Robert Squibb first published his "Gardener's Calendar" in Charleston, South Carolina, in 1787 a time when what came to the table had come from the backyard, and households that wished to eat well (or perhaps to eat at all) had to cultivate "garlick," shallots, coriander, and "small sallading," as well as "spinage," "cellery," "plumbs," and "pease" in their kitchen gardens. Squibb's planting guide was welcomed by eighteenth-century gardeners; for the first time they had professional counsel about specific plants that would thrive in the region and a month-by-month guide to the nurturing of...