Slow Food Nation Victory Garden: Planting July 12

[Guest guest]

Courtesy of http://slowfoodnation.org/ and harrisson9876

 

Beginning July 1, the lawn of San Francisco's City Hall will undergo a

transformation from grass carpet to edible garden. The installation of

the Slow Food Nation Victory Garden marks the first time that City

Hall has hosted an edible garden since 1943. We will begin by pulling

up turf (which will be replanted in other parts of the City's green

areas) and planting beets, lettuce, kale and many other heritage

varieties of vegetables. The food grown in the garden—most of which

will be ready for harvest during Slow Food Nation's Labor Day

event—will be donated to those with limited access to healthy, organic

produce through a partnership with local food banks and meal programs.

 

Slow Food Nation is producing this project in partnership with Victory

Gardens 2008+, whose mission is to respond to the social and

ecological challenges that San Franciscans and all urban residents

face in creating more self reliant, ecologically sound and socially

just urban human habitats.

 

The Victory Garden project takes its name from 20th Century wartime

efforts to address food shortages by encouraging citizens to plant

gardens on public and private land. In the early 1940s, gardens

sprouted in front yards and vacant lots, and produced 40 percent of

the nation's vegetables. San Francisco's victory program became one of

the best in the country; Golden Gate Park alone had 250 garden plots.

 

The SF Victory Garden program redefines " Victory " in the context of

modern urban sustainability: " Victory " means growing food at home for

increased local food security and to reduce the food miles associated

with the average American meal, not to mention as a way of saving

money during a time of economic instability. As Deborah Madison

pointed out today at Culinate, the Victory Gardens of WWII exist only

as memory and history, but in the near future " we might once again

have to feed ourselves, and even if we don't have to, there's much to

be said for growing some food and working outdoors. "

 

The Slow Food Nation Victory Garden will serve as a demonstration and

education centerpiece leading up to and following our Labor Day event,

providing visitors the opportunity to learn about urban food

production practices.

 

We're looking for volunteers—experienced gardeners and novices

alike—to help us keep the Slow Food Nation Victory Garden thriving

from July – September 2008. For more details and to enroll as a

Victory Garden Volunteer, please email your contact information and

availability to info@slowfoodnation .org with " Victory Garden " in the

subject line.