Return of the victory garden?

By Joshuah | Published: January 13, 2009

And I think Fedco had more crop failures than they had last year…get ‘em while you can.  Seed, that is.

Source: The Bulletin

It may be a sign of the times. The cover of the Park Seed Co. catalog features vegetables this year. In my 25 years of receiving the catalog, I can’t remember a cover photo of vegetables rather than a plethora of colorful flowers.

The catalog for Nichols Garden Nursery of Albany describes its goods as “Herbs, Fine Seeds and Goods for the Garden Cook.” Another little nudge to grow for our own tables. Nichols is celebrating its sixth decade as a family-owned business, one of the few seed companies still owned by the same family that started the business.

For years Nichols has encouraged gardeners to plant a row for the hungry, which has turned into a national campaign.

Another arrival was the Pinetree Garden Seeds catalog from New Gloucester, Maine, which has a cover featuring a variety of ripe tomatoes nestled in a wooden bowl. Pinetree starts out with pages of its standard vegetable section followed by a special feature of vegetable favorites from around the world, including French, Italian, Continental, Asian, Latin American and Middle Eastern vegetables. The catalog isn’t glossy; rather, it is good old-fashioned newsprint with rather fussy pictures that haven’t had the high-tech color enhancement treatment. What you will find are words, lots of them, to give you tips on culture and use. You’ll even find a page of houseplant seeds.

All the paging through the catalogs and noting some of the changes in emphasis brought back memories of what was called the victory garden, prominent in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Australia during World War II. The cultivating of sustenance gardens then was considered a civic duty to help reduce the pressure on the public food supply. It was done with great pride and involved the entire family, and 20 million Americans answered the call of “Plant More in ’44,” producing approximately 40 percent of the vegetables consumed nationally.

Above objections from the Department of Agriculture, first lady Eleanor Roosevelt planted a victory garden on the White House grounds.

Sections of lawn were plowed up for public plots in London’s Hyde Park. Portions of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park were added to the list of public lands being turned into victory gardens. Every major city contributed land; gardens were planted in residential backyards and front yards, and even on apartment building rooftops.

People worked the soil to raise food for families, friends and neighbors. It was a lesson in self-reliance that most people embraced. Colorful victory garden posters were issued by the government, some of which have been reproduced and are available now. Gardening booklets were published by the government, and various magazine publishing houses suggested basic produce to plant. This year I have noticed some seed companies are packaging “victory garden seeds.”

When World War II ended, so did the enthusiasm for the victory garden, which resulted in a serious consequence. Many people did not plant a garden in the spring of 1946, but the agricultural industry had not come back to full capacity, so there ended up being a food shortage that summer.

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