probably the same as Miller's variety.

Radishes that likely resemble the 18th century Turnip Radish are still available and probably very much like the 18th century radish. Bernard McMahon describes the Turnip Radish in American Gardener’s Calendar (1806) as being; white and red, but the former is preferable to sow for the general supply: it grows like a young Dutch turnep, is very mild, agreeable to eat, and of early perfection. The white form of the turnip radish seems to have disappeared but the German Bier Radish makes a very large, turnip shaped white root that is probably similar in appearance. The Scarlet Turnip Radish available today has a red top fading to white at the bottom and is also probably similar to the 18th century root.

The Black Spanish radish is still available in both the round and the oblong forms. These, while not nearly as popular as the above, make a very good winter radish. The longer variety is the most ancient and probably the most common form in 18th century Virginia but the rounder or turnip rooted form is known by at least the second half of the 18th century in England.

C. Parsnip

The parsnip (Pastinaca sativa) is a native to Europe and Western Asia (Evolution of Crop Plants, Simmonds, 1995). Legend has it that the Roman Emperor Tiberius (14 - 37AD) got them as tribute from Germany although this has also been ascribed to the Skirret. While not as important as the radish to the Romans it was very well known from at least the first century AD. The primitive parsnip had a much smaller and woodier root than the later varieties and the woody core of the plant was discarded in the prepartion of the root for the table. Because the name Pastinaca was used for both the carrot and the parsnip it is difficult to tell them apart in Roman writings. Evidence of parsnips have been found in the excavations of Swiss lake dwellings from the Stone Age and it seems to be from the area of Switzerland and Germany that the modern parsnip evolves in Europe although genetic evidence points to the Italian peninsula as the home of the primative parsnip (Heirloom Vegetable Garening, Weaver, 1997). A plan for the Abby garden at St. Gall, Switzerland (800), probably prepared by Abbot Haito of Reichenau, shows what may be a bed of parsnips although it could also represent carrots.

The first definitive evidence for parsnips in Europe comes from France in 1393 (Heirloom Vegetable Gardening, Weaver, 1997). Fuchs seems to give contradictory accounts of the parsnip in Germany when he records in the Historia stirpium (1542);"It grows plentifully in Germany. Loves cold places," and then in the following year, 1543, he records in the New Herbal; "Planted in gardens but not yet common in Germany." Again, it is possible that the second reference is for the carrot. In England, the Latin Vocabulary written by the monk Aelfric (995) seems to include parsnip. Fromonds, Herbys necessary for a garden (c. 1500), under "Rotys," lists "Persenepez." William Turner in the New Herball, first published in 1551 writes; "Persnepes, and skirwortes are commune in Engalnde." By 1683 Worlridge writes in Systema horti-culturae that the parsnip is a great favorite and "a delicate, sweet food."

Unlike the carrot and radish, most authors list only a single variety of parsnip. However, John Parkinson, in Paradisi in Sol (1629) records; "There is another sort of garden Parsnep, called the Pine Parsnep, that is not common in every Garden…the root is not so long, but thicker at the head and smaller below." This was a plant he received from John Tradescant the Elder and he says it is not as pleasant as the common sort. This is probably the same as the parsnip advertised in William Lucas's catalog, Lucas att the Naked Boy near Strand Bridge, London (1677) as the "Swelling Parsnip." This becomes the preferred variety in the next century. James Justice records in British gardener’s new director (1771): “The Dutch swelling Parsnip is the best for kitchen-use.” By the 19th century several varieties of parsnip are developed but according to Peter Henderson, in Gardening for Profit (1867);"A number of varieties of Parsnips are enumerated in seed lists, but the distinctions, as far as I have seen, are hardly worth a difference in name."

The parsnip is brought to America with the first colonists. A true declaration of the estate of the Colonie in Virginia, published in London in 1610 lists the parsnip as among the food plants grown by the colonists at Jamestown. In Williamsburg, Randolph gives us two pieces of advice in A Treatise on Gardening (1793) that are recognized by gardeners to this day. "They are not sweet till bit by the frosts, and, Seed are not to be trusted after a year old."

While parsnips are listed by all authors as an important and nourishing root I think it is safe to say that they are never as popular as the radish and carrot. This is particularly true today for the same reason given by the Rev. William Hanbury in A Complete body of planting and gardening (1770); "It is exceedingly wholesome; but possessed of such a physical sweetness, that very few relish it."

The hollow crown parsnip is the variety universally grown today and the only variety commonly available. It was developed in England in the 1820's and differs from the 18th century parsnip in being somewhat shorter with a sunken crown where the leaves emerge. Fearing Burr, in Field and Garden Vegetables of America (1865) describes the Common, Dutch or Swelling Parsnip as a root from twenty to thirty inches in length, and from three to four inches in diameter at the shoulder. The hollow crown parsnip typically produces a root of up to eighteen inches long.

