Planning, creating and tending a Victory Garden (VG) has the potential to be much more than a ho-hum adventure in horticulture. Indeed, it's a chance to learn more about the world around you. Here are some simple, innovative strategies to help you make your VG experience truly transformative:
- Spend some time researching the original VG movement in America. This is a wonderful way to make history "come alive" for you and your children. Your local library and the 'Net are great resources for this, but consider also conducting oral history interviews with elderly friends and relatives. Even if they didn't participate directly in the movement (many rural families didn't), they may have wonderful memories of gardening with their families. If you can get your interviewee to allow you to record these interviews and share them online (YouTube, Blogger, etcetera) with a broader audience, then all the better. (See Bloggin' for Audey for an example.)
- Use the planning and construction of your VG as an opportunity to be creative. If you don't have much space, try unusual or non-traditional containers (always keep safety in mind, of course, and never use something that could be contaminated with dangerous chemicals). When planting, consider mixing in an unusual vegetable to try...or a different variety of something that you would otherwise eat. Also, consider the three sisters planting technique developed by Native Americans and select plants that will harmonize together in a compelling way.
- Consider tracking your progress in a journal or even online with a blog. The process of jotting down even brief notes about your plantings, intentions and progress will help you "see" that your efforts are paying off over time, well before you pick your first veggie! This can be very satisfying. And if words aren't your thing, try sketching or photographing your garden as it grows and use a visual medium to document your experience. Children are especially keen observers and can have wonderful ideas when it comes to "how" you preserve your garden memories. Thus, they make wonderful collaborators for your garden documentary work. Whether its crayons or seeds glued on paper, work together and let your imaginations run wild!
- Reach out and connect with other gardeners in your community and/or online. Even if your neighbor only grows roses, jump-starting a conversation about their favorite nursery is a great way to connect with other people and perhaps gain new friends in the process. Who knows? If you discover another home gardener, you might set up a food exchange. This is a particular nifty set-up if your yard's micro-climate is more suitable for one type of crop and your neighbor has a different situation. In fact, if you find that you and your new friend(s) are in simpatico, you might even plan future plantings together to maximize your collective growing power!
- Share your wealth. If you're lucky enough to get a bumper crop and don't plan to freeze or can it for the future, consider donating your extra food to a food bank or other charity. Or put together a pretty basket of fresh-picked goodness to deliver to a needy friend or family member. Children also enjoy putting a fresh spin on the traditional lemonade stand...I recall vividly driving my bike through the neighborhood, literally "pedaling" my mom's Porter tomatoes in the '80s. It was great fun and educational, though at .25 a bag, I was practically giving them away!
- Finally...and most importantly...trust the process. Sometimes unexpected things happen that cause even the best-laid plans...and gardens...to fail. A bad storm, an errant basketball, an unfortunate run in with a nasty pest...an honest gardener will tell you that she too has experienced some sort of set-back. The key for long-term success is to not give up and regard the experience as being a worth-while end. Make a commitment to learning from your mistakes and try again. There's a wealth of information out there to help you assess and address whatever comes your and your garden's way.
About the image: The poster reproduced above from the University of North Texas Libraries is in the public domain and was published by the Agriculture Department, War Food Administration in 1945. The artist's last name was Morley (I believe the first name is Eugene, but haven't confirmed this fact).
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