Seasonality of Grains, Fruits, and Vegetables

Number Available at a Given Point (Pounds= The Money Version)

1. Francis Chadds Inventory 1713: Wheat & flower in Mill 124; Wheat on the ground 12 pounds; Five casks of flower; No mention of Fruits or Vegetables
2. John Chadds Inventory 1760: To his wheat in the ground: 8 pounds; To wheat in the barn and hay where he dwelt: 18 pounds; No mention of Fruits or Vegetables  

Productivity

1. Influenced by How Much the Crops were Grown the People Who Grew Them
2. Decrease in Wheat and Flour Grown by Francis Chadds and John Chadds in the years mentioned 
3. Lack of Clear Conclusion on whether or not this was a gradual decrease or Different Amounts of Production between the Two Selected Years
4. Theories for the Lack of Mentioning Fruits and Vegetables
1. John and Elizabeth Chadds did not Grow Them
2. Nature of the Inventory: Mentioning Products that Had Commercial Value
3. Have not Found a Definitive Source Mentioning the Chadds's Growing Fruits and Vegetables Yet
4. Time of Year (Inventories Made in March and January Respectively)

External Factors

1. Weather
1. Wheat More Susceptible to Black Stem Rust in Winter Months
2. Influence of Natural Disasters: August 11, 1765: Damage by Flooding Done to Cellers (Elizabeth Drinker Diary p121)
2. Wild Animals
1. Deer and Squirrels Destroying Grains and Gardens
2. Hessian Fly Attacking the Wheat
3. Pests Seen as a Natural Problem with Fruits and Vegetables at the Time
4. Chickens Protecting Gardens from Pests
3. War Losses: Battle of Brandywine
1. "a quantity of other Garden Stuff" listed in the losses at the Battle of Brandywine along with Cabbage and Onions
2. Apples
1. Ripening Apples Stripped from Trees
2. Joseph Dilworth claimed "6 Bushels of Dryed Apples" Damaged, and Gideon Gilpin put in for "Fruit Destroyed" for 70 pounds
3. Cider among the List of Beverages Claimed
3. Grain Crops like Oats, Rye, Barley, and Particularly Wheat, were Taken in Great Quantities
4. Charles Dilworth Claimed 15 Gallons of Peach Brandy

Time of Year

1. Climate Affecting the Growth Patterns of the Crops
2. Lack of Consistent Inventories Based on when Crops were Grown

Other Uses for Grains, Fruits, and Vegetables

1. Using Products for Purposes Other than Eating (Example: Rye being used in Straw Form to Thatch Roofs)
2. Used to Feed other than Humans (Example: Corn Feeding Livestock)
3. Dividing Up of Food for Different Uses (Example: Apples: Drying versus Making Sweets versus Making Apple Cider) 

Sources: The Diary of Elizabeth Drinker p121 Chadds Ford Historical Society's Guide Training Manual p72-75, A-32-A-34 "Here a Chick, There a Chick, Everywhere a Chick, Chick."; and Pennsylvania Agriculture and Country Life: 1640-1840 p143-152, 205-228 (See Bibliography)