the victory garden

anybody else remember watching ‘the victory garden’ on pbs years ago?  right up there with hugh downs and ‘over easy.’  i am a child of the 1970’s.  anyhoo, mrs. obama is attempting to revive the movement that started at the turn of the century- through both world wars- whereby americans grew gardens to help supplement the war effort.  in the obama’s case, they want to lead by example.  i have posted many times about my belief that everyone should grow their own fruits, vegetables, and/or nuts.  there isn’t any reason why most people can’t- ‘it’s too much work’ is the biggest reason i hear why people don’t.

listen, as americans, most of us have yards.  there are more of us with yards than without- and the biggest waste of land ever is keeping the lawn green.  holy crap.  i have a neighbor who mows his lawn every other day and there are always fertilizer or pesticide flags in the neighborhood.  people- our lawns are arable land.  it’s that simple.  with some thought and planning- you can have veggies and landscaping.  in fact, you can landscape with veggies.  who knew?  goodness i googled it and quite a few how-to articles popped up.  that’s how i started- i googled and bought books as references.

i have a nice shaggy yard all the way ’round my home.  i intend to start my garden with basics- tomatoes, beans, squash, corn, peppers, onions, garlic, sunflowers, marigolds, bee balm, basil, etc.  i have all intentions of expanding but starting small is key.  i am mixing square foot gardening with traditional rows this year- as i am also starting my sister a garden at her place.  eventually i will expand and blend and have flowers, herbs and veggies complimenting and camouflaging each other.  hiding veggies makes it less likely folks will help themselves.

i will be using this space to talk about the many ways folks can garden- rural, suburban, urban- and the many new ideas folks are coming up with to garden in unlikely spaces.  look, in the farmer’s almanac this season- it calls for hot and dry- there is going to be drought where our food is grown- texas, california and around the world.  prices are going up already and coupled with the genetically modified junk being put out there on the market- i would think that folks would want to eat what they can trust.  millions are joining together to make neighborhood and community gardens- it’s a movement that is gaining steam.  i intend to be one of them.

let me know if you have ideas, tips, etc. because i am always looking for advice and ways of making things easier.  i intend to have a full garden with rain barrels for irrigation (check your areas not everyone is legally able) and eventually a solar food dryer to go along with water bath canning and freezing i intend to learn.  it isn’t about a hobby or another chore- it’s about feeding yourself and your family in the hard times to come.

usda is releasing new hardiness zones soon- so check out your area

sneak peek at the obama’s garden

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