VACANT CITY LOT CULTIVATION
In this book, necessarily, we have to take much upon the reports of
others, checking them by our own judgment and experience. The
startling accounts of what has been done and is being done on plots
of about a quarter acre to each family, however, can be easily
re-verified by any one who will go or write to Philadelphia, or
examine any present experiment or model gardens. These show what can
be done even by unskilled labor, with hardly any capital, on small
plots where the soil was poor, but which are well situated.
The directors say: "The first Vacant Lot Cultivation Associations
were organized when relief agencies were vainly striving to provide
adequate assistance for the host of unemployed. The cultivation of
vacant city lots by the unemployed had already been tried
successfully in other cities. The first year we provided gardens,
seeds, tools, and instruction only, for about one hundred families
on twenty-seven acres of ground. At a total cost to contributors of
about $1800, our gardeners produced $46,000 worth of crops."
The applicant is allowed a garden on the sole condition that he
cultivate it well through the season, and that he do not trespass
upon his neighbors. He must respect their right to what their labor
produces. A failure to observe these rules forfeits his privilege.
During twenty years, more than eight thousand families have been
assisted, many old people who could no longer keep up the rapid pace
of our industrial life, cripples whose physical condition held them
back in the race for work, persons who on account of sickness or
other misfortunes have been thrown out of the competition in modern
business, and unfortunate beings who, though clear in mind and
strong in muscle, have been forced to the ranks of the
unemployed--these have all had an opportunity opened to them:
opportunity to enjoy all of the fruits from nature's great
storehouse which their own labor and skill might secure.
The war has forced France, Italy, and England similarly to utilize
natural opportunities for subsistence in their enormous tracts of
unproductive lands. In Mexico all proprietors will be required to
designate what they propose to cultivate and the remainder will
either be allotted temporarily for agricultural purposes to those
desiring them or it will be cultivated under government management.
There is no remedy like that for poverty.
The first man who applied for a vacant lot garden came to the
Philadelphia office after the announcement in the papers, so weak
and emaciated that the doctor was afraid the poor fellow would be
unable to get out of his office without assistance. He was a widower
with three girls and a boy, the oldest girl about seventeen.
He received a garden which contained only about one fifth of an
acre. Later he observed that a part of another little farm was left
untouched on account of being very rough, full of holes, and covered
with stone and bricks. Part of this farm was below the street grade
and subject to overflow, but it was larger than the others--nine
tenths of an acre. He offered to exchange, saying he did not mind
the extra work.
His offer was accepted. In a few days the stones and bricks had been
thrown into the holes and covered with dirt. The low places had been
filled in. It was a work in which the whole family joined. A small
house was rented in the immediate neighborhood in lieu of their one
room near the foul alleys of the city slum.
Every inch of the soil was utilized. A rosy hue took the place of
the pale, wan cheek of a few months before. And now the harvest has
come, and the winter's store can be enumerated. Thirty bushels of
potatoes, four bushels of turnips, one bushel of carrots, thirty
gallons of sauerkraut, fifteen gallons of catsup, five gallons of
pickled beans, one hundred quarts of canned tomatoes, fifty quarts
of canned corn, twenty quarts of beans, one thousand or more fine
celery stalks, and many other things. Warm clothing has replaced the
badly worn garments of nine months ago. A few pieces of furniture
have been added. The boy has been provided with a small capital for
his little business. ("Vacant Lot Cultivation," Reprint from N. Y.
_Charities Review._) Better labor would of course get even better
results.
The personal benefits that have come to a few individual cases, are
largely the same that all the gardeners enjoyed in New York and
elsewhere.
An old colored woman--a grandmother--who had just been released from
one of the hospitals where she had been treated for a long time for
pleurisy, asked for a garden. It was more than a mile to the nearest
plot, but she was quite willing to go even that distance if she
could get a garden. At first, owing to her weakened condition, she
was forced to work slowly and for short periods only, but a little
assistance enabled her to get a garden started. The work proceeded
so well that more land was added to her small holding, and most of
her waking hours were now spent either in or near the garden,
working among the tender plants or watching them grow. Before the
season was half spent she had developed one of the best gardens in
the whole plot. Her surplus produce became so large that she had to
devote most of her time to gathering and selling it. Finally she
rented a small shed on a prominent street and passers-by often
stopped, and regular customers came to buy the freshly gathered
produce, the supply being not only abundant, but of great variety.
