Designing Complete Nutrition Gardens and Vitamin Gardens
For areas with adequate land near dwellings for Complete Nutrition Gardens:
Complete nutrition gardens(CNG) provide all the calories and nutrition that a person needs while increasing soil fertility and minimizing water use. If each country designs and tests CNG for the various regions of their country and the preferred foods of their area, families can be provided with a plan that will make it possible for them to meet their nutritional needs. Initial research has focused on annual food plants, minimizing garden space, and the same diet year round in order to get the gardens going as quickly as possible. This is a good place to start since it improves local nutrition as quickly as possible. For inspiration see research by Albie Miles:
http://www.cityfarmer.org/albie.html
To increase the diversity and resiliency of the food system, it would be beneficial to use the same framework and add the following components to the CNG system:
CNG plans for each growing season in the region
Permaculture and Edible Landscaping
A graduated plan that allows people to steadily add perennial food plants each year until they have all they need while still maintaining space and light for the annual food plants
Edible Landscaping of public places
Easy(hens for eggs) and more challenging livestock(goats and cows for milk, cheese)
Double Insulated unheated greenhouses and winter harvest techniques
Beekeeping
Natural and Low Tech food storage and preservation techniques
CNGs that incorporate the above techniques to spread the gardening, harvesting, and food preservation workload more evenly through the year
For areas with small plots of land around dwellings, allotments/community garden plots, patio or balcony container gardening, roof top gardening
Where there is a substantial portion of land but not enough for a CNG for each family member, families could be encouraged to grow a percentage of the CNG that fits on their land.
Where people have very small gardening spaces, the research and garden designs could focus on crops that provide nutrition which complements the local grain and legumes diet. Look for foods that provide flavor and nutrition, are very productive, are diverse in color, can be preserved easily with low tech methods such as drying, or which need to be consumed shortly after harvest. Items such as garlic, sweet or hot peppers, parsley, cilantro, tomatoes, and leafy greens could be key ones with which to begin. Where people are endangered by malnutrition, the quickest way to change their lives is through the planting of the colorful small round radishes. The radishes and their leaves can be eaten beginning three weeks after planting.
If people are using containers, raised beds, or Salad Tables, ensure that they are using food safe containers and untreated/nontoxic wood.
To promote research by both the public and professional agriculturalists, consider having a contest to see what people can produce in a small Vitamin Garden such as 4 foot by 25 foot (100 square foot) or a 10 square meter(1.2m x 8.34m) plot. To encourage accurate data collection, enter participants into the contest based on reporting data at regular intervals rather than on total yield. For inspiration see Rosalind Creasy’s 100 square foot garden which produced over 235 pounds of produce from one summer planting season. By including spring and fall plantings, the gardener could harvest triple the amount or more.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/Organic-Gardening/Square-Foot-Gardening-Food.aspx
To reduce the amount of land used for growing cooking fuels, and so that more land is available for growing food in any size plots, promote the duel use of solar cooking and fuel efficient stoves.
Sharon Gordon