Page 6 - Inspirations Premiere

allowed small farms an income, and provided hard-to-
come-by vegetables and fruits to those in places where
gardening was impossible.

Rodale’s 70 Years of Organic Gardening
Joseph Irving Rodale founded Rodale Inc., in 1930. He
was a partner with his brother, Joseph, in Rodale
Manufacturing, which produced electrical switches.

Joseph moved Rodale Manufacturing to Emmaus,
Pennsylvania to take advantage of favorable local taxes,
while J. I. dabbled in publishing. In 1942, Rodale
started Organic Farming and Gardening magazine.
It taught people how to grow food with organic
farming techniques.

Resurgence of the Victory Garden
In 1975, Boston’s WGBH PBS station aired, Crockett’s
Victory Garden. James Underwood Crockett, a master
Let’s face it: Eating healthy is expensive! Every week, gardener began with gardening tips and Q&A from
going shopping for fresh produce is a nightmare. viewers. There was a resurgence in the 1970s and
Everything displayed in lovely “stadiums of produce” through the 1990s with backyard gardens and what
will get you a terrible case of sticker shock! You’re was considered a novel approach to growing food the
reduced to selecting two or three zucchini and a few “organic” way. Many small gardeners were already
crookneck squash for dinner. As for the outrageously composting and enriching the soil by natural means
priced artichoke; you can pass them up altogether! If rather than with commercial fertilizers. They were
you’re trying to eat healthy, you will be paying dearly already collecting and seed harvesting to preserve
for fresh vegetables and fruits. But as they say, “What “heirloom” seeds from year to year. There were
goes around; comes around”, and we’re beginning to catalogs and magazines that helped backyard
consider the prospect of growing our own salad gardeners with inventive techniques that helped grow
garden! even more vegetables amid fuel shortages, inflation
and political strife.
The Past Solution: Victory Gardening
During WWI and again during WWII, many families Turning of the “Compost Barrel”
converted their back yards and flower beds into Victory Here we are at that point again where we are
Gardens. It helped during rationing, when most large considering “container gardens”, “raised-beds” “square
American farms were growing food for the troops. -foot” “vertical” and other methods of gardening in
Many families came together in towns and cities and small spaces. In an effort to not only save money and
started “community gardens”, converting patches of grow healthy food for our families, but to know exactly
green spaces and even rooftops into the first raised
bed and container gardens. Out in the rural areas, it Continued on page 7

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