Victory Gardens for the 21st Century

There's a new call among those concerned about our environment, and our country as we are at war, to bring back the Victory Garden.

Many of you may know that during World War II, the government called on citizens across America to "Garden for Victory", to grow as much of their own produce as they could in order to save fuel and other resources for the War Effort. Did you know that over 40% of America's fruits and vegetables were grown in these gardens during the 1940s? It's astonishing, really.

All across America today you can see gardens both beautiful and humble, and HGTV and other television networks are full of gardening shows. But how many of us are growing our own food? And how many of us are growing a substantial amount of our food?

It is said that in a small urban yard (and we have a small city lot only), and particularly in a larger suburban yard, it is possible to grow most of your own vegetables, even fruits. For those of us with small lots, this will take some intensive gardening with multiple plantings as things get harvested, crop rotation, etc. The Square Foot Gardening Method, invented and made popular by Mel Bartholemew and his PBS show, is one method that can yield a lot of produce in a small space. Permaculture, growing food in layers (think trees, shrubs, vegetable gardens) is another method. You could combine the two really well, too.

Drawing from Mel's website, of a 4x4' SFG

We are kind of using both methods. We have planted three apple trees in our yard, and one sour cherry tree. We also inherited a large mass of grapevine when we moved in a few years ago. This summer, we plan to invest some of our tax rebate (a la the Federal Government, what better way to spend that money than on a Victory Garden?) in blueberry, raspberry and other fruiting shrubs to plant along the fence line between our house and the neighbors. (We're looking forward to the privacy this will someday bring, as well.)


We also have our front yard, which is the sunniest side, filled with four 4x4' raised beds and in them we plant Square Foot Garden style. Or at least, we try to remember to plant multiple plantings. That's the goal of SFG-style, maximum yield in a minimum of space. Last summer, with hardly any effort, we harvested lettuce and greens all summer, lots of herbs, and about eight cabbage plants which made sauerkraut and coleslaw. We have one of our four beds filled with strawberries.

We tend to focus on fruits because they are the most expensive to purchase at the farmer's market. We do utilize the Farmer's Market a whole bunch, too, for things like root vegetables, onions, and other things. Our yard has space to grow more, but we do have a lot of shade. Still, we plan to grow even more this summer. I've read that you can grow a lot of potatoes in one hill, even in 5 gallon buckets, by layering mulch or soil ever higher as the plants grow taller. We may try the 5 gallon bucket approach, just to see how it goes and as fun for the kids.

This guy has a really great idea, and a business even, to help suburbanites unused to growing edibles get started. He's providing, at a really low cost, all the basics. A small frame for a raised garden bed (the type used in Square Foot Gardening), a compost bin of wood and wire fencing, and an attractive oak rain barrel which you can connect to your roof's gutter system. You can catch a lot of rain water in these things, even in a drought, to use for watering your garden. Check out the link to learn more!

Maybe George and I will make something like this a summer project, for either giving away or selling cheaply. It looks great and would, I think, pique the interest of even those who never thought they could grow a decent garden. Just put some decent black dirt and lots of compost into the frame, and voila, instant garden with healthy rich soil perfect for growing your veggies. Add more compost (after a while, you'll have your own from your very own compost bin which has turned your kitchen scraps into a rich soil amendment) each time your plant something new, and your veggies will grow beautifully.

What will each of us having a small (or large) garden do for the environment, you ask? I think Mel says it well on the SFG website:

"If there are 302 million people in the USA , divide that by 2 (two)

for couples and families and we have 151 million households,

all of which have room for at least one 4’x4’ SFG.

A balcony does it with a 2’x 8’ SFG and still gives you 16 sq. feet.

Planting each sq. foot with a different crop and rotating

crops every season, you will harvest at least
3 crops every year. Let’s say for easy calculating,

each crop produces 1 lb. of food per square foot, per season.

We now have the astronomical figure of ­­­­7,248 million

pounds of food every year that doesn’t have to be transported,

refrigerated, stored, boxed, handled, wasted and RECALLED.

Add another zillion pounds of food that states like,
Florida, Texas, California, and Hawaii will add

to their total because they have four seasons to grow in. . . .

Are you impressed yet? You should be and the most exciting

part is—this can all be done all over the world."

So, starting your own garden, even a very small plot will save fuel, energy, probably even water (particularly if you use a rain barrel), AND you will enjoy far tastier food than you'll ever get picked before it's ripe and shipped from across the country or world. Also, you will save money as the prices for all these transported foods are rising by very large percentages due to the ever-rising costs of fuel.

You'll end up healthier from not using pesticides and herbicides,too. In a small garden, you won't ever need these things. You only need to enrich the soil with compost, and your garden is small enough that all you need for weeds is a simple hand trowel and your own fingers. Gardening, even weeding, just might be the next "new yoga"! I know when I'm out weeding, the repititive task can get to feeling very meditative.