Vermont Humanities

Wolf Peaches, Poisoned Peas, and Madame Pompadour’s Underwear: The Surprising History of Common Garden Vegetables

Speakers Bureau
Image Credit: “Products of the Kitchen Garden,” from Facts for Farmers edited by Solon Robinson (1873). Public Domain.

Common garden vegetables have long and fascinating histories. Science and history writer Rebecca Rupp will discuss the stories behind many of our favorites, among them the much-maligned tomato and potato, the (mostly) popular pumpkin, and Vermont’s dynamic duo of kale and Gilfeather turnip.

Find out why a lot of us don’t like beets, how a 17th-century pirate named the bell pepper, how carrots won the Trojan War, and how George Washington was nearly assassinated with a plate of poisoned peas.

Additional Costs

Mileage

Special Arrangements

Podium and microphone (depending on venue)

Available in correctional facilities.

Questions?

Contact Jacob Pelletier at jpelletier@vermonthumanities.org.

About the Presenter

Talks by Rebecca Rupp

Image of painting of medieval kitchen helpers

Soup to Nuts: An Eccentric History of Food

Rebecca Rupp reveals the rocky evolution of table manners, the not-so-welcome invention of the fork, the awful advent of portable soup, and the surprising benefits of family dinners.

Wolf Peaches, Poisoned Peas, and Madame Pompadour’s Underwear: The Surprising History of Common Garden Vegetables

Rebecca Rupp discusses the stories behind many of our favorite garden vegetables, among them the much-maligned tomato and potato, the (mostly) popular pumpkin, and Vermont’s Gilfeather turnip.

Vermont Humanities*** June 28, 2016