Old Things Considered
Advice and trivia for the do-it-yourselfer
Ghislaine Darden © 2008

I have an idea to plant a typical 19th century garden this summer and wondered what types of flowers and vegetables would be appropriate for my garden. --- Madalyn B.

The 19th century woman would have grown a combination of vegetables and medicinal herbs in her kitchen garden. She might have planted a few marigolds and roses, but for the most part the garden was filled with useful plantings.

Her vegetables might have included the 'Lazy Wife' Bean, which dates from at least 1882. This bean grew in clusters and were very easy to pick, which is how it earned its less flattering name. Beets were also common as was purple sprouting broccoli and white sprouting broccoli, cabbage, corn, cucumber, lettuce, okra, parsnip, peas, peppers, radishes, spinach, squash, tomatoes, turnip, and watermelon.

Her medicinal herb garden would have included stinging nettle; the boiled young shoots were a remedy for scurvy, diarrhea and arthritis. Rue, a bitter herb was used for gas pains and colic and when boiled it served as a flea repellent. Sage was used for sore throats and a variety of digestive problems. Violet leaves were used to flavor wine and could also be used as a cough syrup.

The lady might also have planted catnip which was natural cold remedy and fever reducer when drunk as a tea. Peppermint would have been used as an inhalant to loosen phlegm and valerian root (which also has sedative properties) would have been used for acne or skin rashes.

Good luck with your garden!

Did You Know…

. . . that the basic key and lock was first designed by the Egyptians? Their early locks were filled with loose wooden pegs of varying heights. When the key – sometimes more than a “cubit” long (nose-to-thumb distance!) -- was inserted into the housing, the pegs were lifted and aligned so that the door became unlocked. This method is the forerunner of the modern pin-tumbler lock still in use today.

The Greeks, Romans, Chinese, Indians and Europeans all made improvements on the concept, and by the 1820’s when Linus Yale, Jr. was born in New York, Europe had seen centuries of locksmith innovations. Yale’s father Linus, Sr. had perfected the pin tumbler locks, but it would be Linus Jr. who designed a foolproof bank lock in 1851 and went on to perfect and patent the cylinder lock in 1861.

The cylinder lock used a flat key with serrated edges so that only the proper key aligns the pins properly inside the lock cylinder. Linus Jr. would go on to establish the Yale Lock Manufacturing Company with Henry Robinson in 1868 and a century and half later millions of their locks are used all over the world. But we don’t have to travel the world to find a Yale lock, particularly if you work for Rutgers University? If you do, just take a look at your office key . . . . does it say Yale? I bet it does!

Did You Know…

. . . that sometime between 600-800 AD, a shepherd named Kaldi was tending to his flock in Eastern Africa, probably the country of Ethiopia today, when he observed the strange behavior of his goats? Both old and young goats remained awake and jumpy after eating the cherry-red berries of nearby shrubs. He decided to take a taste for himself and he too, remained awake and felt invigorated! Kaldi soon shared these new delights with monks who would come to enjoy the berries as well. As the story goes, it would be the monks who would crush the berries into a powder and add boiling water to create the tasty drink that we enjoy today . . . coffee of course, and you can thank those ancient people of Eastern Africa!

Ghislaine Darden of Benner Street is an old house enthusiast and a Highland Park resident since 1984. Send her your antique and restoration questions to oldthings@hpmirror.com