The Deseret Gardens; Utah's Experiment Station.

-Joel Hanes 2015

The name of the site of this paper is first mentioned on August 9, 1863 in
the parent associations minute book as the Quarantine Farm. On February
28, of 1864 the gardens are referred to as the Quarantine Gardens in the
minute book, and then on March 5, 1864 its final name: Deseret Gardens,
was voted on and chosen. (Utah State Archives and Records Service. Deseret
Agricultural and Manufacturing Society Minute book, 1863-1874. Series
59925).
The Sites exact location is unknown but a general location may be obtained
by piecing together mentions of it from different sources such as the
newspaper and the minute book: Five miles east of the city (Minute Book), at
the mouth of Immigration Canon (Minute Book) and near the immigration
Creek (Minute Book). There was also a canal build which conveys to the
gardens the waters of two springs (Minute Book). The gardens were also in
proximity of the 1st,2nd and 10th wards which lands were watered by the same
dam (Minute Book). And the gardens were located east of a place where a
water sect. crosses the road (Minute Book).
The ownership of the land that the site is on is depending on where it ends
up being located, but if one source is correct it could be on land that is

currently the Bonneville Golf Course owned by Salt Lake City Corp. (The
History of Immigration Canyon. Jeffrey Carlstrom and Cynthia Furse. 2003
Utah State University Press. Logan, Utah 84322. page 239).
Salt Lake City, Utah up until 1869 when the railroad was completed was an
isolated location due to geography and distance; "it was more than 1500
miles from the nearest agricultural area" (Church History Library.Utah: A
Centennial History. 1. Print) . These factors made it expensive or in winter
impossible to import food and products, so the leaders such as Brigham
Young aggressively pursued ways of getting the people of Salt Lake to be
self-sufficient by making their own products from the native elements and
growing their own food (Utah Since Statehood. Volume 1 Chicago-Salt Lake.
The S.J. Clarke Publishing Company 1919.). One of the ways the city leaders
approached getting the public more involved and educated on what was
expected of them was by creating a Society that would promote these things
(Minute Book); In 1857 The Deseret Agricultural and Manufacturing society
was born. In 1863, through the garden the society started experimenting
with seeds to see what could grow/or what would grow best in the Utah soils
and in 1864 made it a more official endeavor by calling the area where they
were growing seeds: The Deseret Gardens. They used this area with the
intent of growing pure seeds, seeing what could grow and then selling and/or
distributing the seeds to the communities. (minute Book)

When the garden was ended or what happened to it is not mentioned in the
minute book and so is not known. What is known is that in 1866 the gardens
were leased to a man named John Gunn on terms of keeping the fence in
good repair and delivering one third of the crops grown to the D.A. & M. S.
(minute Book)
After the Deseret Gardens the state went on to many other experiment
sites, a couple of examples include: In 1903 the Utah legislature passed an
act that established six experimental farms in the counties of Iron, Juab, San
Juan, Sevier, Tooele and Washington.(Utah Since Statehood Vol. 1. ChicagoSalt Lake. The S.J. Clarke Publishing Company 1919. Page 226.)
A couple years earlier in 1899 the State Board of Horticulture Established the
Southern Utah Experiment Farm which experimented in growing grapes in
Washington County.( Utah-A Centennial History. Page 12)
The condition of the site is unknown because of the uncertainty of its
location. Speculatively it is most likely at the minimum buried under a few
feet of soil, but depending upon its location could be under homes,
condominium complexes, businesses or under a golf course.
If the site is in an area that has not been disturbed or built upon, such as in a
"rough patch" in the Bonneville Golf Course area or in an area of a homes
backyard the condition of the site could be in good preservation. If the site is
in one of the areas that has been built upon the site could be in pieces or

