<P> Victory gardens, also called war gardens or food gardens for defense, were vegetable, fruit, and herb gardens planted at private residences and public parks in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and Germany during World War I and World War II . George Washington Carver wrote an agricultural tract and promoted the idea of what he called a "Victory Garden". They were used along with Rationing Stamps and Cards to reduce pressure on the public food supply . Besides indirectly aiding the war effort, these gardens were also considered a civil "morale booster" in that gardeners could feel empowered by their contribution of labor and rewarded by the produce grown . This made victory gardens a part of daily life on the home front . </P> <P> Victory Gardens became popular in Canada in 1917 . Under the Ministry of Agriculture's campaign, "A Vegetable Garden for Every Home", residents of cities, towns and villages utilized backyard spaces to plant vegetables for personal use and war effort . In the city of Toronto, ladies organizations brought expert gardeners into the schools to get school children and their families interested in gardening . In addition to gardening, home owners were encouraged to keep hens in their yards for the purpose of collecting eggs . The result was large production of potatoes, beets, cabbage and other useful vegetables . </P>

Gardens planted to produce more food for the war effort