One of the best gardens, from the standpoint of value of produce as
well as for the varieties of products it contained and the artistic
arrangement, was worked by a man who had but one arm. Many other
successful and profitable gardens were cultivated by men and women
of an age when we generally expect them to depend entirely upon
others for support.
Many incidents were found where such habits as drinking and loafing
around saloons and clubs and abusing the family have been checked on
account of the gardener's time and attention being occupied in the
little farm.
One of the workers came for work in a condition of mind and body
which rendered his services almost worthless. He was scarcely able
to carry on his work for a minute beyond what he was shown. Each new
move had to be explained constantly, and even then he was often
found doing the work in the wrong way only a few minutes afterwards.
Before long, however, he began to see that his place had its
responsibilities and that the work of Mother Nature depended on his
doing his part and doing it well. By the time the crops were ready
to gather and market he came to realize that the cost of production
must come under the amount received from the sale of the produce so
as to prevent loss. By the end of the season he had learned so to
utilize his time and to organize his work and execute our plans that
we were able to recommend him to a farmer who was looking for a
handy man about the place.
In twenty years our Associations have made demonstrations of the
following facts, each demonstration proving more clearly than the
former ones:
First. That many people out of employment must have help of some
kind.
Second. That a great majority of them prefer self-help, and many
will take no other. Nearly all are able and willing to improve any
opportunities open to them.
Third. That to open opportunities to them does not pauperize or
degrade, but has the opposite effect of elevating and ennobling. It
quickly establishes self-respect and self-confidence. The best and
most effective way of helping people in need is to open a way
whereby they may help themselves. The most effective charity is
opportunity accompanied with kindly advice and a personal interest
in those less fortunate than ourselves.
Fourth. That the offering of gardens to the unemployed with proper
supervision and some assistance by providing seeds, fertilizers, and
plowing accompanied with instruction, is the cheapest and easiest
way of opening opportunities yet devised.
Fifth. That it possesses many advantages in addition to providing
profitable employment; among others, that the worker must come out
into the open air and sunshine; must exercise, and put forth
exertion,--all of which are conducive to health, and, most important
of all, he knows that all he raises is to be his own. This is the
greatest incentive to industry.
The Vacant Lot Cultivation system is a school wherein gardeners are
taught a trade (to most of them a new trade), farming, which offers
employment for more people than all the other trades and professions
combined: a trade susceptible of wide diversification and offering
many fields for specializing. But little capital is required; any
other field would require large outlay. Its greatest advantage,
however, is that the idle men and the idle land are already close to
each other--the men can reach their gardens without changing their
domiciles or being separated from their families.
It was not until after several years that the full effect of the
work was realized. A few gardeners each year from the beginning
have, after one or two years' experience, taken small farms or plots
of land to cultivate on their own account, or have sought employment
on farms near the city; but the number is quite small compared to
the whole number helped. Now more than ten per cent of those that
had gardens previously have for the last two years been working on
their own account. Out of nearly eight hundred gardeners, more than
eighty-five either rented or secured the loan of gardens that season
and cultivated them wholly at their own expense, and many others
would have done so had suitable land been available. The number of
gardens forfeited on account of poor cultivation or trespassing was
only two out of 800 plots given out.
The first important advance was early in the spring of 1904, when it
became known that a large tract of land that had been in gardens for
several years would be withdrawn from use. A number of the gardeners
came together to talk over the situation. One proposed that they
form a club to lease a tract of land and divide it up among
themselves. The plan was readily agreed to, and a nine-acre tract on
Lansdowne Avenue was rented at $15 per acre per annum. Some sixteen
families became interested' and Mr. D. F. Rowe, who had been one of
the most successful gardeners, became manager They had the land
thoroughly fertilized and plowed, and then subdivided. Some took
separate allotments, as under the Vacant Lot Association's plan, and
others worked for the manager at an agreed rate of wages per hour.