have new construction built on top of it which could leave it in poor

condition.
In the 1850's when the Deseret Agricultural and Manufacturing Association
(the parent of The Deseret Gardens) was created Utah was having bad
winters and their stocks of food ran low in the winters. Besides educating the
public the association took on the task of experimenting with what would be
the best crops to grow in Utah and creating "pure seed"; The seeds which
were being used were becoming degenerated and would not produce as
good of crops. The outcome of these experiments it was hoped would help
the public increase crop production. In a newspaper article it was stated: "If
the Society Succeed in keeping sugar cane and other seeds from mixture and
degeneracy they will do that which private interprize has hitherto failed to
accomplish". ("Deseret Agricultural and Manufacturing Society." Deseret
News 1863-09-16: 04. Digital.) At the time this article was printed the
gardens had produced its first crop and was the first experimental garden in
the western United States. The association, through its church contacts and
other sources was able to acquire seeds from around the world from such
places as: Batavia, Japan and England, and what they were able to grow was
exhibited at the state fair, sold and or given to needing settlements
throughout the Utah Territory. So the gardens were a great accompaniment
to the agricultural sermons being given.

The data that might be obtainable in the future from this site could be
extremely important to being able to connect the gardens to the outlying
settlements and the helping of them at their start. Also the data can help
further the knowledge of early Utah horticulture and what was actually grown
and shared.
I want to study this site so as to be able to gather the data needed, first: to
establish its connection with early settlements around the Utah Territory, to
see what seeds were actually sent to each community and if they were used
and to what extent they were used. By studying this I hope to be able to tell
what impact there was on the growth of the settlements. Did having better
seeds which became better crops contribute to a quicker growth of the
community and therefore lead to more free time for the people to pursue
other endeavors such as building up the community itself.
And Secondly did the increase in the variety of seeds and therefore crops
help the communities that were given the seeds have a lower rate of
sickness then other settlements which were not given seeds from the
gardens that had been made "pure".
Third, I would like to create a record of what seeds were used/ grown and
distributed that were acquired from different parts of the world and how that
contributed to Utah.
To accomplish my goals I would first need to find the site. To do this I would
first conduct a thorough research of the county archives' records to see if any

person's name or land transaction can be connected to and help narrow

down a location.
The next step after research would be the employment/ use of technology.
The technology used would be chosen for its ability to not cause or to
minimize the damage since the locations that would be searched would not
want to be damaged.
The employment of a metal detector would be used to sweep around the
area of possible locations to find any pieces of fencing that surrounded the
property or gardening tools exc. This option would allow for a large area to
be searched quickly and minimally invasive.
Next would be core sampling. This would be done in areas such as "rough
areas" around the inside of the Bonneville Golf Course and in back yards or
around parking lots exc. This would cause minimum damage which can be
easily fixed and it can provide with a sample of the earth to a necessary
depth that seeds would have been planted at the time and at a level which
modern construction has not affected.
If the core sampling was able to find samples of seeds or if the metal
detector was able to find a fence line then a Soil Resistivity Survey would be
used to find any soil stains of where the gardens log cabin was located or a
privy, either of these would contribute to the knowledge of the gardens and
the living conditions of the time.

The Deseret Gardens were the first of many, and still continuing
experimental gardens/farms in Utah and the west of the United States and
was a necessary physical manifestation of the first settlers beliefs and
culture. It brought seeds from around the world together and helped the new
settlements start off. Re-discovering the gardens could bring knowledge of
Utah's Horticultural beginnings and give information on how their knowledge
of horticulture helped Utah grow and be healthier through the use of crops.

Citations
Andrew Love, Neff. History of Utah 1847-1869. Salt Lake City: The
Deseret News Press, 1940. Print.
Michael, Durham. Desert Between the mountains. New York, NY: Henry Holt
and Company,inc, 1997. Print
Utah State Archives and Records Service. Deseret Agricultural and
Manufacturing Society Minute book, 1863-1874. Series 59925
"The state fair." Deseret news [Salt lake City] 30 Sep. 1863 Web.
Church History Library.Utah: A Centennial History. 1. Print
Utah Since StateHood: Volume 1. Chicago-Salt Lake. The S.J. Clarke
Publishing Company 1919. Print.
Utah Historical Quarterly Vol. 23-24. Page 169.