My children and I are in our second year of gardening. We have a smaller yard so we used www.squarefootgardening.com plan. It's a 4H project, but it is also a way of trying to continue to refine our eating to be organic, seasonal, local and environmentally responsible. We have a wide variety of vegetables and melons going currently. For my birthday, I asked for and my husband planted six blueberry bushes in our front landscaping bed. Next year we plan to expand with strawberry bushes in that bed and a cherry tree in the front yard.
We already purchase our organic dairy , meat, poultry and eggs directly from local organic/biodynamic farmers. We have cut out the middle man and the huge use of oil to truck our food to us from out of state -my Romaine doesn't come from rocket fuel contaminated Colorado River area farms, it comes from the backyard. Another concern is my rising food costs for my family of 8. By maximizing our garden production I hope to shave 20 to 40 dollars a week off our food bill in the growing season (about 20 weeks if I do a fall second planting of greens, etc.).
We are in a battle for our nations soul and survival. Planting a Victory Garden is making a committment to the idea that "Yes, we can" (for you empowered Obama fans) make a difference, leave a smaller footprint, practice self reliance, share our resources with the world (plant some zucchini and you will soon have lots to share, LOL!)
So I encourage all Kossacks to commit to a 21st Century Victory Gardens.
see a history of Victory Gardens here:
http://www.victoryseeds.com/...
and here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/...
For good organic gardening tips the magazine/website Organic Gardening is the best!
Update: As I drive down highways I often ponder the medians. They are such a wasted space. Other than your occasional Lady Bird Johnson inspired strips of wildflowers... They could be planted with corn or grains and harvested by nearby communities. I have a circle in our culdesac with a dying pine tree and I want to convince the neighbors we should take it out and turn it into a community garden circle. Plant it with ever bearing strawberry plants or something. Another plug for the Square Foot Gardening method. They teach it in third world countries because it is such an easy way to enrich soil and have higher yields. Check out that website and look into it.