Wondering what you can do to flight climate change? It may be easier than you think.

  Food is often in shortage during wars due to the repurposing of farmers as soldiers and farms as battle fields.  In addition, food is destroyed or withheld as a weapon of war.  The idea of using gardens to help in the war effort began during WWI by wealthy US industrialist Charles Lathrop Pack. Pack conceived the idea in March 1917 just before the US entered the war.  He detailed the experience in a very comprehensive book titled, The War Garden Victorious.   

Around the world, 20-30 million men were called away from agricultural work to fight in the WWI.  The world’s food supply was in serious decline.  While there is no official account of the number of people who starved to death during WWI, it is estimated to be in the millions.  Pack wanted to do “war work which was actually necessary” and would aid in making the war successful.  Along with other notables and high government officials, the US National War Garden Commission was created to “arouse the patriots of America to the importance of putting all idle land to work, teach them how to do it, and educate them to conserve by canning and drying all food they could not use while fresh.”  All land was promoted as a place to grow food especially for the urban dweller who did not usually garden though the use of vacant lots, backyards, and even window planters – nothing was overlooked.  The war garden idea was so successful in the US, it spread to other countries of the world such as Canada, United Kingdom, Australia and Germany.  Everyone wanted to take an active part in the war effort and gardening was something that had tangible results.  Pamphlets were distributed explaining how to plant and care for the different vegetables and were free to anyone in response to requests.  Posters were pasted on buildings and workplaces and printed in newspapers and magazines. The most popular government poster with the slogan, “every garden a munition plant” was created by illustrator James Montgomery Flagg of the Uncle Sam recruitment poster fame.  It was estimated that an excess of 5 million gardens were planted by US citizens by 1918. 

The war garden idea was again promoted just after the US was forced to enter World War II in 1941 after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.  Food production shifted to the war effort.  Rationing of food was implemented in Britain and later in the US as an effort to prevent malnutrition and ensure there was enough food to feed the military.  Food such as bacon, butter, sugar, meat, cooking fats, cheese and preserves were limited.  Produce was scarce because modes of transportation used to bring fresh fruits and vegetables were repurposed for the war effort.  Hunger was again rampant around the world.  It is estimated that 20 million people died as a result of malnutrition during WW2 compared to 19.5 million killed in combat.  The US rallied its citizens to help in the war effort by planting a garden on any vacant lot, backyard, or empty pot.  The goal was the same – to free-up food and modes of transportation for the troops by encouraging Americans to grow their own vegetables and fruits. 

Charlie and new seedlings

Claude Wickard, Secretary of Agriculture, headed the victory garden movement this time around. The victory garden program was organized through a wide variety of government and non-profit groups such as county extension agents, schools, 4H clubs, boy and girl scouts, the National Federation of Colored Farmers, and other club organizations.  The Agriculture Department promoted victory gardens as a way for Americans to stay fit, develop better food habits through increased consumption of fresh produce, and boost moral by giving everyone a role in achieving war victory. George Washington Carver, American agricultural scientist and inventor, wrote about the nutritional benefits of weeds such as dandelion, thistle, beetroot, and clover so nothing was wasted.  It is estimated that 20 million Americans participated in the victory garden program – in both suburban and urban settings – and produced about 40 percent of the vegetables consumed nationally. People grew arugula, pole beans, beets, cabbage, chard, corn, cucumber, dill, kohlrabi, leeks, lettuce, onions, peas, hot and bell peppers, pumpkins, radishes, spinach, squash and tomatoes.  School victory gardens were used to provide fresh produce for school lunch. Canning and drying were encouraged to store food for the winter months.

Why a victory garden for today’s world?  Climate change.  It’s our modern-day world war.  World wars affect everyone on the planet, involve massive destruction, cause disease and death, negatively affect the production and consumption of food, and get worse before getting better through targeted intervention. A victory garden can have the same effect it had during WWI and II by helping individuals feel they are doing their part to solve the climate change problem with tangible results.  As a dietitian, another top concern is improving the health of our citizens. Gardening is a cheap, enjoyable, and an evidence-based way to achieve this.  


Let me explain why YOU should have a victory garden too.

  1. Individual gardens reduce greenhouse gases by absorbing and storing CO2 from the atmosphere AND decrease the need for transporting tons of produce from around the world.  Transportation is THE major cause of greenhouse gas emission.
  2. Produce harvested from gardens is either eaten immediately or shared thereby decreasing food waste – a major cause of green house gas emission.  
  3. Gardening teaches people the fundamentals of growing their own food.  We haven’t faced a food shortage in my lifetime, but that doesn’t mean we won’t.  
  4. Gardening provides horticultural therapy – an evidence-based professional practice which uses plants and gardening to improve mental and physical health.    
  5. Home grown produce can be free of commercial pesticides which are major causes of soil degradation and the decline in the nutritional value of food not to mention dangerous!
  6. Produce can be harvested at its nutritional and taste peak.  Produce that comes from afar must be harvested before its peak ripeness and overtime the nutritional value declines. 
  7. Gardening increases the consumption of plants providing essential vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals leading to improved health.
  8. Gardening fosters a connection in the community through shared resources.
  9. Gardening increases physical activity which contributes to fitness.
  10. Gardening can help decrease your food costs.  Most people on a limited income know about the high cost of vegetables, fruits, and herbs.  Growing some can save you money. 

I’m not trying to oversell the idea of a victory garden as a panacea for climate change, but it can make a dent. It can help decrease the human contribution to climate change through better knowledge about ecological agricultural practices and by holding government representatives accountable for large scale efforts to promote sustainability.