The whole nine acres were thoroughly well cultivated, and a
magnificent crop harvested.
As soon as there was produce for sale, a market was established on
the ground and a regular delivery system organized which later
attracted much attention. It was carried on by the children, of nine
to twelve years of age, from the various families. Each child was
provided with a pushcart. There were many and various styles, made
from little express wagons, baby coaches, and produce boxes.
The children built up their own routes, and went regularly to their
customers for orders. They made up the orders, loaded them into
their little pushcarts, charged themselves up with the separate
amounts in a small book, and at the end of each day's sales each
child settled with the manager and was paid his commission (twenty
per cent of the receipts) in cash. These little salesmen and
salesgirls often took home four to five dollars per week and yet
never worked more than three to five hours per day. The work was
done under such circumstances that to them it was not work but play.
You can get the full report from the Philadelphia "Vacant Lot
Cultivation Associations." It's interesting.
"The greatest value that our little garden has brought us," said a
French woman, mother of a goodly number of rather small children,
"has not been in the fine vegetables it has yielded all summer, or
the good times that I and the children have had in the open air, but
in the glasses of beer and absinthe that my husband hasn't taken."
"Quite right, mother, quite right," came from a man near by. "The
world can never know the evil we men don't do while we are busy in
our little gardens."
Further, pillage of crops, which was always urged as an objection to
raising fruits or truck on open grounds, has proved to be a baseless
fear. Where any of the gardeners are allowed to camp or put up
shacks on the patches, theft does not occur and various
superintendents repeat that "the few and trivial cases of stealing
from vacant lot plots or school gardens were almost all at the
places that were fenced."
Perhaps our locks and bolts tend to suggest breaking in.
The Garden Primer issued by the New York City Food Supply Committee
gives simple but incomplete directions for planting and tending a
vegetable garden. For those who need that sort of thing, these are
just the sort of thing they need. They will be useful if you do not
follow them. The Primer tells you how to get some kind of parsnips,
chard, spinach, common onions, radishes, cabbage, lettuce, beets,
tomatoes, beans, turnips, peas, peppers, egg plants, cucumbers,
corn, and potatoes.
Don't grow these things, unless it be for your own immediate use.
Every one grows them and ripens them all at the same time. In many
places these are given away or thrown away this year. Grow anything
that every one wants and has not got, like okra, small fruits, etc.;
you can get a much better return in cash or in trade than by
spending your time "like other folks" who do not think.
So I refer to these directions for their instruction, and for your
warning However, they give the following admirable injunctions.
"Help Your Country and Yourself by Raising Your Own Vegetables."
As we will likely have to send to Europe in coming years as much or
even more food than we did last year, there is only one way to avoid
a shortage among our own people, that is by raising a great deal
more than usual. To do this we must plant every bit of available
land. (Of course, we can't; the owners won't let us. Ed.)
If you have a back yard, you can do your part and help the world and
yourself by raising some of the food you eat. The more you raise the
less you will have to buy, and the more there will be left for some
of your fellow countrymen who have not an inch of ground on which to
raise anything.
If there is a vacant lot in your neighborhood, see if you cannot get
the use of it for yourself and your neighbors, and raise your own
vegetables. An hour a day spent in this way will not only increase
wealth and help your family, but will help you personally by adding
to your strength and well-being and making you appreciate the Eden
joy of gardening. An hour in the open air is worth more than a dozen
expensive prescriptions by an expensive doctor.
The only tools necessary for a small garden are a spade or spading
fork, a hoe, a rake, and a line or piece of cord.
First of all, clear the ground of all rubbish, sticks, stones,
bottles, etc. (especially whisky bottles).
Choose the sunniest spot in the yard for your garden.
Dig up the soil to a depth of 6 to 10 inches, using a spade or
spading fork. (Deeper for parsnips and some other roots. Ed.) Break
up all the lumps with the spade or fork.
If you live in a section where your neighbors have gardens, you
might club together to hire a teamster for a day to do the plowing
and harrowing for you all, thus saving a large amount of labor.
