Of Hi Tunnels and Victory Gardens

Last Saturday, my wife put a veritable feast on the table … all of it provided from her Hi Tunnel garden and the chicken coop. It was beautiful to look at and delicious to eat. But it’s been a journey. Let me share it with you.

Six or seven years ago, the USDA/NRCS (U.S. Dept of Agriculture and Natural Resource Conservation Service) had a special promotional program on Hi Tunnels (passive greenhouses that extend the growing season to start earlier in the spring and last longer into fall). We applied and were accepted into the program for new farmers (which we certainly were!!!!).

We setup a drip-irrigated, 30×72 feet Hi Tunnel and with a lot of work and tilling were able to overcome a very stubborn plot of Bermuda grass to plant and harvest our first vegetables; it was mediocre success at best for a couple years. And then some health issues descended on my wife such that she wasn’t able to do anything with the Hi Tunnel for a couple years. You should have seen what the weeds did on their own, without the least bit of tending on our part! I seriously wondered if we’d ever see anything good come out of that Hi Tunnel again.

But this past spring, with new health and a new resolve, we went at it again. First, I started by doing the major weed extermination work, then we worked it together, and I built some new work tables, tomato cages, tool racks and various other infrastructure while Bess laid out her plans for the garden and gathered seed for it. Meanwhile, she burned the “midnight oil” so to speak by reading everything she could about the best techniques. One technique she discovered was planting in “raised rows” (as opposed to raised beds as has been so popular in recent years with backyard gardeners). Email me if you’re interested in more details.

Well, last Saturday was the beginning of the fruit and vegetable cornucopia for this season: watermelon, cantaloupe, cucumbers, lettuce, tomatoes, arugula and green beans, along with a baked quiche made with fresh eggs from our chickens. Beautiful, nutritious, and delicious beyond words; and there’s the promise of much more on the vines!

Is it a lot of work? You betcha! So why would a couple of old seniors choose to tackle such a task? Good question. There are several reasons.

•First, it’s good healthy work. As long as our health allows us to do it, the work itself, out in the fresh air, surrounded by animals and nature, provides a more healthy lifestyle than a La-Zy-Boy® recliner and TV soap operas. Others might choose a golf course and that’s OK if that’s your thing, but it’s not ours.

•Not only is the physical work healthy, but so is the fresh produce.

•There’s the emotional satisfaction of growing a good portion of your own food.

•There’s also the element of having the grandkids help when they come and visit to teach them that food is a gift from God’s green earth; not from Kroger or Publix!

•And finally, there’s a certain amount of security as well in being able to put food on the table from your own garden. It’s like a “victory” over nature!

And speaking of “victory” takes me back to what our parents and grandparents did during WWI and WWII to support the war effort and maintain our freedom. Because so much had to be prioritized to support our troops, including agricultural produce, the government had a very active “Victory Garden” campaign on the home front to encourage civilians to provide for their own food needs.

After Woodrow Wilson’s example of grazing sheep on the south lawn during World War I to avoid mowing the lawn, Eleanor Roosevelt planted a Victory Garden on the White House lawn in 1943. Eleanor Roosevelt’s garden served as a political message of the patriotic duty to garden, even though Eleanor did not tend to her own garden. What were the results? According to Wikipedia, “Fruit and vegetables harvested in these home and community plots was estimated to be 9,000,000–10,000,000 short tons (8,200,000–9,100,000 t) in 1944, an amount equal to all commercial production of fresh vegetables.”

The Bible says that the end times will be very tough indeed. Are we there yet? I don’t know, but I do know that we’re a day closer than yesterday and that 2020 has been like nothing we’ve ever seen before!

If you’re interested, 2020 would be a good time to make your plans. A little Google searching will point you in the right direction for your back yard Victory Garden. Good growing to you!

Thanks for reading All About Seniors … see you next week.

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