D. Salsify

Salsify (Tragopogon porrifolius) is a curious plant that seems to fall in and out of favor several times over the course of history. It is a European native of ancient cultivation, recorded by the Greek writer Theophrastus (372 - 288 BC) and the Roman writers Pliny (23 -79 AD) and Dioscorides (40 - 90 AD). There are several species of Tragopogon native to Europe that go by the name of Goats Beard. The yellow flowered T. pratensis was apparently the first species used as a culinary plant, both for its roots and young stems that are eaten like asparagus. This is the plant identified by William Turner in The Names of Herbes (1548) as the "Barba Hirci." He writes that it; "groweth in fieldes about London plentuously…the duch herbe hath some bitternes in the roote…but oures is swete…therefore oures is the better herbe. It maye be called in englishe gotes bearde."

The purple flowered form was apparently developed in Italy in the 16th century and introduced to England in the 17th century (The Kitchen Garden, Stuart, 1984). One of the earliest descriptions that seems to differentiate the cultivated purple variety from the wild T. pratensis comes in Jacques Dalechamp's Historia generalis (1587). Gerard, in the Herball (1597) describes the yellow flowered Goats Beard or "Go to bed at noone" (an archaic name taken from the fact that the flowers close by noon) and also the purple saying it; "growes not wild in England that I could ever see or heare of, except in Lancashire upon the banks of the river Chalder…grown in gardens as an ornamental everywhere." As a culinary root he observes that boiled in water; "are a most pleasant and wholesome meate, in delicate taste farre surpassing either Parsenep or Carrot."

Parkinson, in Paradisi in Sol (1629) lists the common Goats Beard with the yellow flower, observing, "of a very good and pleasant taste," and then lists two other varieties. "The other two kindes…the one with a purple flower, and the other with an ash-coloured, have such rootes as these here described and may serve also to the same purpose, being of equall goodnesse."

By the 18th century Bradley in Dictionarium botanicum (1728) lists several varieties of common Goats Beard with both yellow and purple flowers, a purple flowered form he calls "Goatsbeard of Naples and a Rose-colour'd Goatsbeart…of a pale-purplish Blush Colour, near unto a Damask-rose" In The Gardeners Dictionary (1754), Philip Miller writes; "Goats Beard with a leaf like Leeks, and a purple-blue Flower, commonly call'd Salsaffy, or Sassafy…was formerly more in Esteem than at present; this was brought from Italy, and cultivated in Gardens for Kitchen-use, the Roots being by some People greatly valued: but of late there is but little cultivated for the Markets."

A similar root, Scorzonera (Scorzonera hispanica) comes into common usage in the late 17th century. John Evelyn, in the English translation of De la Quintinye's, Compleat Gard'ner (1693) writes; "Spanish Salsifie, or Sassifie, otherwhise Scorzonere, is one of our chiefest Roots…Common Salsifie…is not altogether so very excellent." Switzer, in Practical Kitchen Gardiner (1727), writes; "The Scorzonera (by original a Spaniard) has of late met with great entertainment at the tables of the curious. The Scozonera has its name from a viper or serpent, called in Spain Scorzo." This plant also goes by the name of vipers grass in England. Scorzonera was used in Spain from a very early date. A Spanish derivation of Fuchs's Historia Stirpium titled Historia de yervas, y planta (1557) includes scorzonera, which is not found in the German work by Fuchs. Batty Langley in New Principles of Gardening (1728) lists scorzornera but not salsify.

The early records of Virginia, that I can find, do not list Salsafy among the root crops although it was likely found in a few 17th century gardens, given its well known usage in England. In 18th century Williamsburg it is found in the garden writings of both John Randolph and Joseph Prentis. Thomas Jefferson is apparently quite fond of the plant for in a 1812 letter to Charles Clay he writes; " I do not remember to have seen Salsafia in your garden, & yet it is one of the best roots for winter. Some call it oyster plant." Oyster plant is commonly used to describe the plant today for the earthy, oyster-like flavor.

Bernard McMahon describes it in American Gardener's Calendar (1806) as; "the salsafy is estimable both for its roots as above, and for the young shoots rising in the spring from year-old plants, being gathered while green and tender, are good to boil and eat in the manner of asparagus. Some have carried their fondness for it so far, as to call it a vegetable oyster." A further indication of its history of falling in and out of favor, particulary in comparison to the scorzonera is found in Peter Henderson's Gardening for Profit (1867); "This vegetable is coming rapidly into general use…As this vegetable will be unknown to many, I will state that it is used in various ways, but generally boiled, or stewed, like Parsnips or Carrots…has a decided flavor of the Oyster." In contrast he says of Scorzonera or the Black Salsify; "It is not, however, so generally esteemed as the Oyster Plant."

Some of the references that seem to point to salsafy and scorzonera falling in and out of fashion may reflect individual tastes of the author. This was likely true among residents of Williamburg in the 18th century so that for our use, the salsafy should have less of a presence in our gardens than the carrot, radish or parsnip. I can find no reference to scorzonera in 18th century Virginia.