After your garden has been well dug, it must be fertilized before
any planting is done. In order to produce large and well-grown crops
it is often necessary to fertilize before each planting. Very good
prepared fertilizers can be bought at seed stores, but horse or cow
manure is much better, as it lightens the soil in addition to
supplying plant food. Use street sweepings if you can get them.
The manure should be well dug into the ground, at least to the full
depth of the top soil. The ground should then be thoroughly raked,
as seeds must be sown in soil which has been finely powdered.
Lay out the garden, keeping the rows straight with a line. Straight
rows are practically a necessity, not only for easier culture but
for economy in space.
After you have marked all of your rows, the next step is opening the
furrow. (A furrow is a shallow trench.) That is done with the hoe.
(Best and quickest with a wheel hoe. Ed.) After the furrow is
opened, it is necessary that the seed be sown and immediately
covered before the soil has dried In covering the seeds the soil
must be firmly pressed down with the foot. This is important.
In buying seed it is best to go to some well-established seed house,
or, if that can't be done, to order by mail rather than to take
needless chances. With most kinds of seeds a package is sufficient
for a twenty-foot row.
Begin to break up the hard surface of the soil between the plants
soon after they appear, using a hand cultivator or hoe, and keep it
loose throughout the season. This kills weeds; it lets in air to the
plant roots and keeps the moisture in the ground.
By constantly stirring the top soil after your plants appear, the
necessity of watering can be largely avoided except in very dry
weather. An occasional soaking of the soil is better than frequent
sprinkling. Water your garden either very early in the morning or
after sundown. It is better not to water when the sun is shining
hot.
The planting scheme can be altered to suit your individual taste.
For instance, peas and cabbage are included because almost everybody
likes to have them fresh from their garden; but they occupy more
space in proportion to their value than beets and carrots. Therefore
a small garden could be made more profitable by omitting them
altogether, or cutting them down in amount and increasing the amount
of carrots, beets, and turnips planted; or any of the vegetables
mentioned which may not be in favor with the family can be left out.
The kind of season we have would change the date of planting. In
raising vegetables, as in everything else, one should use one's
common (or garden variety of) sense. A good rule is to wait until
the ground has warmed up a bit. Never try to work in soil wet enough
to be sticky, or muddy; wait until it dries enough to crumble
readily.
Gardening is not a rule of thumb business. Each gardener must bring
his plants up in his own way in the light of his own experience and
in accordance with the conditions of his own garden. A garden lover
who has a bit of land will speedily learn if his eyes and his mind,
as well as his hands, are always busy, no matter how meager his
knowledge at the beginning.
There is plenty of land--if you can only get it.
Says Carl Vrooman, Assistant Secretary of Agriculture, in regard to
the food problem:
"Millions of acres of farm land are being held out of use and other
millions of acres are being cultivated on a wasteful and inefficient
basis. Land values have risen at an unprecedented rate. They are
based not upon what the farm will earn at the present time, but on
an expectancy of what it will be worth in the future. The farmer's
son or the tenant farmer, with little or no capital, cannot hope to
acquire possession of a farm w hen the price of land is SO high that
his earnings would not pay the interest on the investment. The
result is that land remains idle or in the hands of tenants, and
thousands of farmers' boys desert the country for the city.
". . . . What we need, and need badly, is a program of taxation
which, without throwing additional burdens on the bona fide farmer,
will place land now idle within the reach of men of limited means
who possess the ambition and the ability to cultivate it."
You can see that poor ignorant people, women, boys, cripples, old
men, often on less than 100 X 150 feet each, not only in
Philadelphia, but as war gardeners in New York, and most other
towns, have been able to support themselves by their work on the
land. You can do much better.
To be sure, they had valuable land and often seeds free, but for
such little pieces of land these are small items, and many of them
had no certainty of having the land even for a second year,
consequently they could not have hotbeds or any permanent
improvement. You can make all these things.
Then what can you do? Only remember they had intelligent instruction
and did the work themselves, and got the whole product; often the
children helped--they thought it fun. It does not pay to farm a
small piece of land where all the workers have to be hired. Nor does
it pay if one calculates merely to stick in seeds with one hand and
pull out profits with the other.