PART I 



WAR GARDENING MANUAL 



As a result of emergency created by war the home garden of America has 

 become an institution of world-wide importance. The planting and growing 

 season of 1918 demonstrated that the products thus raised are essential to the 

 feeding of the people of the United States and the Allied Nations. Under the 

 impetus given by the National War Garden Commission the people of this 

 country last year produced a crop valued at $520,000,000 in gardens cultivated 

 in backyards, on vacant lots and on other land previously untilled — the 

 patriotic gift of the war gardens to the nation. 



Peace can in no wise diminish America's responsibility for feeding 

 Europe. The recovery of vast areas of devastated country in France and 

 Belgium greatly increases the number of people to be fed and adds heavily 

 to the food burden of America. Because of this the Victory Garden is no 

 less necessary than the War Garden. 



WAR GARDENS HELP SOLVE TRAFFIC PROBLEM 



War-time brought the most serious traffic 

 congestion the United States has ever seen. 

 This condition has no meaning more signifi- 

 cant than that the gardens of this year must 

 do even more than those of 1918 in freeing the 

 overburdened railroads from the need for 

 transporting food products. With food short- 

 age threatening the Allied Nations and with 

 railroad congestion as an added factor, the 

 war garden results of the coming season must 

 be considerably greater even than the vast 

 yield of last year. 



COMMUNITY GARDENING 



Excellent results are obtained through co- 

 operative gardening work. If several fami- 

 lies join forces they can reduce the cost of 

 gardening in time, labor and money. Fami- 

 lies having adjoining or neighboring garden 

 plots may use one set of tools. To prevent 

 clash of convenience it is well to have an 

 understanding in advance as to the time 

 when each gardener is to have the use of 

 particular tools. By this arrangement it is 

 possible to have complete equipment at ex- 

 pense much less than if each gardener bought 

 his own. Money can also be saved in buying 

 seeds, fertilizers and spraying materials by 

 clubbing together and gaining advantage of 

 the lower prices for large lots. 



One of the advantages of doing commu- 

 nity work is that it is possible for the gar- 

 deners interested in the project to employ a 

 man and a team to prepare their gardens by 

 plowing and harrowing. In this way the 

 man and team can be kept busy throughout 



the day and the expense to each gardener 

 will be slight. 



On a larger scale this principle should be 

 applied to garden plots on tracts of vacant 

 land allotted to individuals in or near cities 

 or towns. Each plot in such a tract is a 

 separate garden, belonging to the individual 

 or family to whom allotted. In many in- 

 stances the municipal authorities, the mayor's 

 war garden committee or some similar local 

 organization, will provide an expert to super- 

 vise work on community gardens of this 

 character. This expert will give advice and 

 instructions as to preparation, planting and 

 cultivation and on other technical subjects. 



If an expert is not provided in this way it 

 is wise for the gardeners to club together and 

 arrange for one at their own expense, if the 

 project is large enough to make this possible 

 without too great individual cost. The help 

 of an expert is of great value. 



School children and parents may work to- 

 gether to good advantage on these garden 

 plots. In some communities school au- 

 thorities allow the children to spend a por- 

 tion of the school hours, on stated days, in 

 their garden work. Through co-operation 

 with street cleaning departments a munici- 

 pal government may arrange to deliver 

 manure to war gardeners at nominal cost. 

 In at least one important city this is done at 

 a charge of $2 per load. 



It is a good plan for municipal govern- 

 ments to arrange for lectures at school 

 houses or other places on practical problems 

 in gardening. This increases efficiency. 