E. Sweet Potato

The Sweet Potato (Ipomoea batatas) is a native of South America and was evidently introduced to Polynesia from there at a very early date. A legend among the Maori people of New Zealand relates that it first arrived on log boats. The evidence for sweet potatoes on Easter Island was a primary argument by Thor Heyerdahl in his theory that Easter Island and perhaps other Polynesian nations were colonized by ancient peoples from South America. DNA evidence seems to dispute this and it is now believed the presence of the Sweet Potato on Easter Island as a staple for the ancient Rapanui as well as a long oral tradition for the Sweet Potato in the South Seas Islands suggest that there was contact with South America by seafaring people from Polynesia.

The use of the sweet potato by the English in Virginia predates the use of the white potato by one hundred years and perhaps longer. This is a source of much confusion among historians and botanists who often mistake references to the sweet potato for the white potato in 17th century Virginia. The Rev. John Bannister records in the Natural History (1681); "We have potatoes, white and red (I mean those you call Spanish ones) as for the Virginia kind, I have not seen it in this country, nor can I hear any news of it, though it be common in your European Gardens. I am sure the Barbadians & other inhabitants of the Caribbe Islands do not make their drink called Mobby of it: therefore that note of Mr. Rays should be transferred from the Solanum tuberosum esculentum to the Convolvulus Indicus Batatas dictus; for that is it which both we and they send." John Ray is the foremost English plant taxonomist of the 17th century and Bannister is referring to a reference in Ray's Historia Plantarum, vol II.

The curious use of the name Virginia Potato to refer to the white potato comes from Gerard's Herball (1597) in which the white potato is called the Virginia Potato while the Sweet Potato is simply called Potato. Gerard, himself, seems to confuse the two for he gives "Skyrrets of Peru" as a synonym for the sweet potato whereas the potato of Peru would certainly be the white, or what he calls, Virginia Potato. The sweet potato is difficult to grow in the English climate but Gerard says; "The Potato roots are among the Spaniards, Italians, Indians, [from India] and many other nations common and ordinarie meate." The sweet potato was described, and perhaps collected by Columbus and the Spaniards adopted it at a very early date and introduced its culture throughout Southern Europe. The Portuguese likely introduced the sweet potato to India where it was picked up by Malay traders and introduced, or re-introduced, to South-east Asia and Indonesia.

Parkinson, in Paradisi in Sol (1629) calls the sweet potato "The Spanish kinde," which becomes its common name with most authors after this time. It may be the sweet potato that Falstaff refers to in The Merry Wives of Windsor (1623) when he says; "Let the skie raine Potatoes…haile-kissing Comfits." Both Gerard, in the Herball (1597) and Williams Coles in Adam in Eden; or, nature's Paradise (1657) record the virtue of sweet potatoes for provoking lust and the sweet potato was used for forming kissing comfits in the 17th century (History of Cultivated Vegetables, Phillips, 1822).

While most English authors list the sweet potato, it is a difficult plant to cultivate in England so most sweet potatoes available for use were imported. Philip Miller writes in The Gardeners Dictionary (1754) that the sweet potato is cultivated in Spain and Portugal and shipped to England; and are by some Persons greatly esteemed; tho’ in general they are not so well liked as the common Potato, being too sweet and luscious for most Palates.

In the North American colonies, Robert Beverly, in The History and Present State of Virginia (1705) lists the sweet potato as one of the plants "our Natives had originally amongst them" and writes as though he is not very familiar with the white potato. "Their [the Natives] Potatoes are either red or white, about as long as a Boy's Leg, and sometimes as long and big as both the Leg and Thigh of a young Child, and very much resembling it in Shape. I take these Kinds to be the same with those, which are represented in the Herbals, to be Spanish Potatoes. I am sure, those call'd English or Irish Potatoes are nothing like these, either in Shape, Colour, or Taste."

The sweet potato is not listed by any of the Virginia references cited in the survey but it would probably not have been sold in stores because it is propagated from slips or cuttings rather than seed. This makes it difficult to judge its popularity as a garden or field crop but given its popularity in the 17th century it likely continued as an important crop throughout the 18th. Captain Newport, in The Description of the New Discovered River (1607) observes that the provisions available to the colonists are; "likewise potatoes, pumpious & millions." Governor Berkeley writes in A Perfect Description of Virginia (1648); "That they have roots of several kinds, potatoes, etc." In 1669 Berkeley receives a directive from King Charles II to send a 300 ton ship laden with; "silk, hemp, flax & potatoes." In all of these cases it is almost certainly the sweet potato that is referred to. In the Journal of Francis Michel, a Swiss traveler who visits the Tidewater region of Virginia in 1702, he records; "there are potatoes in great quantities." ) The Diary of William Hugh Grove for 1732 records: “The Potatoes are of the Barmudas kind fashion thick and short like a pear or long like a beet Root they are either white or red & Comonly rosted they are Sweet and over luscious best in a pye.” In all of these cases it is almost certainly the sweet potato that is referred to.

