As we happily enjoy the return of springlike weather, many of us think about planting gardens. At this time, it’s pleasing to remember Jefferson’s fondness for gardening so thoughtfully expressed to his old friend Charles Willson Peale on 20 August 1811. Jefferson, the “young gardener” was sixty-eight years old when he wrote to Peale. He would continue another fifteen years in enjoying the pleasures of the garden.
“I have often thought that if heaven had given me choice of my position & 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, & no culture comparable to that of the garden. such a variety of subjects, some one always coming to perfection, the failure of one thing repaired by the success of another, & instead of one harvest a continued one thro’ the year. under a total want of demand except for our family table I am still devoted to the garden. but tho’ an old man, I am but a young gardener.”
Thomas Jefferson to Charles Willson Peale, Poplar Forest, Va., August 20, 1811