Girl of a different Era

Hello Friends,

Let’s talk ‘Victory Gardens’ what are they? What purpose did they serve? And why are they relevant to todays modern age?

During WW2 food shortages occurred, many products were rationed, and it became important that every American citizen became as self sufficient as they could. One of the answers was to grow your own food.

While many Americans still lived on farms, by 1940 over 50% lived in urban areas. Those living in towns and cities were encouraged to till up their lawns and plant food wherever possible. While those on farms were encouraged to grow more than there usual amount.

The citizens on the home front rallied around the idea and its estimated that about 20 million Americans planted gardens which in turn created 40% of all the vegetable produce being consumed nationally!!!! Now that’s is simply incredible!

At this point your probably thinking, ‘What a great story, so glad it worked well!’ And yes, I agree, but I don’t think it should end here. Although in over 80 years the world has changed in a thousand different ways many of the practices and values of the past still hold true! The question. “If it worked so well in the 1940s? Why couldn’t it work just as well today? What would happen if 20 million Americans today started growing their own gardens? What could be the impact from that?

Okay, okay…. enough theory, lets talk about facts….. It all started last year with my own experimental Victory Garden……

At first glance, there is nothing very exciting about this picture. Muddy/Clay soil with small specks of green. But for me, this was very encouraging! I live in a small apartment complex. My apartment used to be an office and out in front is a side walk and on either side, weedy dirt beds. Although people were convinced no vegetables would grow in such poor soil, I was determined. After asking my landlord’s permission and buying some fertilized dirt I planted some seeds.

Amazingly, the seeds sprouted. Beans, Kale, Collards, Okra, and Radishes slowly popped their tender leaves from the ground. They were growing! (I had chosen these hardy plants for the best chance of a crop.)

Midwest summers are very hot and dry, and I had to be diligent in watering the garden.

It’s hard to describe how exciting and fulfilling it was to tend the plants and watch them grow strong and healthy. My neighbors even told me how much they enjoyed watching my little garden!

Then the thrill of the FIRST HARVESTS! It was so wonderful to simply step outside to gather implements of dinner! And all smack dab in the middle of town in front of an apartment building!!!! I was very pleasantly surprised to see how much just this small garden saved on weekly grocery bills to! It was a great blessing!

Now, no one wants to hear only the perfect parts of a story. And realistically, heat and bugs did take their toll on my garden. All of that simply makes me better prepared this year though, right? All in all, it was such a fun experiment and I even ended up with around 10 quarts of frozen kale through the winter!

So, there is my story. I hope it gave you some encouragement and perhaps inspiration to take a cue from the past and garden for Victory! Now, I understand that some of you just can’t have a garden where you live. For you, I encourage checking out if your town has city gardens and even just planting something as small as a potted tomato plant! Or, if hate gardening with all your heart, try to buy your produce from local farmers!

Sometimes its not about big grand steps. Because in the long run it is the little steady steps that bring us to our final goals! Daring to reject society’s futuristic gaze, daring to question its ideals and instead learn from the stalwart people who came before us! That, I dare say, is a Victory worth fighting for!

Reference “It’s Your America:” The 1940 Census Today https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/1940-united-states-census Recreation of a WW2 Victory Garden https://oshawavictorygarden.wordpress.com/2011/05/06/victory-garden-statistics/