Sweet Potatoes also seem to be and important element in enslaved peoples diet. Hugh Grove also records: “They also allow them to plant little Platts for potatoes or [?] Indian pease and cimnells which they do on Sundays.” Forty years later Philip Vickers Fithian records in his diary on April 10, 1774; “they [Carter’s slaves] are digging up their small Lots of ground allow’d by their Master for Potatoes, Peas, &c.” While it is often difficult to distinguish between the sweet and white potato in these references, given the similarity in the two observations, it is likely Fithian’s account also refers to sweet potatoes.

Natural History (c.1730), erroneously attributed to William Byrd II, lists "many species of potatoes." There were several different varieties of sweet potatoes available to the colonists. Philip Georg Friedrich von Reck, a German immigrant to Georgia records in 1735-1736; "Sweet potatoes are a kind of West Indian potato. They are white, red or yellow and are cut into pieces and planted in earth that has been piled up about a hand's breadth deep...The sweet potatoes are sweet and healthy, and, when roasted in the ashes, they can be used in the place of bread." Landon Carter does not list sweet potatoes in his diaries but Jefferson in his Notes on the State of Virginia (1782) says that both long (sweet) and round (white) potatoes are cultivated. Bernard McMahon gives instructions for cultivating the sweet potato in American Gardener's Calendar (1806) and adds the interesting, and at least partially erroneous, history that it is a native of both the Indies and China; "But it is affirmed that it was unknown in the Philippine and Molucca islands, before the Spaniards brought it there. It was first brought into Spain from the West-Indies, or Spanish Main, and was there cultivated, long before the Solanum tuberosum, or common potatoe, was known in Europe."

F. Potato

The white potato (Solanum tuberosum) has more legends and myths attached to its introduction to England and North America than any other New World food crop. It is a native of South America and wild forms are still found in Peru, Chile, Bolivia and Ecuador. Wild forms of potato are bitter and contain toxic properties that were apparently selected out by native peoples at a very early date. Potato skins were found within a hearth at an archeological site in Chile dating to 11,000 BC. Sites in Peru from around 5,000 BC show evidence of the potato used as a culinary plant and it was probably on the high Andean plateau of Bolivia and Peru that the potato was developed. The first European contact with the Potato seems to come from a Spanish raiding party at the headwaters of the Rio Magdalena in Columbia in 1537 where the Spanish found stores of maize, beans and what the Spanish originally called truffles. This became know by the Spanish as papa, taken from the Quechua word for potato. The English "Potato" comes from the Indian word for the sweet potato, batata.

The first European description of the potato is found in the Spanish Conquistador Pedro Cieza de Leon's work Chronicle of Peru (1553). By 1573 the inventory of a Spanish Hospital in Seville includes sacks of potatoes, which seems, by the Spanish translation to refer to white potatoes. Carmelite friars take the potato from Spain into Italy and from there it spreads to the rest of Europe. A 1588 illustration of "Papas Peruanum" prepared by the Plantin Prss in Antwerp, possibly for inclusion in the Clusius watercolors, clearly shows a white potato.

There are many legends about how the potato was introduced to the British Isle. One account says that Sir John Hawkins found the potato on Margarita Island off the coast of present day Venezuela in 1564 and records that it is; "the most delicate rootes that may be eaten, and doe far exceede parsnips or carets." Another accounts says that Hawkins found the potato in Santa Fe de Bogata in 1565 and returned them to Ireland. Another has it that Sir Francis Drake, after sacking Cartegena in 1586 returns with potatoes, which are given to Raleigh who then plants them on his Irish Estates or that Raleigh acquires them himself and plants them at his Irish estate at Youghall in 1585. In the Drake Manuscripts or Histoire des Indes there are three illustrations of "Patates" probably done by French Huguenotrs who accompanied him to the West Indies in the 1590's. While the illustrations do not include foliage for identification, the third illustration has an explanation that reads; "The Indians make them into a beverage; after having boiled them in water, they squeeze them out with their hands, and they get drunk as with wine." This almost certainly in reference to the popular drink called Mobby by the English which is made from the sweet potato. Jefferson credits Raleigh with discovering them in Guiana and introducing the potato to Ireland. In the minutes of the Royal Society from Dec. 13, 1693, President Sir Robert Southwell says that it was his grandfather who first brought the potato to Ireland, which he received from Sir Walter Raleigh. A local Irish legend has it that ships from the Spanish Armarda foundered off the coast of Ireland with potatoes on board which were collected by the Irish peasants and planted in the counties of Kerry and Cork.

