2010
Ongoing this month:- House Tours
- Thomas Jefferson Visitor Center and Smith Education Center
- Gardens and Grounds Tours
- Plantation Community Tours
- Evening Signature Tours
- Family Friendly Tours
- Behind-the-Scenes Tours
Special Events
Sep. 8
Tea-time talk: Where Elegance Meets Convenience: The Monticello Dining RoomElizabeth Chew, Monticello's Curator, and Diane Ehrenpreis, Monticello's Research Historian, will share new information from their research on Monticello's Dining Room, from its importance in a social context where family, friends and political visitors shared ideas to its part as a place where Jefferson adapted the most recent technologies and conveniences he’d seen in Europe. Tea at 3:30pm; talk begins at 4pm. At Monticello's Jefferson Library. The event is free, but space is limited. Please e-mail to register.
Sep. 10
Historic Plants SymposiumThe 7th biennial symposium, entitled "Come to Table—Historic Plants in the Kitchen," will focus on the garden’s harvest in early American recipes from a regional perspective. Speakers include New England food historian Sandy Oliver, heirloom vegetable collector and author William Woys Weaver, and John Martin “Hoppin’ John” Taylor, author and expert on Charleston foodways and Lowcountry cuisine, along with Monticello’s Leni Sorensen on African-American cooking and Peter Hatch with a look at Thomas Jefferson’s vegetable garden and kitchen.
Meets at CHP's Tufton Farm barn. Sep. 10
Dinner and Evening with Rosalind Creasy at MonticelloRosalind Creasy, the pioneering author of The Complete Book of Edible Landscaping and Rosalind Creasy’s Recipes from the Garden will share her vast knowledge of cooking and gardening during a discussion of new ideas in preparing seasonal fruits and vegetables. Patti Moreno, host of the Boston-based "Garden Girl TV" show, will also be on hand to discuss her work with urban sustainable gardening and her innovative methodology for growing food in small spaces, roof-tops, and even indoors. Following the discussion, enjoy a specially prepared dinner including fresh, locally grown ingredients. $50.00. Friday, September 10, 6:30pm, at the Thomas Jefferson Visitor Center and Smith Education Center Theater.
Sep. 11
Heritage Harvest Festival at MonticelloCo-sponsored with the Southern Exposure Seed Exchange, the fourth annual Heritage Harvest Festival will be held on the grounds of Monticello. The festival is a family-oriented, educational event that highlights organic gardening; the preservation of traditional agriculture and regional food; and includes tastings, informative workshops, and talks by authorities such as William Woys Weaver, Tom Burford, Barbara Pleasants, Barbara Melera, and Jeanine Davis. Sharon Astyk, author of the Jefferson-inspired, A Nation of Farmers, will be a new addition to the lineup of speakers this year.
For more information visit heritageharvestfestival.com.
Heritage Harvest Festival Premium Workshops
Virginia Cider Making with Tom Burford
9 a.m., Garden tent
Hens in the Hood and Broilers in the Backyard: Practical Advice for Raising Chickens for Eggs and Meat with Guinevere Higgins and Leni Sorensen
10 a.m., Mountain Tent
Mushroom Cultivation with Mark Jones
10 a.m., Garden Tent
"Thomas Jefferson and Natural History" Woodland Walk with Peggy Cornett
10 a.m. (sold out) and 1:30 p.m., Fish Pond
Seed Saver’s Monticello Vegetable Garden Tour with Pat Brodowski
11:30 a.m. (sold out) and 3 p.m., Fish Pond
Mainstreaming Heirloom Vegetables: Why They are Important for the Environment and for Good Nutrition with William Woys Weaver
11:30 a.m., Thomas Jefferson Visitor Center
Sustainable Urban Gardening with Patti Moreno, the Garden Girl
11:30 a.m., Thomas Jefferson Visitor Center
Heirloom Vegetables with William Woys Weaver
11:30 a.m., Thomas Jefferson Visitor Center
Vegetable Gardening: First-Season Success, Yes! with Barbara Pleasant
1:30 p.m., Thomas Jefferson Visitor Center
Medicine Making 101 with Kathleen Maier
1:30 pm, Thomas Jefferson Visitor Center
Seed Saver's Monticello Flower Garden Tour with Debbie Donley
1:30 p.m., Fish Pond
Hands-On How to Propagate Your Own Woodland Botanicals with Dr. Jeanine Davis
3 p.m., Thomas Jefferson Visitor Center
Wine/Vinegar Making with Gabriele Rausse
3 p.m., Garden Tent
Learn more about the Festival's Free and Premium Workshops »
Sep. 18
Montalto TrekJoin Peter Hatch for a strenuous, 1,000-foot vertical hike up Montalto, Jefferson’s “high mountain.” Walk through a mature forest then break onto cleared pastureland with unobstructed views of Charlottesville, Albemarle County, the Blue Ridge Mountains, and, of course, Monticello. A two-and-a-half-hour trek for the fittest. Reservations required. Meets at the Thomas Jefferson Parkway Lower Trailhead, 9:30 a.m. $10.
