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THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



October, 1917 



valuable factors in winning America's greatest 

 war. Incidentally, as he lays down his hoe 

 at the close of the season, the back yard 

 gardener is finding out why it is that Amer- 

 ica is the most wasteful nation on the face 

 of the earth. This discovery is going to have 

 its effect in giving stability to the "back- 

 to-the-garden " movement brought on by the 

 necessities of the times, and for this America 

 may be truly thankful, even if the war does 

 nothing else in a constructive way. 



This conversion of the American people into 

 first rate gardeners may be said to be one of the 

 few blessings the world war will bring to Amer- 

 ica. Experts estimate that if the war does no- 

 thing else for the average American family but 

 to show it how to become self supporting during 

 the spring and summer months through its own 

 back yard it will have paid off #7,000,000,000 

 of the war credit within the next fifty years. 

 Putting it differently, America has been 

 losing more than $100,000,000 annually because 

 of its failure to interest its citizens in intensive 

 gardening like that which has been practised 

 in Europe for generations. 



The present boom in gardening promises to 

 make history as well as to cut the cost of living 

 for the average family. Surveys made several 

 years ago in a number of large Western cities 

 opened the eyes of many persons to the im- 

 portance of the home garden movement as 

 never before. In one city, Kansas City, 

 Missouri, it was discovered that more than 

 20,000 acres of vacant lots were lying idle each 

 summer when they might be converted into 

 profitable gardens through the expenditure of 

 a little time and money. Added to this were 

 about 10,000 acres of back yards capable of 

 supporting home gardens but which were 

 allowed to lie unused. 



It was demonstrated conclusively that this 

 waste land was sufficient to feed the population 

 of the city during the summer months, pro- 

 viding its citizens cared to go to the trouble of 

 making use of the vacant lots and idle back 

 yards. One can well imagine the results that 

 Avould be brought about in the halfhearted fight 

 against the high cost of living if the city could 

 be aroused to the need of cultivating and mak- 

 ing use of these ideal garden plots. For one 

 thing, it would release an equal number of 

 acres of land used to grow garden produce for 

 the city in the outlying country districts and 

 in other sections of the country. Being self- 

 supporting, Kansas City would not require 

 long trains of freight cars to deliver its vege- 

 tables and fresh fruits during the summer 

 months. Therefore, these idle freight cars and 

 railroad equipment could be used in hauling 

 other products suffering because of the con- 

 gestion of traffic. 



What was true of Kansas City a few years 

 ago has been true of almost every city in the 

 country, with very few exceptions. This 

 accounts for the tremendous drive for in- 

 creased garden acreages made by hundreds of 

 American municipalities. By this drive many 

 thousands of badly needed freight cars will be 

 released for important duties other than the 

 feeding of the population of the large cities. 

 These freight cars can be used advantageously 

 in transporting war munitions and supplies, 

 supporting the boys in khaki. It is in this 

 manner that the garden movement promises 

 to make itself felt around the world, for every 

 week that America can save in equipping and 

 transporting its expeditionary force to Europe 

 will in proportion reduce the length of the war. 

 Not only does gardening promise to hasten the 

 end of the war, but it releases for foreign con- 

 sumption thousands of tons of foods badly 



needed in other countries to avoid famine. For 

 this and other reasons the average back yard 

 gardener may well puff out his cheeks and strut 

 with pride — he is a valuable cog in the world's 

 greatest war machine. 



One of the most remarkable garden drives in 

 the entire country has been in Des Moines, 

 where a city of 100,000 was turned topsy- 

 turvy in the interest of the movement to make 

 the city self-supporting during the summer 

 months. The city commissioners began their 

 preparations for the garden drive weeks before 

 the weather forecasters began to predict the 

 arrival of spring. For one thing the city em- 

 ployed a high salaried garden expert to take 

 charge of the municipal garden movement. 

 During the spring and summer months, at 

 least, this office shadowed in importance all 

 other municipal offices. 



The weeks that followed the employment of 

 the garden supervisor were electric with garden 

 news. Huge quantities of free garden seeds 

 were obtained through congressmen and by 

 purchases made under the authority of the 

 city. These were given out without charge 

 to any applicant who would promise to plant 

 and cultivate a vacant lot or back yard garden, 

 no matter how small. The call for free seeds 

 was so great that the supply was exhausted 

 several times, but the city faithfully made good 

 its word and saw to it that every gardener 

 who wanted them got his free seeds. 