Regardless of how the potato reached the British Isle it is certain that it was in Ireland that they were first propagated. The potato was apparently of minor importance to the Irish until the second half of the 17th century. After Cromwell’s brutal suppression of the Irish Civil War in 1649 the country was faced with famine. Potatoes replaced grain as the Irish staple partly because the British army was not familiar with this crop and were less likely to steal it and partly because an acre of potatoes produces more calories than an acre of wheat. The white potato is introduced to England late in the 16th century. John Gerard, author of the voluminous Herball (1597) chooses, of all the thousands of plants described in this work, to be pictured holding the foliage and flowers of a potato on the face plate, suggesting that the potato was a new and exotic addition to the flora of England. Busoni, chaplain to the Venetian Ambassador in London records potatoes large and white in 1618 but, as in Ireland, they take a while to become accepted by the general public. Parkinson writes in Paradisi in Sol (1629); "The Potatoes of Virginia…which some foolishly call the Apples of youth…are rounder and much smaller than the former [sweet potatoes]…but not altogether so pleasant." In 1663 Mr. Buckland, in an address to the Royal Society, recommends planting the potato in all parts of the kingdom to prevent famine but it is not until the first quarter of the 18th century that the potato becomes common in England. In 1708, Motimer records in Gardener's Kalender; "The root is very near the nature of the Jerusalem artichoke, although no so good and wholesome, but it may prove good to swine." Richard Bradley writes in Dictionarium Botanicum (1728); "Potatoes and Jerusalem Artichokes are Roots of less note than any I have yet mention'd; but as they are not without their Admirers, so I shall not pass by the Method or their Culture in Silence."

In contrast, the year before Bradley's work is published, Stephen Switzer writes in Practical Kitchen Gardiner (1727); "the potatoe, or batatta is propagated by the Irish, and from them…by us here in England. The great produce and profit that arises from these roots, cause many fields in and about London, and the West, to be planted with them." In 1728, Batty Langley records in New Principles of Gardening; "To describe Potatoes would be a needless Work, seeing that they are now very well known by most (if not every) Person in England." Langley is also one of the first to describe individual varieties of potato.
· "white kidney Potatoe…which is the true form of a Sheep or Hogs kidney"
· "white round Potatoe, like the first with thinner skins"
· "Lancashire Potatoe…very pale reddish Colour, and of very large Growth…watery and insipid in taste."
· "Red Potatoe, with a rough Coat, the very best of any, and the greatest Bearer."

By the middle of the 18th century, at least, the potato is well received by the general public. Philip Miller writes in The Gardeners Dictionary (1754); "this Plant has been much propagated in England within thirty years past; for although it was introduced from America about the Year 1623, yet it was but little cultivated till of late; these Roots being despised by the rich, and deemed only proper Food for the meaner Sort of Persons; however, they are now esteemed by most People."

The kidney, white and red round potato seem to be the common potato of the 18th century in England, and probably in North America as well. Hanbury records in Complete body of planting and gardening (1770) the White, Common Red and Purple potato adding; "The Common Red, or Purple Potatoe is by far the best; though the white, which has been but lately introduced into our Gardens, come in earlier; on which account it is chiefly propagated." Abercrombie records in Every man his own gardener (1776) the "early red, called Wife's potato. Large round dark red, the best sort for the full crop, Round white, White kidney." Hale writes in The Compleat body of husbandry (1757): “We distinquish the Potatoes into two Kinds, the white and the red; but we may very well add a third, which is this of which I speak, under the Name of the yellow…which is usually very large and thin skinned. This, though less known among us, or less regarded, is kept separate by the IRISH, who are more used to this Root, and prefer it to both. The Kind is in IRELAND called the MUNSTER Potatoe.”

There are almost as many legends about how the potato reaches North America as there are for the British Isles. Robert Morison's Plantarum historia (1699) gives North America as the origin of the potato saying it was; "from Virginia called Openauck or Apenauk brought into England and thence it was scattered throughout Europe." This is most likely the source that Henry Phillips draws on in his History of cultivated vegetables (1822) in which he identifies the plant described by Thomas Hariot as Openauk in A Brief and True Report of the New Found Land of Virginia (1590) as the white potato. Hariot’s Openauk is almost certainly the Groundnut or Cinnamon Vine (Apios Americana). This confusion over the origin of the white potato lasts into the 19th century in this country when Jefferson writes a letter to correct a Mr Spafford in this misconception in 1809; "You say in your General Geography the potato is a native of the United States. I presume you speak of the Irish potato. I have inquired much into the question, and think I can assure you that the plant is not native of North America…the most probable account I have been able to collect is, that a vessel of Sir Walter Raleigh's, returning from Guiana, put into the west of Ireland in distress, having on board some potatoes which they called earth apples. That the season of the year, and circumstances of their being already sprouted, induced them to give them all out there, and they were no more heard or thought of, till they had spread considerably into that island, whence they were carried over into England, and, therefore, called the Irish potato. From England they came to the United States bringing their name with them."

