"On the side going East of what is now Fort Street, then a lane and divided from the Fort Stockades, by the road was the fort garden, redolent with the perfume of mignonette stock and wall flower and gay with escholtsia, mallow, hollyhock, marigold, candytuff, sweet William, and other old fashioned flowers.
These in my fond belief were the only cultivated flowers known. Previous to this time I had only seen the marigold and a occasional field poppy amongst the wheat. Vegetables limited to peas turnips carrots, cabbage, potatoes, and onions, with the least of care produced abundantly.
There were no fruit trees of any description, the only apples to be had were those sent to Mrs. Douglas from the Hudson's Bay company's garden at Fort
Vancouver. These were from trees said to been grown from seed brought from England. Some of the apples were very good, but the first time I tasted one, which was given to me by kindly mother Mrs. Douglas as a great favour, I simply turned away from with disgust, so little did I appreciate its flavour."
B.C. Archives
"Adjoining the Fort on its southern side was the boys garden; the palisades of the fort forming its northern boundary; where we played at gardening and I will remember the remarks of some liberty men of the Flagship Portland chaffingly asking if we had any mare eggs growing."..."in this garden, we the schoolboys spent many a miserable hour weeding and thinning."
B.C. Archives
J.R. Anderson Memoirs
AddMss 1912/volume 8
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