The new Victory Garden movement for our times has taken root
While COVID19 raged, there was a new breath of life into the Victory Garden movement, also known as Grow It Yourself. “Food Supply Anxiety Brings Back Victory Gardens,” proclaimed the New York Times in late-March 2020. The term was used during World War II to describe small vegetable and fruit gardens at homes, parks, and other public spaces, promoting gardening for unity. But the idea actually started in World War I, when such spots were called Liberty Gardens to help secure the national food supply. Youth gardeners were recast as “soldiers of the soil,” and no plot was left uncultivated, lest it be considered “slacker” land. Rose Hayden-Smith writes in her 2014 book, Sowing the Seeds of Victory: American Gardening Programs of World War I, “Gardens were ‘munitions plants,’ garden furrows became ‘trenches,’ and food was referred to as ‘ammunition.’ Victory Gardens drove the creation of 20 million gardens. These gardens lessened food chain demands and boosted morale.”
The 2020–21 pandemic has given us a new awareness of the origin of our food, an awareness that was not always pleasant. Due to immense breakdowns in food distribution, supermarket shelves were left bare while newscasts about milk being dumped and produce rotting in the field or being plowed under, abounded. The industrial food system was showing cracks. At the same time, food pantry lines stretched for miles; many in the wait being folks who had never needed food aid in the past. This occurrence was about supply and demand as well as food security. But, when the going got tough, Americans also turned to more gardening—for sustenance and comfort.
Now, the initiative to “grow your own food” is about establishing food resilience while being out in nature in our COVID-complicated world. Timing was perfect in the sense that March was the beginning of growing season locally or at least the time to shop for garden supplies, whether for a nice-sized plot in the yard, a container garden, or a simple pot or two in a window.
Garden centers and longtime gardeners have noticed more novices this year picking their brains on tips and troubleshooting. Many fledgling gardeners were educated by a healthy dose of internet research.
Take Annapolitan Christina Berry, who had no background in growing food and turned it into a family-friendly hobby. Now she says, “It’s been super fun, especially having my five-year-old out there with me, taking earthworms to the compost and learning about plants together as he’s been digging and planting with me.”
Garden Benefits
There are many benefits resulting from gardening, especially during a pandemic, including:
- Safer food, with less worry about where it has been before it gets to your table
- Physical activity
- Nature stimulus
- Mental health boost, calming and fun
- Positive control
- Interactive learning experience
- Gardening often leads to cooking what you grow; also a valuable skill to hone
- Self-reliance cooking (Cooking things like homemade pasta sauces, homemade yogurt, and a keen interest in canning. These more labor-intensive practices provide a way to keep busy, learn something new, save money, and eat well.)
There was, however, an unexpected downside to the explosive growth of gardening. Nursery products, seed companies, canning supplies, and even chicken wire were in unexpected demand. For example, Johnny’s Selected Seeds in Fairfield, Maine, saw a 270 percent jump in orders the week of March 16, 2020, after U.S. President Donald Trump, Jr., declared a national emergency over the coronavirus. Suddenly, vegetable seeds, soil, and canning supplies were sold out from new interest. Annapolis’ Bowen’s Farm Supply says their canning jar stock has been sold out since April 2020, but they’re hopeful that their suppliers are ramping up to help them meet demand.
“No worries at this point in time,” advises garden center consultant and garden grower, Jen Hurt. “Garden centers seem to be well-stocked again. Some of their initial orders were reduced as retailers were initially closed before being categorized as an essential business. Then they needed to up their orders (difficult because initial orders are placed six months in advance before anyone anticipated the virus and its impact on gardening interest). Some items were very scarce: e.g. seeds, because sales were so high; plant starts, because initial orders actually were cut down when the virus led to retail shut downs. When summer came, though, stock for most things improved for the unanticipated boom. Online seed sales generally caught up to demand.”
Hurt also adds, “I noticed that several [garden centers] started advertising earlier for 2021 than usual, most likely in anticipation of heavy orders. Catalogs have been arriving in the mail and inboxes are full of selections and recommendations.”
Local Inspiration Sources
Nonprofit Annapolis Green, with a keen eye on local environmental trends, introduced a new program: Here We Grow. Founders Elvia Thompson and Lynne Foresman state, “There are two actions resonating with many people during the COVID crisis: gardening and cooking. This program introduces a modern-day Victory Garden project to encourage people to value the land and nature by installing, developing, or updating their gardens to provide beauty, food, and pollinator habitat. It will educate, provide resources, and inspire, both online and in-person, and create a ‘club’.”
