19) How a Garden can Solve the Global Oil, Food and Sanity Crisis. Part 2.

 The Garden Solution

By Sindy Wakeham

How CAN a Garden Solve the Problems of the World?

Obviously, 1 garden cannot solve world hunger, war or famine. It can't prevent another Great Deppression, but it CAN save YOUR world and your family. 

Geoff Lawton said "You can solve the problems of the world in a garden". He offers his own understanding and experience to back that up. I offer a few ofmy own here. 

Have you recently seen or heard news, social media and mainstream media pumping out the doom and gloom nationally and globally, the insane behaviours of individuals, the outrageous and frightening secrets of celebreties and thought, "We've stepped into an ulternate reality. This cannot be happening".

Have you felt panicked, paranoid or urged to suddenly learn how to prepare and stockpile? STOP! No, don't stop, just slow down. Take a time out...literally. Step away from the screens. Put the phone down. Sit, for a moment. Preferably in an outdoor space in nature or a garden. Take your shoes off and stick your feet in the dirt. Close your eyes and breathe. 

I'm quite serious! Try it. This isn't world-like crazy. This is a better grounding just incase you're about to blow your top.

If you can't get to a garden or other outdoor space, choose a quiet room with a comfy chair and a good warm foot bath and nature sounds or light classical music in the background...no don't watch it. I said not to watch a screen. Put it out of reach and resist the urge to scroll.

Now, lets start with how a Garden Alters Perception.

Nature is apart from the hustle and bustle by people design or rather those that need people to be productive for profits. Nature is too distracting from the machine that demands uninterrupted focus on feeding it.  

Nature CAN however be found around us if we look and plan it to be. The best and quickest place to access it is in our own spaces. Gardens present possibilities and even if you don't own your home, freedom. It offers space to connect with loved ones away from screens and negative influences. Either just for sitting and connecting, playing or working together on a unified goal in the space.

Gardens give us lessons for life and relationships. They give us tools and opportunities to cope and see things differently.  This blog is about physical and mental solutions to home scaled world problems.

Solving Hunger.

It depends on what you are hungry for. Food, adventure, sanity. All are addressed in a garden where nature is nurtured. In a garden you find elements to feed body, mind and spirit. 

You can grow plants that are not only edible but something you'd actually enjoy. Learn to cook, preserve and store what you grow or someone gives you from their bounty. Learn what's seasonal and appropriate for your site and cercumstance. 

Here in the UK, you CAN have something in the ground and harvestable all year around especially if you have cover protection like a windowsill, cold frame, conservatory, polytunnel/pollycrub or a greenhouse. 

Do you know anyone who gardens and regularly brings you offerings of their surplus? You could do the same. Careful plannig and tending often yields way more than you can eat, process and store. Share it around and you will be solving hunger for someone. 

Ending Wars

You can't end real global or national wars in your garden but you CAN end personal wars. As mentioned in the first point, gardens are good places to sit, to talk, to work and grow closer to others, yourself and God. Arguments can be stopped (some begun too, I have to say). 

I have in the past required my children (adults now) to work on a task together until they stopped being angry at eachother or argueing. I'm sure the garden can do the same. In hindsight, I'm not sure that was a good parenting tactic but we all survived. There are always plenty chores needing just such an angry hand to get done. 

Please don't take this as medically qualified advice. You know yourself and family. Keep sharp objects or possible weapons out of reach! Nothing wrong with getting into a water or mud fight. It often ends in laughter. 😁

Disclaimer here! I'm no therapist or medical professional. If family wars or situations need professional advice or help, please get it. 

How about ending instead of starting neighbour disagreements. Some 'wars' begin in the garden but they can often also end in a garden...NO, not in a grave! 

Altimately, even a garden can be a place of war. It is in nature as pests and predators battle for resources and territory. WE however can choose how to use the natural spaces we are in or have.  We DO have a degree of freedom to act in these home spaces where outside of the home and garden (in the world), things can be out of our sphere of influence.

How About Poverty?

How can a garden solve poverty? Even if you own your property you may not have rights to any minerals or resources you find in the ground beneath it. Just saying. That's not what I'm talking about. 

You could use your garden space as mentioned before to share surplus by growing extra and selling plants. How about growing specialist foods like mushrooms in a container in your garden to sell to restaurants?  Could you put an office or studio in your garden to create or generate an income? (Do check with landlords and local authorities for contractual or legal planning requirements)

Unless you can get planning for a specific industrial grade kitchen in the garden to make and sell food or cosmetic products, that's also NOT one I'm aiming for here. 

No, I'm adding another perspective mindset thing here. You can have a really modest income financially but if you  have a food storeage cupboard with at least 3 months emergency supply and a garden you can consider yourself wealthy. 

If you have outside space to grow, play, rest, relax or work in, connect with nature and people, are you not truly rich? 

I suggest a garden truly offers solutions to global problems on an individual home scale. Bible and other scriptures and stories frequently use gardens to teach and convey mesages through garden imagery and symbols. They are powerful. 

Powerful enough to feed both body and soul. Powerful enough to calm storms, and change the world from the inside out in the mind of the one. Gardens can inspire faith and hope and yes, sanity. They can be refuges and teaching places.

What other worldly problem solutions can YOU find in a garden? I'd love to hear your thoughts.