of the family, but they teach intensive gardening and demonstrate to 
the workers that the individual family can make itself independent 
of the vegetable market and, in this way, perform a patriotic ser- 
vice. We find that such interest is contagious and we hope the 
demand for gardens next year will be even greater than it has been 
this year. After a successful harvesting of their crops the garden 
workers, whom we had helped, invited the members of our Club to 
see what they had accomplished. We arranged an interesting 
meeting with patriotic speeches and a flag raising, after which 
lemonade and cake was served to us by the gardeners. We con- 
tributed $100.00 to the Food Production Committee for this work. 
We have contributed $53.25 to the Committee on Honorary Award. 
We have also subscribed $24,200 to our second Liberty Loan. 
Louise Este Bruce. 
Bedford Garden Club 
This spring saw the entrance of our country into the world war. 
Shortages of men and food began to loom up, and our Club early set 
itself to the task of meeting these new needs as they affected us locally. 
A committee on canning and preserving was formed. Usual activities 
of the Club, such as flower shows, were given up, the Committee on 
Roadside and Village Planting made the growing of vegetable gardens 
its principal concern. 
School children were encouraged to plant their own little home 
gardens, and in Mt. Kisco the school children were provided with 
small plots of land, and worked under a teacher. 
A public spirited member of the Garden Club financed a garden 
scheme for the Italians of Sutton's Row, preparing the ground and 
supplying the seed. Each family was allowed a plot 50 x 100 feet. 
Of the produce one barrel of potatoes from each garden was given as 
payment. 
Bedford village developed quite an ambitious plan to " take itself 
off the market." A community garden of several acres was started; 
the land loaned, money, and labor contributed patriotically. The 
produce, winter vegetables, and potatoes, sold locally at prices obtain- 
ing before the war. 
In the spring an extra meeting was held, to discuss plans in con- 
nection with the food crisis. The Club determined to devote its efforts 
to prevent waste in members' vegetable gardens, and to encourage the 
community to provide winter supplies at a moderate cost. The first 
step seemed to be to educate the community in the most scientific 
and up-to-date methods of canning, preserving, and dehydrating. 
Asparagus and rhubarb were already in season, so a practical demon- 
stration on the fractional method of canning was given. Later an 
