“The times, they are a-changin” sang Bob Dylan back in 1964. He was talking about the political and sociological makeup of the day. I say, “The soil, it is a-changin!” I was sitting back and reading a copy of one of the FoxFire books my dad had sent me which details pretty much everything you need to know about homesteading in great detail. I have 6 of the 12 books and my copies are from the mid to late 70’s. (Thanks Dad, I love them!) While the methods in the books are tried and true, I did notice some ‘advancements’ in the homesteading world, specifically gardening that was not mentioned. That got me excited and thinking about the growth (pun intended) in popularity that has prompted people all over the globe to take their food into their own hands. A movement is growing by, quite literally, being sown in the soil of this ‘civilized and modern’ world we live in. It is my strong belief that in the next 10 years, we will see some advancements not only in methodology but also a shift in the mentality and perspective of those most honored folk dubbed, ‘farmers.’
I believe that the change is already happening on a much larger scale than we know but what really set everything off was access to knowledge. Thank you, Internet! Now people can learn how to garden and find solutions about problems they may encounter with the click of a button. Before, you had to learn from your family and neighbors who had the knowledge passed down to them or simply employ the ‘trial and error’ methods. While that is still true and used to this day, the Internet also brought awareness of how our food was being handled by the larger food processing companies. People could learn exactly what that chemical is in the ingredients list of their food and realize that the same thing is used in a weed killing solution. They learn about what other countries are doing and not doing (or even allowing) to their food supply and practices. I can tell you from personal experience that what the United States allows the population to consume would boggle, disgust, and even appall other countries. I can also tell you from personal experience that a LOT of Americans are really ticked off and are fighting back but that is another story in itself. Back on topic!
The other factors that play a role in fueling my theory for a ‘Garden-volution’ include:
- Global need is higher than ever
- An increase in the use of abandoned city blocks in ‘food deserts’
- Cities are encouraging people to grow food and making ‘edible’ landscaping as part of their town
- Resistance against GMO’s and the FDA/USDA control over what is in our food
- Growing global movement to grow local foods
- Sharply rising costs of basic food staples
- A general ‘waking up’ of the populace who sees that big food companies cannot always be trusted to have their well-being in mind when it comes to preparation and general handling/packaging.
You have people like Ron Finley who is making a change in Southern California, people in small towns establishing farmer’s markets where there was never one before. People are wanting things whole, raw, and natural. “Non GMO, pesticide and chemical free, fully organic” seems to be the catch phrases most often tossed about and whether or not it is a fad or trend remains to be seen. Personally, I believe that with people seeking these foods out it is only inevitable it will continue to gain in popularity. There are two opposing factors I can see that may slow the ‘trend’ from becoming ‘normal’ and that is cost and government regulation (regardless of what country you live in).
Just how will this “Garden-volution” evolve? That depends greatly on too many variables but I believe that we will continue to see more large cities that have literally hundreds or thousands of acres of unused lots allowing people to start community gardens and establish urban agriculture. Americans in particular really hate being told they cannot do something so when you have the government or local authorities telling people they cannot grow carrots on land they own and pay taxes on, the rebel spirit kicks in. In some cases, changes were made at the local level which is the best outcome one could hope for. On a happier note, figuring out new and innovative ways to grow more food in less space without losing nutrients is the goal of many companies the world over. We can simply look to the popularity of the “Square foot” gardening method (with a huge thank you to Mr. Mel Bartholomew for it!) and see that there is room for growth, again pun intended, in the way we garden.
Again, it comes back to knowledge and the ability to take action quickly and that is why the next 10 years of gardening will smash the last 20. Leave a comment below and tell us what you think or head back to the Facebook page!