The 1942 Victory Garden Handbook arrived yesterday, 2020 style, in a Newsletter from Green Prophet and as a pdf of a 1947 'borrowed' library book. Whatever year we are in and whatever tech we might have, it's arrival is timely, as pretty much the whole book could be rewritten for today's situation. Considering that most seed sellers are out of seeds, there are plenty of people who might need this book, so please share!
You probably can't read this without going to the pdf, but apart from not being able to spell don't, the tips are actually very practical!
If you are part of the reason that there are no seeds or seedlings to be had anywhere, then this handbook was made for the average Jo in 1942 (presumably Joanne in this case). It is highly likely that the average Joanne was way more handy than most of us and with a bit more land, but it has many helpful suggestions, including a section on Preserving and Canning in case you were a panic buyer of produce and now need something to do with it all. Canned, stored, dried, frozen and pickled.
Clearly way ahead of its time, the booklet advises that if you get 'whacking fine' results in your garden, you should call the local paper and get a photo of the gardener with a large bunch of beets or tomatoes in his (!) hands. Of course, we have no real community newspapers left, but we do have YouTube, Tictoc, Insta and Facebook etc.
The 1942 Victory Garden Handbook is a cracking good read full of excellent tips. It drops you right inside the war years and you can positively feel the enthusiasm for community and country. As someone who really despises waste, it's focus on not wasting anything - time, labor, thought, seeds - is truly energising, even if you never planted a thing. The 1942 Victory Garden Handbook is free, it's fun and if you are planning on giving a garden a go while in lockdown, it's probably pretty useful!