Home Bound Due To COVID 19

I know that we are right now stressed out and tired of being homebound due to the COVID 10. People are upset that fruits and vegetables are hardly not there when they go food shopping. In light of what is going on with COVID 19 and the food shortage in the supermarkets, a lot of people are starting to have victory gardens. This reminds me of a time during World War II when the government required Americans to start planting victory gardens.

During those times, The War Food Administration created a National Victory Garden Program, which set five main goals.

1. lessen the demand on commercial vegetable supplies and thus make more available to the Armed Forces and lend-lease programs.

2. reduce need on strategic materials used in food processing and canning

3. ease the burden on railroads transporting war munitions by releasing produce carriers

4. maintain the vitality and morale of Americans on the home front through the production of nutritious vegetables outdoors

5. preserve fruit and vegetables for future use when shortages might become worse (Bassett 1981)

They were no longer just for the poor, or for those who could not feed themselves, but for everyone.

Gardening became famous not only for food security but for its mental and physical health benefits and its benefits to the community. Gardens gave a feel of productivity that citizens on the home-front needed. A garden plot feels much more useful, productive, and essential than a vacant lot or lawn. With a loved one off at war, it significantly improved morale to have an outlet for the patriotism, fear, and anxiety that many Americans felt about the war. In 1942, about 5.5 million gardeners participated in the war garden effort, making seed package sales rise 300%. The USDA estimated that over 20 million garden plots were planted with an estimated 9-10 million pounds of fruit and vegetables grown a year, 44 percent of the fresh vegetables in the United States. (Bassett 1981) In 1943, American families bought 315,000 pressure cookers for canning vegetables up from 66,000 in 1942 (Wessels).

During the war years, Americans discovered and benefited from gardening’s many advantages. It was stylish in the garden. This didn’t last long, however. Once the war ended, there was an overall decline in interest in gardening as life returned to normal in the US, and the baby boomer era began.

Many victory gardens were grown on the loaned property, which needed to be returned in peacetime. This is truly unfortunate that this had happened.

Now, it is indeed the time to start a victory garden in your back yard today. Also check out the garden plans for Victory Garden For A Family of Five by clicking the link -

https://www.growveg.com/garden-plans/732828/victory-garden-for-a-family-of-five/2016/a-victory-garden-for-a-family-of-five/

Learn the history of victory gardens by viewing the video below:

Check out the video on "Victory Gardens" for the war against COVID-19 from CBS Sunday Mornings