UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



MISCELLANEOUS PUBLICATION NO. 483 

 WASHINGTON, D. C. ISSUED FEBRUARY 1942 



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VICTORY GARDENS 



By Victor R. Boswell 

 Principal horticulturist and assistant head of division, Division of Fruit and Vege- 

 table Crops and Diseases, Bureau of Plant Industry 



Contents 



Page 



We need minerals and vitamins 1 



Vegetables as sources of minerals and vitamins. 1 



Who should grow vegetables? 2 



Conserve supplies — follow through 3 



A continuous supply should be the goal 3 



What to grow 4 



How to arrange the planting 4 



Plans for gardens 5 



Page 



How to prepare and fertilize the soil 5 



How to plant 6 



Time to plant different vegetables 10 



Cultivating and mulching 10 



Watering or irrigation 10 



Proper harvesting and use of products 11 



Additional information 11 



WE NEED MINERALS AND VITAMINS 



Americans, as a group, have not been eating enough of those 

 l\. foods that are rich in the minerals and vitamins necessary for 

 good growth and health. Surveys by nutrition experts and the large 

 number of rejections under the Selective Service Act both emphasize 

 the need for improving our eating habits. Some people have not been 

 eating sufficient quantities of vegetables rich in vitamins and minerals 

 because they could not get them, but millions more have not eaten 

 enough of these essential vegetables because of lack of knowledge, 

 indifference, or unfortunate food habits, even though they could easily 

 afford and obtain them. National health as well as personal w^ell- 

 being demands that we learn more about what vegetables we need 

 and then make special efforts to use those vegetables effectively. 

 Nutrition experts advise that people get their vitamins from food 

 rather than from indiscriminate use of synthetic preparations. 



VEGETABLES AS SOURCES OF MINERALS AND VITAMINS 



Vegetables are important foods because of the minerals and vita- 

 mins they contain. Their greatest contribution is probably in vitamin 

 A and vitamin C (ascorbic acid), but as a group they also furnish 

 some vitamin Bi (thiamin), vitamin G (riboflavin), calcium, and iron. 



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