The next movement was the making of a 

 survey of the vacant lots and idle plots of 

 ground in the city limits. Thousands of these 

 unused lots, the majority of which had been 

 preempted for dumping grounds or had been 

 allowed to grow up in weeds, were found before 

 the survey was concluded. Arrangements 

 were made to utilize these vacant lots, rent 

 free, for gardening purposes, and the city saw 

 to it that every applicant for garden space 

 was supplied with a vacant lot located as near 

 his home as possible. Before it was time for 

 the first seeds to be into the ground 2,000 

 of these vacant lots had been claimed and were 

 being cleared of trash and debris by am- 

 bitious gardeners. The city commissioners 

 then drafted an ordinance which made it pos- 

 sible to seize and cultivate every vacant lot in 

 the city not put to some useful purpose. The 

 garden supervisor was instructed to seize and 

 put under cultivation all vacant lots and un- 

 used property on which weeds were found 

 growing. This added several hundred lots to 

 the city's garden acreage, as idle property 

 owned by so called slackers was drafted for pub- 

 lic service. Theowner did not share in the pro- 

 fits accruing from the utilization of his property 

 in such cases, for he was allowed no rent. 



The protecting hand of municipal authority 

 was extended still further when the com- 

 missioners passed an ordinance, or rescued 

 an old statute, making it possible for gardeners 

 harassed by their neighbors' poultry or live 

 stock to make short shift of any offenders 

 caught destroying garden property. Persons 

 who had been in the habit of making short cuts 

 through vacant lots found the law's stern 

 hand pointing out the sidewalk for them, gar- 

 den property of this sort being inviolate. 



Estimates made early in the season indicated 

 that a total of nearly 5,000 new gardens had 

 been added to the cultivated area within the 

 city limits as th^ result of the agitation for a 

 greater interest in gardening. What is true 

 of Des Moines is true of a hundred other of the 

 larger cities of the country, so that one may 

 readily understand the dollars and cents value 

 of the "back-to-the-garden" movement in 

 America. 



In hundreds of localities school children were 

 dismissed from school days and even weeks 

 earlier than the close of the school year in 

 order that the boys and girls might help in 

 planting gardens. Boy scouts and girl scouts 

 were drafted for garden work in hundreds of 

 communities, although it must be said to their 

 credit that drafting in the strict sense of the 

 word was unnecessary. Not only did the 

 schools and municipalities take an active part 

 in launching the garden movement, but 

 thousands of corporations and business houses 

 became aggressive advocates of the garden 

 movement. Almost every railroad of im- 

 portance had opened its right of way for the 

 cultivation of garden and farm crops by early 

 spring, releasing many thousands of acres of 

 idle land for this useful purpose. Almost all 

 these railroads encouraged their employees 

 to plant gardens on this or other idle railroad 

 property, with the result that thousands 

 of families who otherwise would have been 

 without the ground needed for a home garden 

 were supplied with all the ground they could 

 possibly take care of. In many instances free 

 seeds were supplied to needy employees. 



What the railroads have done for their 

 employees they have done for the general 

 public in an even larger measure. With 

 few exceptions all the great western railroad 

 systems have opened their right of way 

 property to the cultivation of farm and garden 

 crops. For the most part no charge is made 

 for this ground, although one railroad does 

 charge #5 for each lease, no matter how 

 large. This road has thousands of acres of 

 alfalfa planted along its right of way. Near 

 every large city hundreds of garden plots may 

 be found on railroad property of this sort. 



Great corporations and important business 

 firms of the nation have shown their patriot- 

 ism by encouraging the garden movement 

 among their employees. One such corporation 

 which has erected scores of model tene- 

 ments for its workers, not only supplied the 

 ground and the seed, but offered cash prizes for 

 the best gardens in order to encourage an in- 

 terest in this work among its employees. The 

 result was most beneficial for several hundred 

 little gardens blossomed out in new places 

 during the spring. Thousands of firms have 

 provided free seeds, given their employees half 

 holidays or taken other steps to put the stamp 

 of their approval on garden work. 



One of the most active forces in the drive for 

 more gardens has been the organized woman- 

 hood of the nation. Women's clubs and or- 

 ganizations in every state and community 

 have taken an active interest in the garden 

 campaign by planting gardens themselves, and 

 encouraging children to plant gardens, and 

 have offered cash prizes amounting to many 

 thousands of dollars for the best gardens. This 

 work has been carried on as a part of the thrift 

 campaign in which the services of the nation's 

 women have been urgently required. 



One of the best examples of what has been 

 done to enlist the boys and girls in garden work 

 is found in Lincoln, Nebraska, the model 

 school garden town of the country. Ap- 

 proximately 5,000 school children were en- 

 gaged in cultivating home and school gardens 

 under the supervision of the school authorities, 

 cooperating with the federal authorities in 

 developing the school garden plan to its 

 greatest possible perfection. 



For several years the children have culti- 

 vated school gardens as well as home gar- 

 dens. Whole schools are engaged in the 

 garden campaign, and each room has its own 

 plot of ground to cultivate and maintain. 



