Ran across this blog post recently ("The Case Against the Victory Garden," Huffington Post, 9 June 2008) and was tempted to riff on it, crafting an equally cheeky response entitled "Gardening is a Feminist Issue." In it, I'd point out that self-reliance is a virtue, sustainability efforts demand grassroots leadership from women, yada yada yada. Then I re-read the original post and thought I'd run with a whole "It's Not the Math, Lady" title, link to this page and go on a bit about how sustainability means looking deeper than your checking account to see the actual costs of your food.
But I'm going to write neither of those posts.
Why?
Because at base the aforementioned "Huff-Po" op-ed isn't really about Victory Gardens being only "valuable" as a hobby, a cutesy trend that'll fade as soon as someone snags John McCain's Bestest, Coolest, Most Greenest Car Battery Ev-ah Award, or--worse, as I initially thought the columnist meant to imply--potentially setting back the feminist movement by strapping us back down to the home front and adding to our daily list of "to do's". (My recent head cold made me a touch delusional, I fear...not sure that's at all what she meant to say...but that's what I thought for a few hours.)
Once I re-read the piece, I realized that underneath all of the math lurks the pervasive notion that gardening is difficult, time-consuming and generally not worth the effort.
And for the record, yes, gardening can be challenging. Moreover, you can guarantee a tough go of it if you approach home gardening:
- Thinking you'll feed a family of four all year and never have to drive anywhere to purchase food during the first year or so that you have a garden (in fact, only a small minority of people will ever make that happen...so, go ahead...cut yourself some slack)
- Assuming that your own particular micro-climate will allow you to grow whatever you want, whenever you want...and never researching the many books, web sites and organizations out there waiting to help you make good choices appropriate for your needs/time/climate/budget
- Refusing, after expending labor and energy to create your veg bed, to spend fifteen or so minutes each day watering/weeding/gathering and otherwise appreciating the act of cultivating fresh food for your body and soul; occasionally, you'll spend more time tending it...but not much
- Thinking that a bigger garden is necessarily better
- Insisting upon viewing basic life-sustaining acts as troublesome, time-consuming chores best managed by someone...anyone...else, no matter the costs to the environment
- Remaining a perfectionist
- Neglecting to see the garden as a place for solitary or group activity per your mood (group weed pulling can be fun!) or even as a very good form of exercise
- Preferring to unwind on the couch rather than in the fresh air, obtaining the aforementioned exercise
It's a long-haul thang, y'all. It's a skill that is practiced and fine-tuned. But one has to start somewhere, right?
Tripping over naysayers' misguided arguments won't get you gardening. And that kind of talk certainly won't help you learn to enjoy digging, planting, mulching, and picking. So, if you think you want to start a Victory Garden (or liberty-peace-freedom garden or whatever you want to call your edible landscape/estate-food garden-veg bed), please tune out the negative chatter and just dig it. Plant pots or plots or both! And if you're a full-fledged newbie, it's just dandy for you start small...a couple of your family's faves in a pot or two, maybe...and work your way up to something larger.
Finally, remember...the choice to garden is yours. Make it a decision that reflects your values, lifestyle, your climate and pocketbook...and it won't feel much like a chore (well, at least not on most days).
For Further Exploration:
Related RW&G Posts, Some Directly Relevant...Others Tangentially:
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