In late April or early May of 2002, I think we had a discussion on this list about the oldest community gardens in the US. I thought I knew of some really old ones in the Bethabara-Salem areas of NC, USA (central area of NC). In checking around I was referred to Dr. Rod Meyer, Director of Bethabara Park. So I wrote to ask about them.
Yesterday he sent some interesting info saying that in 1759 the Bethabara Upland Garten or Community Garden was done as a whole community garden. They have plot drawings of what was planted in each plot. Today each community gardener has a plot which they garden individually. They can plant from the colonial plant list and have the same colonial varieties where available or modern cultivars of those plants, but not plants which came later to the area like tomatoes and corn. Bethabara Park also has an exact reconstruction of the community medical garden, the 1761 Hortus Medicus. "The plants (with the exception of the opium poppies) are the same plants specified in the colonial plant list and are planted in the exact same plots indicated on the garden map." Both the Community Garden area and the Horticus Medicus are in their original areas. He notes that "While both gardens are planted in the exact locations and with the same fencing, summerhouses and arbors indicated on the maps and confirmed by archaeological investigation, only the medical garden is an exact reconstruction of the original." The gardens in Bethabara and in Old Salem are fun to see if you are in the area. And if you are visiting as many gardens as you can, walking in the nearby Reynolda Gardens is also a treat (though on previous visits I have never known there to be in community gardens). In Old Salem people who live there can grow historical flowers, fruits, herbs, and vegetables in various garden plots, but the system is a bit different from usual community gardens. Bethabara Park http://www.bethabarapark.org Old Salem http://www.oldsalem.org Reynolda Gardens http://www.wfu.edu/gardens/ Article about Bethabara and Old Salem gardens from Traditional Gardening magazine http://www.michaelweishan.com/tradgdnspr99art2.html Sharon [EMAIL PROTECTED] ______________________________________________________ The American Community Gardening Association listserve is only one of ACGA's services to community gardeners. To learn more about the ACGA and to find out how to join, please go to http://www.communitygarden.org To post an e-mail to the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, unsubscribe or change your subscription: https://secure.mallorn.com/mailman/listinfo/community_garden
