Preserving the Italian Vegetable Garden in America

Farm-to-table might seem like a novel concept to many, but for Italian immigrants, it was simply a way of life. When coming to the New World, along with their culinary skills and traditional recipes, they brought their extensive gardening knowledge as many lived in rural areas and sustained themselves as farmers.

Italian immigrants gardening traditions were maintained in their backyards for decades. They would carry a few seeds of fruits and vegetables with them in their return trips from Italy and started growing their own produce in their garden, from planting fig trees to cultivating tomatoes. These hidden gems can be found all over the country, and are a true testament to the astonishing hard work and wisdom of Italian gardeners.

Mary Menniti, a gardening enthusiast and a child and family therapist who was inspired by her own immigrant grandfather’s garden in Pittsburgh, founded The Italian Garden Project, an organization with a mission to preserve their heritage. She documented Italian vegetable gardens around the country and collected images and videos on the organization website, allowing the gardeners can pass on their legacy,

Thanks to her efforts, one of the featured gardens in Sewickley Pennsylvania by Giovanni and Maria Macchione, was included in the distinguished collection of the Smithsonian Institute’s Archives of American Gardens.

Mary Menniti tells us more about her important work of preservation and shares some gardening advice.

Which states do you think to have more Italian gardens currently?

No matter where I travel in the US, I find classic backyard vegetable gardens. Some of the most authentic are created by Italian-born Americans who left Italy after WWll and still garden much like immigrants of the early 1900s. They came from an agricultural lifestyle and continue to maintain many of their food and gardening traditions. This post-war diaspora can be found in all fifty states, but perhaps the Northeast has the highest concentration.

What are some of the vegetables and fruits that were first brought to the US by Italian emigrants?

When the early immigrants arrived in the late 1880s, their native diet, heavy in fruits and vegetables, was thought to be unhealthy and lacking in nutrition by most Americans. Garlic and tomatoes in particular were frowned upon. Craving the tastes of home, the early arrivals brought the seeds of many fruits and vegetables that weren’t grown in the US. Even if a familiar fruit or vegetable was available, it may not have been the particular variety that they grew back home. Because these immigrants were primarily from farming backgrounds, they would have grown the distinct varieties that they preferred. Soon, seeds and cuttings were shared amongst members of the community.

Could you give us some examples of what they grow in different parts of the country?

Italian American gardens are surprisingly similar in all parts of the country. What is found in the daily cuisine – eggplant, peppers, beans, lettuce, squash, etc. – is what is grown in the gardens. There is some variation depending on climate; for example, artichokes are more likely to be found in warmer areas of the West, but I’ve seen them grown in New York where gardeners protect them from the harsh winters. There is also some variation based on the region of Italy. For example, Cucuzza squash is often grown by Sicilians, but I’ve seen them grown by gardeners of other regions as well.

Can you give us examples of some of the more impressive Italian gardens you have seen?

I love Italian American gardens, so I think all of them are impressive and worth documenting! But some stand out and are chosen for in-depth study and documentation. These are ones that contain many classic elements such as grape arbors, rain barrels, and recycled and repurposed support structures. The Macchione garden in Sewickley, Pennsylvania, was the first Italian American garden to be documented and submitted to the Archives of American Gardens in the Smithsonian. Our year-long documentation can be seen on our website. We are in the process of completing two more documentation for this archive, one of which is the garden of Nicola Ranieri, born in Puglia, who gardens in Long Island, New York. You can see this garden as well as many others in our photo gallery.

You mentioned that you are a gardener yourself. What can we find in your vegetable garden?

I use my garden primarily as a seed garden, growing the fruits and vegetables from the seed entrusted to me by the gardeners I visit. I harvest and preserve the seed as I try to increase the supply. So, in my garden I feel surrounded by the dear friends and mentors I’ve met through my work, those still living and those now deceased. Marietta Macchione’s Roma pole beans climb the trellis she taught me how to construct, and Sabatino DiNardo’s lettuce from Abruzzo is now ready to harvest. Both gardeners recently passed, but their gardening legacy continues as the living history of our culture.

What did you learn from the Italian gardeners you have met?

Not only have I learned the many how-to’s of growing Italian fruits and vegetables, such as when to plant fava beans and how to protect a fig tree for the winter, but more importantly I’ve witnessed the beauty of a way of life that revolves around the garden. I’m fascinated by this lifestyle and seek to understand what it is exactly that contributes to the physical and emotional health of the elders who continue this tradition. When I am with them in their gardens, they often emanate a sense of joy and enthusiasm that is infectious, rarely speaking of the demanding physical labor that the garden involves.

I remember being present to this same sense of peace and contentment in my grandfather when I was a child, and this is what inspired me to develop this project.

How often are these gardens kept by the next generations?

Many of us who grew up with immigrant parents or grandparents often want to grow at least some of the fruits and vegetables we remember from childhood, but few of us can truly recreate the entire lifestyle that we knew. The time and labor involved in seed starting, planting, maintenance, harvesting, and preserving are generally not feasible within a contemporary lifestyle. But it’s wonderful to see when gardening traditions are continued, no matter what the scale. These practices help us recognize that we come from a culture that lived close to the earth with a deep reverence for growing and preparing food.

How much land would someone need to start his own Italian garden?

The beauty of many of the Italian American gardens I visit is that they produce a lot of food in very small spaces. Tiny backyard plots in Brooklyn can sometimes feed an entire family. The wise use of space is what makes these urban gardens particularly interesting. Even if you have a large space to garden, it’s best to start small as you’re learning, and then expand. You don’t want to get overwhelmed and become discouraged. A few early successes can be inspiring and motivating.

Can you suggest resources to learn how to get started, including where to acquire the seeds?

Although gardening wisdom is now rarely passed down from one generation to the next by working together side by side, we now have vast amounts of information via the internet with resources such as YouTube and garden blogs. There are also many community gardens with the opportunity to meet and learn from experienced gardeners as well as the Master Gardener programs throughout the US. We have access to Italian seeds online through importers such as The Heirloom Seed Store, and Seeds from Italy. I hope to make seeds from our Legacy Seed Collection available to the public soon. These are seeds grown in the US by Italian Americans for decades, some with origins from the gardener’s hometowns in Italy. We have become the caretakers of these seeds to save them from being lost when the gardeners are no longer able to plant them.

Do you feel that in these uncertain times, with people moving out of the cities, there are many people interested in starting a vegetable garden in their backyards?

Many people who had never gardened before started gardens during the spring of this year. Seed stores experienced a dramatic increase in sales, and many sold out. For the first time, many people began to understand what the Italian American gardeners have known all along: that access to food shouldn’t be taken for granted. Having experienced the hardships of war and poverty, many Italians already understood the direct relationship between food and survival. Most of us only knew this abstractly, but now it has hit home and has evoked a desire to have control over this basic necessity. As people realize this, along with the many other benefits of gardening, I think the trend will continue.

What are the benefits of gardening?

The more I study Italian American gardens, the more I learn about how they support health and well-being. When the garden is central to one’s way of life, this inherently produces an outlet for physical activity, creativity, purpose, and living in close connection with nature – all the things that modern neuroscience is proving to be beneficial to emotional health and well-being. Not to mention the benefits to physical health and longevity of eating an abundance of fresh, nutritious fruits and vegetables. Among the greatest benefits are those to the planet. Eating what can be grown locally and in-season, instead of relying on produce that is shipped over long distances and grown with harmful chemicals, promotes sustainability and the health of the earth.

Cover: photo credit: Marcy Holquist