The first credible introduction of the white potato to North America does not come until 1719 when it is introduced to Londonderry, New Hampshire by Irish immigrants. This was a kidney shaped, yellow fleshed potato (A history of horticulture in America to 1860, Hedrick, 1950). Peter Kalm, who traveled between Philadelphia and Canada in 1748 and 49 recorded on June 15, 1749: “Potatoes are planted by almost everyone.” As this was from experience in the northern colonies it is almost certain that he is referring to the white potato. The potato probably reaches the southern colonies by the middle of the 18th century. It is difficult to tell with most records whether they refer to the white or the sweet potato. In this case, there are no records of potato shipments from the upper James at all prior to the above notice and as it corresponds to the time period that white potatoes begin to become more common in Virginia these shipments likely are white potatoes.

After the middle of the 18th century, in Virginia, the white potato replaces the sweet potato as the potato of choice and by the American Revolution the white potato is an important element in provisioning the troops.

Most of the pre-blight varieties from the 18th and first half of the 19th century have disappeared. The Lumper Potato, a pre-1840 variety is available through Seed Savers Exchange and looks remarkably like the Papa Peruänum illustrated by the Plantin Press in 1588. The Garnet Chile, the Early Rose and other 19th century varieties of Potatoes may be the best approximations for use in our gardens.

G. Jerusalem Artichoke

The Jerusalem Artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus) is one of the few vegetables native to North America. Asa Gray, the great 19th century American botanist postulates in the Flora of North America (1838 - 1843) that the Jerusalem Artichoke originated west of the Mississippi and was carried east by the Indian trade. It was brought back to Europe by the French and was originally known as the “Potato of Canada.”

Its popular name is a corruption of the Italian Girasole, meaning the flowers face towards the sun and its taste is said to resemble the base, or heart of the true Artichoke (Cynara scolymus). This root has always been of minor importance and its use has fallen in and out of favor over the years. It is a large and attractive plant that can become quite invasive through the spread of the underground tubers. Sir J.D. Hooker records in Botanical Magazine, July, 1897: “In the year 1617, Mr. John Goodyear, of Mapledurham, Hampshire, received two small roots of it [Jerusalem Artichoke] from Mr. Franqueville, of London, which being planted, enabled him before 1621 ‘to store Hampshire’.” In Oct. of same year he wrote an account of it for Johnson who included it in the 1633 edition of the Herball. Johnson's edition of Gerard's Herball (1633) states; "This wonderfull increasing plant hath growing up from one root, one, sometimes two, three or more round green rough hairy straked stalks, commonly about twelve foot high, sometimes sixteene foot high or higher…producing from the increase of one root, thirty, forty, or fifty in number or more." Parkinson, in Paradisi in Sol (1629) calls them Potatos of Canada, writing; "We in England, from some ignorant and idle head, have called them Artichokes of Jerusalem, only because the roote, being boyled, is in taste like the bottome of an Artichoke head. The French brought them first from Canada into these parts…from one roote being set in the Spring, there hath been forty or more taken up again…are of a pleasant good taste as many have tryed. The Potato's of Canada are by reason of their great increasing, grown so common here with us at London, that even the most vulgar begin to despise them, whereas when they were first received among us, they were dainties for a Queen." This may be in reference to an inventory of items for the Queen's household of James I in 1619 that includes potatoe at the very high price of 1 shilling/pound.

By 1768 Miller writes in The Gardeners Dictionary; "The Jerusalem Artichoke is propagated in many gardens for the roots…are by some people as much esteemed as Potatoes…are very subject to trouble the belly by their windy quality, which hath brought them almost in decline." To this day the Jerusalem Artichoke has the reputation of being a windy vegetable.

In Virginia it is recorded by Berkeley in A Perfect Description of Virginia (1649) and the Rev. John Banister records in his Natural History (1681); "the Batatas Canadensis, or Jerusalem Artichokes are little esteemed of here, yet it is sometimes used to brew with when corn is scarce."

While always a vegetable of minor importance, it is certainly known by Virginians and likely used to some extent as a culinary crop. In Philadelphia, Varlo includes it in A New System of Husbandry (1785) as a kitchen garden plant and Gardener and Hepburn in American Gardener (1804) writes that it is a good food for cattle & hogs in winter as well as people, observing; "the roots taste like artichokes…and are very good from fall to spring." McMahon, in The American Gardener's Calendar (1806) writes that it is; "as pleasant as the bottom of and artichoke…a wholesome, palatable food." Curiously, he also writes; "It is a native of Brasil, and a striking instance, of how tropical productions may gradually and successfully, be introduced and naturalized in colder climates." In one of the many examples of the propagation of falsehoods from one garden writer to the next, Henry Phillips in The History of Cultivated Vegetables (1822) also maintains that it is a native of Brazil and then offers the seemingly contradictory, but correct hypothesis, that it was first introduced to Europe by the French.

