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Pottery bird bottles as have been found in Williamsburg archaeological excavations, were intended mainly to attract martins, for insect control. These were made at the factory of William Rogers in Yorktown out of local clay.

Add a bird bottle to your garden.

Learn more about these deadly nightshades.

The eminent Dr. John de Sequeyra, attending physician at the Lunatic Asylum in Williamsburg, has brought this fruit to our attention and has claimed if a person could eat enough of them that he should be rewarded with great health and a long life. This is remarkable as most Englishmen have considered it little better than poison until recently. Be that as it may, the cook at the Governor’s house has recommended it, and as he is known for his culinary expertise, we venture to make a try of it.

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The herbs discussed are those that would have been used by the colonists. Whereas some herbs were used for cooking and cleaning, others were used as medicines or dyes, and yet some were used for cosmetic or insecticidal purposes.

My favorite herbs are those valued by the colonists for their aromatic properties.

Lavender, violets and roses, along with common sage and pinks (Dianthus species), were used to scent perfumes, pomades, water, vinegar and ammonia. Lavender was also used when making sweet bags for linen because of its refreshing scent and insect repellent properties.

Herbs found in early recipes for sweet bags and potpourri include roses, sweet marjoram, lavender, rosemary, pinks, mint, myrtle, angelica root and orris root (the dried rhizome of the Florentine iris). Orris root was also an ingredient in a 1758 recipe for burning perfume. Steeped in rosewater, the sliced orris root was beaten and mixed with several ingredients, and then set out to dry.

The herbs mentioned above not only add fragrance to your garden, but beautiful flowers and decorative foliage. With a little planning, your own garden can provide you with a variety of aromatic herbs to enjoy.

Learn more about the Gardens of Colonial Williamsburg.

Plan a visit to explore them all.

The parterre garden to the west of the ballroom is planted with orange and yellow lantana, whose bright colors attract many butterflies. To the east of the Palace, in the small holly garden, balsam (Impatiens balsamina) has been installed because of the heavy shade on this side of the building. Balsam are stout in the heat and floriferous throughout the hot growing year in Williamsburg.

The Colonial Nursery, opposite Bruton Parish Church, is a treasure trove of flowering plants, especially in June. Expect to see sweet bay magnolia (Magnolia virginiana) along with oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia) and smooth hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens), the latter of which presents flowers ranging from a flat flower panicle to a more fully spheroid flower head.

In June some traditional perennial herbs are coming into flower or will still be in flower: valerian (Valeriana officinalis), feverfew (Chrysanthemum parthenium), lavender (Lavendula x intermedia), and Thyme (Thymus vulgaris) were all healing herbs in antiquity. The yarrows (Achillea millefolium) and (A. fillapendula), the common white and the familiar yellow, have been common in perennial borders for centuries. Both yarrows perform well in the South because of their drought tolerance.

Also expect to see the artichoke-like cardoon (Cynara cardunculus) in bloom as well as a slew of other herbaceous plants such as blattaria, or moth mullein (Verbascum Blattaria), common mullein (Verbascum Thapsus) bergamot (Monarda fistulosa), Stoke’s aster (Stokesia laevis), flowering tobacco (Nicotiana syvestris), wormwood (Artemesia Absinthium), and lovage (Levisticum officinale), a celery-like vegetable.

Learn more about the gardens of Colonial Williamsburg.

The Oriental poppy (Papaver orientale) also bears its flamboyant three-inch flowers in May and is part of a plant palette that has been identifiable at the Governor’s Palace for decades. Biennials foxglove (Digitalis purpurea) and sweet William (Dianthus barbartus) flower in May and then wither to be subsumed by the later perennials such as summer phlox (Phlox paniculata).

Expect to see the lush “Old Blush” rose (Rosa “Old Blush”) still in blossom by a rear walk in the Colonial Nursery, across from Bruton Parish Church. False Indigo/Bastard Indigo (Amorpha fruticosa), a plant of the Virginia and North Carolina sandy coastal plain, will bear its purple and chocolate blossoms in the middle of May.

One of the most curious plants most people – including experienced gardeners – will ever see is the Giant Arum (Dracunculus vulgaris) or “Green Dragon,” famous for its deep purple, 20-inch conical spathe [a leaf surrounding a flower] with its characteristic aroma of rotting flesh – a trait attributed the plant’s reliance on attracting flies in order to pollinate.

Also at the colonial garden in May expect to see some traditional perennial herbs such as valerian (Valeriana officinalis) and feverfew (Chrysanthemum parthenium), both used as essential healing herbs in antiquity. A large stand of the greater celandine (Chelidonian majus), a member of the poppy family familiar to gardeners, will still be in bloom in May. Its gray-green leaves and clear yellow flowers have long been found in cottage gardens.

Learn more about Colonial Williamsburg Gardens.

In an April visit to the Historic Area, Martha Stewart writer Tony Bielaczyc toured the gardens of Colonial Williamsburg and published his impressions in this April 16 blog post.

Enjoy reading his reflections on 18th-century gardening, and don’t miss his slideshow of images that capture Williamsburg in full bloom.

Learn more about Colonial Williamsburg gardens.

Still craving more? Get the book, Flowers and Herbs of Early America.

Colonial Williamsburg’s large, formal gardens are justifiably famous for their tulip displays. The grandest may be the one found in the Governor’s Palace Garden, which is a series of garden chambers, reflecting the taste for small intimate green chambers made from boxwood, yew, and holly. Each chamber, or garden room, is distinctly planted.

The large garden lying west of the ballroom and above the canal is the Parterre Garden, composed of four grand panels of asymmetrical design. Within this pattern are planted 2400 “Rembrandt Mix” tulips, the multicolored and mottled tulips that were the rage of Holland. The bright red tulip variety “Kingsblood” dominates the central panel of the beds.

Other beds burst with “Negritta” (purple), “Bellona” (yellow), “Don Quichotte” (pink), “Striped Bellona” (yellow with red flame), “Jan Reus” (orange with pink highlights) and “Francois” (yellow & white). The beds are further accented with anemone “De Caen,” a very floriferous and large flowered form of the ancient Grecian windflower.

The tulips in the small holly garden which lies to the east of the main block of the mansion are “Couleur Cardinal” (red with purple highlights), “Sorbet” (white with pink highlights) and “Maureen” (white). In the arbors that flank the perennial beds and formal flower beds is a mixed planting of bulbs for different seasons of the year. The Persian fritillary can be found here, the “Delft Blue” and “Carnegie” hyacinths, and the later blooming martagon lilies.

Gardens throughout the Historic Area are awash in the colors of flowering trees, budding vines, and blooming bulbs. Plan your visit.

This part of the South is lucky to have winter months mild enough to allow some annuals, such as English daisy (Bellis perennis) and pansy varieties (Viola sp.) to survive, and in many cases, bloom throughout the winter. These annuals are over-planted above tulips so that the spring effect is one of a multi-layered composition with complementary tulips blooming above a groundcover effect of hardy annuals.

In the last two weeks of March, expect to see periwinkle (Vinca minor) and Virginia bluebells (Mertensia virginica) begin to bloom. If the days are mild, you might see golden Carolina Jasmine (Gelsimium sempervirens) begin to bloom on fences, while flowering quince and some fruit trees will bloom in their permutations of white and pink.