April 6, 2010

Victory Gardens (revisited)

Hmm...i didn't intend to get off on this tangent, but might as well go with it! After yesterday's post, I got to thinking about those Victory Gardens that people planted during World War II. Ever heard of them? Well, I did a little poking around to learn more about them and wanted to share my findings with you!

As I understand it, since resources were being diverted to support the war efforts, the government rationed food and encouraged people to grow their own vegetables as an act of patriotism (and so more supplies could be sent to the troops overseas). Imagine that...a patriotic potato! So people did it! They planted gardens in their front and back yards, on rooftops, in vacant lots, and even on public land like Boston Commons. In portions of Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, there were over 800 plots cultivated! I also read that by 1943, there were about 20 million gardens nationwide that produced 8 million tons of food! That's 41 percent of all the vegetable produce that was consumed in the U.S. that year. How amazing is that?! Here are some more old posters that celebrate the movement:
Kinda makes you want to put on your stars and stripes dress and get out your shovel, doesn't it? (But can anyone tell me what kind of hat that is?)

9 comments:

  1. I love all of the vintage posters!

    I love the flag dress, but I am not a fan of wearing stripes on my bottom half.

    Thanks for sharing.

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  2. Those posters are lovely! As for the hat, I think that's the 'smurf' look. ;)

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  3. love it... great dress... I think it would suit you.

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  4. We've got most our ground ready... just need to get the seeds in!

    It sure makes me want to eat more veggies.

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  5. That is so interesting. :o)
    I plan to do a little "digging" on the topic too. :o)
    Have a wonderful day.
    Sincerely ~ Tricia

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  6. the hat is very similar to the red hats that Italian revolutionaries wore
    around WWI. Garibaldi's name pops up,
    somehow.I dont think Columbia would be weearing one however.
    jim of kajim

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  7. I love the posters. And even more, I loved how you wrote about it all! We keep talking about putting in a garden, maybe in a few weeks. And if we do, I'm hanging a bumper sticker on it that says, "My other garden is a munitions plant".

    Thank for sharing - and inspiring and motivating me!

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