It was probably used most commonly as animal fodder in 18th century Virginia. George Washington writes Clement Biddle on Dec. 5, 1786 to enquire: “Are the Artichoke of Jerusalem to be had in the neighborhood of Philada? Could as much of the root, or seed, be got as would stock an acre? I want to bring it in with my other experiments for the benefit of stock.” He is apparently inundated with the Jerusalem artichoke from several sources once word got out he was looking for it. A Feb. 11, 1787 letter to the same Mr. Biddle records: “Since writing to you I have met with, and obtained the quantity wanted, of Jerusalem Artichoke.” The next month he is fending off yet another supply of the roots: George Weeden, March 25, 1787 – “thank you for the trouble you have taken to procure for me the Jerusalem Artichoke” and then tells him to return what he has to Mr. Page.

In a Jan. 6, 1808 letter from Thomas Jefferson to John Taylor the President remarks on a French initiative to feed live stock with the Jerusalem Artichoke: “I see by the agricultural transactions of the Paris society, they are cultivating the Jerusalem artichoke for feeding their animals.” He apparently puts this advice to practice after retuning to private life as is suggested by a May 2, 1817 letter to Tristran Dalton: “With respect to field culture of vegetables for cattle, instead of the carrot and potato recommended by yourself and the magazine, and the beet by others, we find the Jerusalem artichoke best for winter.”

Early in the 19th century several varieties are developed and the Jerusalem Artichoke experiences a revival in interest. Fearing Burr, in Field and Garden Vegetables of America (1865) writes; "For a long period there was but as single variety cultivated, or even known. Recent experiments in the use of seeds as a means or propagation have developed new kinds, varying greatly in their size, form, and color, possessing little of the watery and insipid character of the heretofore grown Jerusalem Artichoke, and nearly or quite equaling the potato in flavor and excellence." He lists four varieties.

H. Beet

The beet root (Beta vulgaris) has a somewhat confusing history in that the term beet refers to both the Chard, grown for its leaves as well as the Beet grown for its root in early literature. Theophrastus (372 – 288 BC) records in Enquiry into Plants (Sir Arthur Holt translation, 1916): “The beet has a single long stout straight root like that of the radish, and has stout out-growths, sometimes two, sometimes three, sometimes only l one, and the small ones are attached to these. The root is fleshy and sweet and pleasant to the taste, wherefore some even eat it raw.” In this case it is the chard or white beet that is referred to and the reference to the root being eaten as well as the leaves makes it difficult to distinguish it from the later developed red beet. It is not clear if the Romans knew the red beet root. Apicus Czclius, in De Re Coquin (230 AD) has a recipe for beet root, but ) it is not clear which beet he is referring to. The first clear reference to the red beet root comes from Fuchs De Historia Stirpium (1542) in which he says it is; "cultivated almost everywhere in Germany." It is likely that it was from Germany that the culture of the beet root spread through Europe. Matthiolus records in Commentarii (1558) that white and black chards are common in Italy but in Germany they have a red beet with a turnip like root that is eaten.

The beet was probably introduced to England by the first quarter of the 17th centurybut it is probably the chard beet that is listed by authors prior to the 17th century. Beet is listed in England by Neckham (1200), Daniel (1375), Master John Gardener (1400), and Fromond (1500). In Fromond's Herbys necessary for a gardyn by letter (1500), beet is listed with "Of the same Herbes for Potage" rather than with the root crops. The Beete listed in Hill's The Gardener's Labyrinth (1577) is clearly a Chard beet.

One of the earliest definitive references to beet root in England comes in Parkinson's Paradisi in Sol (1629); "The Roman red Beete…is both for leafe and roote the most excellent Beete of all others: his rootes bee as great as the greatest Carrot, exceeding red both within and without, very sweete and good, fit to be eaten the root is sometimes short like a Turnep…and sometimes…like a carrot and long." Evelyn writes in Acetaria, a Discourse of Sallats (1699); "The Roots of the Red Beet, pared into thin Slices and Circles, are by the French and Italians contriv'd into curious Figures to adorn their Sallets." This seems to imply that the Beet was introduced from Germany to Italy and from there to France and England.

An early 18th century reference to the red beet implies that it had been recently adopted in England. Botanologia, the English herbal, or, History of Plants published by William Salmon in 1710 records: “Red Roman Beet…It is our Fourth Species of Beets, and a singular Kind…It has a Root red as Blood and as long and as big as the greatest Carrot, very red both within and without, very sweet and good, and fit to be eaten (which none of the former are) and sometimes the Root is short like a Turnep, whence it took the Name Rapa and Raposa. The middle Rib of the leaves is for the most part very broad and thick, like the middle part of the Cabbage Leaf, which is equal in goodness with Cabbage being boiled. It is Originally a Foreign Plant, and brought to us out of Italy, but now is become a free Denizon, or rather a Native of our Country.”