Sep. 18
Wine Festival at Monticello
Join us for an unforgettable evening of fine wine and live music. Sample the region’s best wines on Monticello's beautiful West Lawn while enjoying the rare opportunity to stroll around the gardens after hours and learn about Jefferson’s passion for wine and his recently restored wine cellar. Local wine experts will be on hand to answer questions about our region’s finest wines and how they compare to the vintages that Jefferson enjoyed. Reserved tables for 8 or more are available and include a gourmet cheese board, 3 bottles of house wine and a special tour of Jefferson’s wine cellar. Please call Kathy Del Rosso at 434-984-9826 to purchase a reserved table.
Gourmet bread and cheese boxes available for advance purchase only; $30 (serves two).**
There are a limited number of tickets available and all tickets are advance purchase only. Buy your tickets on line or by calling the reservations office at (434) 984-9881.
Ticket price is $45 through August 18th and $55 after August 18th. Ticket price includes general admission, a walk-through house tour, commemorative tasting glass, wine tastings, and parking. Early purchase is recommended to guarantee availability. No group discounts.
**Consists of local cheeses, Everona Dairy Pride of Bacchus (sheep’s milk soaked in red wine); Caromont Farm Green Mountain Chevre; Salami Bites with a Plum Apricot Mustard made by the Café at Monticello using fruits from the orchard at Monticello; Green Olives pickled with Orange & Fennel; Spiced Almonds; Dried Peaches/Pears; two Mini Baguettes; Gearhart Chocolates and a Dried Cherry White Chocolate Biscotti.
Sep. 25
Seed Saving WorkshopThe historic tradition of seed saving in America provides a meaningful model for modern gardeners eager to get the most from their gardens. Many special (and more common) garden plants are unavailable from commercial sources and need to be preserved from year to year. Learn the dynamics of seed production—pollination, timing, seed identification, cleaning, and storing—then visit the gardens for a hands-on collecting demonstration. Debbie Donley, Monticello’s Flower Gardener, and Pat Brodowski, Monticello’s Vegetable Gardener, will lead this two-and-a-half-hour workshop. Meets at the Garden Center, Thomas Jefferson Visitor Center, 9:30 a.m. $10
Sep. 28
Tea-time talk: Thomas Jefferson in New YorkRichard Goodman, author of French Dirt: The Story of a Garden in the South of France and The Soul of Creative Writing will discuss the period when Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, John Adams, and Alexander Hamilton were all living in New York city. Goodman has written on a variety of subjects for many national publications, including the New York Times and Harvard Review, has taught writing in New York for many years, and was a founding member of the New York Writers Workshop. His new book, A New York Memoir, will be published in August 2010. Tea at 3:30pm; the talk begins at 4pm. At Monticello's Jefferson Library. The event is free, but space is limited. Please e-mail to register.
Sep. 29
Virginia Wine Month Kickoff CelebrationThe Governor’s Cup for White Wines will be presented to one lucky Virginia winery as the kickoff event for October Virginia Wine Month. This is the first time the 22nd annual October Virginia Wine month celebration will be held at Monticello. The event, highlighted by the Governor’s Cup presentation, will include walk through tours of Monticello, hors d’oeuvres and tastings from more than 20 wineries from across the state. 6:30 p.m., on Monticello's West Lawn. $75.00 (must 21 to attend).
For More Information: (434) 984-9822