Here We Grow’s program and participants came to several conclusions. The industrial food distribution system is easily disrupted and could likely get worse with climate change. People need to connect to nature and understand where their food comes from in order to take action to protect the environment. There is growing interest in gardening and cooking during this time—a trend that is likely to continue.
“Over the last few years, our [former] home and garden at The Green House on Maryland Avenue was a beautiful example of urban gardening, fueled by our ‘secret ingredient,’ the compost we sell that’s comprised of waste from many of our responsible events and festivals,” Forsman explains. “It made sense to have our garden serve as the centerpiece and demonstration garden. Our compost and organic potting mix are available for sale,” which supports Annapolis Green’s mission.
Beth Stang, gardener and landscaper at The Inn at Chesapeake Bay Beach Club on Kent Island, says, “These times are absolutely the perfect time for a Victory Garden. I feel like I have always had the ability, but with COVID, everyone wanted to get out there and grow. Even I had a tough time finding seeds and plants in the spring of 2020. I hope everyone will continue their gardens. We are starting brassicas, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, and lettuce.” Stang expresses enthusiasm for the Facebook group, Dirty Annapolis (information follows), and says she also could help answer questions on invasives—bugs, blights, or disease.
The Gardens of Queen Anne, as the Inn’s gardens are named, are done with quite a creative flare as Stang has had the chance to experiment with building much of the garden supports: cattle fencing acts as a trellis for climbing vegetables; charming strawberry planter obelisks were built by JP Anthony, director of facilities; there are A-frame hot houses with Plexiglas doors, which can be removed in hot weather; and tall wooden Tuteurs (three dimensional trellis) support vines of hops for beer making. “It’s the place I go for inspiration and garden chitchat,” she says.
Greg King, manager and buyer of hardgoods, annuals, and perennials at Potomac Garden Center says, “We had a great year in sales all over the garden center in 2020! Herbs and vegetables, both seeds and plants, were overwhelmed by customer demand. Perennial sales were outstanding. Raised bed sales were off the charts, along with all products relating to them.
“People had a lot of unexpected time on their hands and a desire to take control of their food source. They wanted to take that unspent energy in a positive direction and grow their own food. They wanted to create a safe haven, where they could relax with plants and be in nature. They were telling us they want organic and raised bed vegetable gardens.”
The Gardens of Queen Anne, as the Inn’s gardens are named, feature a range of garden supports, including cattle fencing, strawberry planter obelisks, A-frame hot houses with Plexiglas doors, and tall wooden Tuteurs (three dimensional trellis) to support vines of hops for beer making.
Local Social (Media) Sources
This social media group was founded on Facebook Groups in April 2020 by Tim Hamilton, Marketing Manager for State Parks with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, also a former marketing director for Homestead Gardens, and avid home gardener. Gardening newbies and old hands share tips, produce progress, and answer perplexing questions. The group is for novice, casual, serious, and expert gardeners alike in and around Annapolis. Ask or answer questions about anything garden-related that is specific to our area.
Why the heading, Dirty Annapolis? Hamilton says it came about because he loves to get dirty in the garden and his wife would comment on his disheveled condition. He thinks it’s just great, to be like a kid out playing and thus the title. To further confirm Hamilton’s wit, he has done stints in standup comedy. So, when COVID19 raged into our lives, he says he had the excuse to stay in the garden all the time!
With close to 800 members, Dirty Annapolis serves as a Q&A resource on gardening and identifying plants, weeds, diseases, and bugs. There is also a close-knit sharing component. “Humans love community and Dirty Annapolis helps fill that need,” Hamilton says.
Horticultural center, Homestead Gardens, is known regionwide for its vast selection of plants, flowers, trees, tools, landscaping services, housewares, decorations, and all manner of garden supplies. But the Davidsonville-based company has developed a strong digital presence on Facebook and offers weekly virtual chats, such as the popular “Grow Live!” program hosted every Monday at noon, and “Houseplant Haven,” described as “a community for those who are just finding their green thumb as well as master gardeners looking for a new challenge.” Homestead also has a vast how-to video library on their website, as well as plant look-up tools, tips, and trends. Just click on “Learning Center” at the website homesteadgardens.com.
Founded by Alonso Abugattas, naturalist, storyteller, and environmental educator, this social (media) butterfly shares his insights, while asking others to share theirs, about the nation’s capital’s natural world on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Blogspot.
On a final note, Green America—a national nonprofit founded in 1982 with the mission of harnessing economic power (the strength of consumers, investors, businesses, and the marketplace) to create a socially just and environmentally sustainable society—reminds us, “Planting a garden has the power to change the world.
