What is a Victory Garden?

During World War I and World War II, the United States government asked its citizens to plant gardens in order to support the war effort. Millions of people planted gardens. Emphasis was placed on making gardening a family or community effort – not a drudgery, but a pastime, and a national duty.

World War I Victory GardenWhy plant a victory garden?

Today our food travels an average of 1500 miles from farm to table. The process of planting, fertilizing, processing, packaging, and transporting our food uses a great deal of energy and contributes to the cause of global warming.

Planting a Victory Garden to fight global warming would reduce the amount of pollution your food contributes to global warming. Instead of travelling many miles from farm to table, your food would travel from your own garden to your table.

How can my actions make a difference? I’m only one person.

Each one of us may only be one person. However, we each have an impact on the environment and can make changes to reduce our impact.

I have no backyard, what can I do?

You can combine vegetable plants with flowers in your front yard. You can plant containers on your porch, patio, or balcony and can grow sprouts indoors. You can also choose to purchase foods which are grown close to home by visiting your local farmer’s market. If local foods are not available to you, choose foods which use fewer chemical pesticides – such as organics, are in season or have minimal packaging.