Teacher Background

Thousands of years ago, people across the globe began domesticating wild animals and plants in an effort to better guarantee their food supply. They eventually did the same with fruits, vegetables, and herbs – the elements the kitchen gardens we cultivate today. Kitchen gardens are traditionally located close right outside the door for easy access. In a way, you can think of the kitchen door is the precursor to the refrigerator door!

American Kitchen Garden History
Without kitchen gardens, European colonists in America would not have survived. Settlers brought seeds with them, and Native Americans introduced them to their own traditional crops, including corn, beans, and squash. Kitchen gardens provided essential nutrients not readily available from other sources, and a local harvest was the only source of these foods because there was no refrigerated transportation. It was also a lot cheaper to grow food in those days than to buy it. To learn more about kitchen gardens of this era, visit Harvest of Freedom: the History of Kitchen Gardens in America.

Until the early 1900's, kitchen gardens were a common fixture for every household and school. As technology advanced, economies of scale were applied to all industries, including agriculture, and fewer farmers were needed to feed the nation. After a while it made more economic sense to earn wages and buy food than it did to grow it at home. However, during World War I and World War II, a great deal of food was shipped overseas to feed troops — and farmers were among those troops — so all crops became scarce. Citizens had to grow their own fruits and vegetables to feed themselves, and these subsistence plots, called Victory Gardens, became symbols of patriotism and self-reliance. In 1917 alone, the National War Garden Commission estimated that home gardeners raised $350 million worth of crops in yards and vacant lots! When the wars were over and relative prosperity returned, kitchen gardening gradually faded in popularity.

Where Are We Now?
Since World War II, our farming roots have grown even more distant. Very few children have the opportunity to experience growing their own food. We have adopted diets ever more reliant on processed and prepackaged foods, and America’s food production is centralized in pockets around the country. Kitchen Gardeners International estimates that the average American meal travels 1500 miles from field to table (anyone who has ever picked and eaten a fresh tomato knows, a tomato that has traveled 1500 miles doesn’t compare. No wonder fruit and vegetable consumption has decreased!). All tolled, feeding the average American requires 400 gallons of oil per person per year -- how much things changed in the last century! (Lesson 2 asks students to explore these changes in food production.) This it's good for the flavor or nutrient content of the transported produce, and ironically, it degrades the very biosphere we depend upon for our food.

We are now a society of individuals who, for the most part, have no hand in growing or cooking our own food. This disconnect plays a large role in the declining health of our environment and our population. If we continue in this direction, we run the risk of losing the knowledge and land necessary to guarantee our food security. Fortunately, there are hundreds of grassroots groups and national coalitions that are tackling this issue, and they all agree on one thing: the more people involved in growing their own food, the more secure and healthful our food supply will be.

You and your students can be part of this growing resurgence of kitchen gardening! It’s a wonderful way for kids to discover for themselves how delicious good nutrition can be. Your garden can be any size or shape – a 5-gallon container is as valid as a half-acre vacant lot. The important thing is to grow a variety of fruits, vegetables, and herbs that are adapted to your growing conditions and are culturally appropriate for your students. Try designing your plot around a theme (see sidebar at right for ideas).

Benefits to Students:

Keys to Success:

Here are a couple of ideas for weaving lessons in economics and social studies into the project:

Wild Oats Promotes Kitchen Gardening at School!
To help foster more school kitchen gardens, NGA is partnering with Wild Oats in a new grant program, the Wild Oats Gardening with Kids Award. This program will provide 10 schools in select pilot locations with supplies to establish kitchen gardens, and tools and training for preparing nutritious meals with the resulting produce. Click here for details.

Resources
For more information about food crops and teaching nutrition through the garden, check out the following National Gardening Association articles:

Nourishing the Next Generation
Linking Gardens and Nutrition
Creating Herb Gardens
Food and Culture
Creating a Three Sisters Garden
Planning a Vegetable Garden
Food Gardening 101
Unearthing History in the Garden (Victory Gardens)