Victory Gardens and Grassless Lawns

During World War II, Americans grew tons of produce in government-sponsored Victory Gardens. With a 21st century twist, the idea is back, paired with an anti-lawn movement that decries the waste of water, use of an ingredient in Agent Orange and expenditure on fuel for power mowers to make front and back yards look like golf courses.

In New York City, Portland, Oregon and in front of San Francisco’s City Hall, vegetables are growing, thanks to a new operation called MyFarm, which does the planting, weeding and harvesting and, for less than it costs to hire people to cut lawns, leaves a box of fresh organic produce on the doorstep.

At the same time, an organization name SALT (Smaller American Lawns Today) has been preaching the virtues of less grass and more trees and meadows, according to the New Yorker, which reports on a number of new books such as “Edible Estates” and “Food Not Lawns” to make American yards more productive.

In the New York Times blog “Designs,” a New Yorker describes her own experiences in “swapping out blades of grass for bushels of beans” and recommends sources of information and help for what seems to be a rapidly growing movement.

Food for thought.

Cross-posted from my blog.