The preferred beet in the 17th and early 18th century had red leaves as well as red roots. John Evelyn, in his translation of De la Quintinye's The Compleat Gard'ner (1693), writes of the Beet-Raves, or Beet Radishes; "They are the best that have the Reddest substance and the Reddest tops." By 1754, Philip Miller records in The Gardeners Dictionary, the; "common red Beet, turnep-rooted red Beet, great red Beet and yellow Beet." He writes that there is a type of the common red beet; "which has been introduced lately into the Kitchen-gardens with a short Top, and green Leaves, with a very red Root: this is preferred to the common red Beet." This may refer to the early introduction of a beet similar to the Early Blood Turnip Beet, which becomes the most common variety of beet in America by the beginning of the 19th century.

In this country the Beet seems to be slow to catch on, at least with the residents of Williamsburg. Presumably, it would have been brought to America by German or Dutch immigrants but is listed in Williamsburg only by Wills and Donley in their advertisements in the Virginia Gazette (1767, 1768) and by James Wilson at the College in 1774. Jefferson records a red beet in his Garden Book in 1774 and Col. Francis Taylor records planting red beets in his diary in 1794). Beets are recorded in the Natural History (ca. 1730) erroneously attributed to William Byrd II but there is no way to know if this is a reference to the beet root or to the chard and the reference to Beets in the Jones Family papers (1797) is equally imprecise. The earliest reference to what seems to be the beet root that I can find in North America comes in John Lawson's A new voyage to Carolina (1706) where he records; "The garden roots that thrive well in Carolina…Beet, both sorts."

In the 19th century the beet becomes one of the most common root crops in America. William Cobbett writes in The American Gardener (1821); "This vegetable, which is little used in England, is here in as common use as carrots are there." He lists both round and turnep-rooted varieties that he feels are; "equally good with the tap-rooted red beet." Peter Henderson, in Gardening for Profit (1867) writes; "This is one of the leading and most valuable crops of our Market gardens."

The sugar beet was first developed in Germany in the early 19th century. Robert Marggraf, a Berlin chemist first extracted sugar from beets in experiments done in 1747. He discounted it as a viable sugar source but fifty years later, one of his students, a Mr. Archard revived his experiments and founded the first sugar beet factory in Kunern, Germany in 1806. After this time varieties of beets were selected for higher sugar content. In an 1813 letter from Jefferson to André Thoüin, Jefferson requests information on the beete-rave and asks about the prospect of producing sugar from it.

I. Skirret

The skirret (Sium sisarum) is an obscure root that is probably native to eastern Asia. This, rather than, or perhaps with, the parsnip, seems to be the root many authors speak of as forming part of the tribute to the Roman Emperor Tiberius (14 -37 AD). Gerard relates in the Herball (1597)in regard to the skirret; "Tiberius the Emperour commanded to be conveied unto him from Gelduba a castle about the river of Rhene, as Pliny reporteth." Pliny considers it a medicinal herb so it is not clear what part of the plant was originally used. By all accounts it seems to be first propagated as a culinary root in Germany and from there spreads to Italy and the rest of Europe.

It was introduced to England at an early date.  A plant order prepared in 1321-22 by Roger, the gardener to the archbishop of Canterbury at Lambeth Palace includes a; pennyworths of skirret.  Skirrets are also listed by Friar Henry Daneil in De re Herbaria (1375).   The skirret has the curious history of being listed by most authors as a very agreeable root that few people use.  It was certainly more common before the 18th century than it was during the 18th century.  Gerard, in the Herball (1597) writes; most commonly not a finger thick, they are sweet, white, good to be eaten, and most pleasant in taste.  Evelyn writes is Acetaria (1699); exceeding nourishing, wholesome and delicate…so valued by the Emperor Tiverius that he accepted them for Tribute. 

By 1726 when Richard Bradley writes New Improvements he observes; The Skirret has a very agreeable Root, altho’ it is propagated but in few Gardens; and it may be, the Rarity of it is owing to the want of the right way of cultivating it.  Philip Miller records in The Gardeners Dictionary (1754); This is one of the wholsomest and most nourishing Roots that is cultivated in Gardens; and yet it is at present very rare to meet with it in the Gardens near London; what may have been the Cause of its not being more commonly cultivated, I cant’t imagine.  Part of the reason for its scarcity may be that the skirret is difficult to grow from seed; divisions from an established plant are far more reliable and this would make for more difficult distribution.

In this county the skirret seems to be of minor importance as it is in England by the second half of the 18th century.  In the journal of Captain Newport while he is at Jamestown in 1607 he lists scarretts as among the natural products of Virginia but as this seems to be in reference to a native root it would not likely be the European skirret.  The only 18th century Virginia reference to skirret that I can find is in the list of seeds offered for sale by James Wilson at the College in 1774.  The fact that it seems to be known by America garden writers, ie, Varlo (1785) and McMahon (1806) and by professional gardeners such as Wilson would seem to place it only in gardens of the gentry who could be expected to experiment with little known crops.

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