by Michael Totten

Created on: November 24, 2009

The diet of the Pilgrims combined what they had brought with them with what they could catch or cultivate in the new land. Although there is no record of the provisions the Pilgrims brought to America on board the Mayflower, "A Catalog of such needefull things as every Planter doth or ought to provide to go to New-England" (1630) gives the following recommended provisions per year per man:

* 8 bushels of meal
* 2 bushels of oatmeal
* 2 bushels of peas
* 1 firkin of butter
* 1 gallon of oil
* 2 gallons of vinegar
* 1 gallon of aquavitae
* fruit

Lemon juice was used against scurvy, but after the 2-month journey against the prevailing west winds and an additional month on board ship while the exploration party examined the options after being blown off course, it had mostly run out. By the end of that first winter, scurvy was endemic.

Other Pilgrim records mention that seed wheat brought across the Atlantic failed to grow in the New England soil, although this may have been a consequence of the late planting. With Indian help, they replaced it with corn, or maize. This was not the familiar sweet corn on the cob, which did not exist until much later, but a hard Indian corn which dried naturally and could be ground into cornmeal, to be used in cornbread and to thicken stew. It was also the main component of Indian corn pudding, still served at many Thanksgiving dinners today.

Typical seasonings from ship supplies of the time would have included sugar, pepper, cloves, ginger, mace, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Peas, carrots, and local berries added local sweetness. Other local and imported vegetables cultivated by the Pilgrims included pumpkins, squash, onions, and beans. Because there were no ovens for baking, most food was prepared by boiling or roasting.

Honey is resistant to spoilage, so it was sometimes carried in ship stores. However, the first European honeybees were not brought to the New World until 1622, and the first shipments of bees did not reach Massachusetts until 1630. A few local species of stingless bees (Melipona) can make honey which was gathered by tribes further south, especially in South America, but they make much less honey than European honeybee hives. It also has a completely different chemical composition from honey made by European honeybees, so it tastes both sweet and sour.

Loganberries and blueberries grow naturally in the Plymouth region. So do some species of cherries and plums. After a year in Plymouth Colony, it is possible that potatoes or

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