How I’m Fighting Tariffs And The Cost Of Groceries With My Garden
(Photo: Getty Images)
As a child, I loved poking around my grandmother’s garden. There were delights crammed into every row, from fiery radishes to tart green gooseberries which made my mouth pucker. Rose hips found their way into homemade vinegar, black currants were churned into jam, and raw peas were eaten by the fistful. (At least, they were by me!)
Looking back, I now appreciate that her garden wasn’t just a cook’s dream. It was a necessity. She grew up relying on her modest farm and garden to produce just about everything she might need, from beans to eggs. It’s her determined spirit I think of as I dig in the soil and nurture my own seedlings. This year, I’m not just gardening. I’m tariff gardening.
Tariff gardens, a term I didn’t coin but that seems to be catching on, take their inspiration from people like my grandmother and from the victory gardens that dominated Canadian households in World War I and World War II. Victory gardens were intended to reduce pressure on the food supply and improve morale. Urged to plant “A vegetable garden for every home,” Canadians heeded the call. Esteemed author Lucy Maud Montgomery even wove them into her Great War-era novel, Rilla of Ingleside, writing, “Susan was very sorrowful when she saw the beautiful old lawn of Ingleside ploughed up that spring and planted with potatoes. Yet she made no protest, even when her beloved peony bed was sacrificed.”
While I lack my grandmother’s extensive homesteading skills, I’m no gardening slouch. In the past, I’ve tackled everything from cantaloupe to soybeans. This year, however, I’m paying attention to planting veggies that will keep well and go the distance. Grocery behemoth Loblaws estimates that tariffs will raise the price of 6,000 in-store items, half of which are food. The Bank of Canada reports that the nation’s post-pandemic inflation surge is the highest in 30 years. That's a powerful motivation to shop local, source local, and even grow local. With that in mind carrots, parsnips, beans, potatoes, tomatoes and my beloved peas are getting extra rows this year. I’m putting less effort into novelties and more into staples that I can easily freeze, preserve, or store for later use.
I’m under no illusions that my extra cabbages will save Canada from economic strain. However, I take pride in knowing that a year’s worth of healthy, hearty homemade tomato sauce is stashed in my freezer, and it’s comforting to know that I won’t have to think twice about inflation hitting salsa, chutneys, and jams.
I’m not the only one thinking this way. Misty Pratt, an Ottawa-based author, is no stranger to gardening. “I have been gardening for 15 years, since we moved into a house with a sizeable backyard,” she says, adding: “We started off with two raised beds and now have four, plus we grow a lot in pots…I always say, “If I can eat it, I’ll try growing it!” In recent years, she’s cut back on her gardening efforts due to the work involved but now, she says: “I’ve decided to ‘go big’ again this year and do as many vegetables as possible. So far I have peas, beans, carrots, kale, radishes, arugula, and beets planted. Soon I’ll be putting tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers into the ground.”
In Gatineau, instructional designer Allie George raises chickens. While the task might sound daunting, George has found it easier than many other types of gardening projects. “Chickens don’t take much time at all! If you’re a little bit handy, you can set up for next to nothing and then they just... exist!” she says. “We’re lucky that we have the space for them to be free-range, so it wasn’t a major commitment in that sense either.” She describes her chickens as adorable, fun to watch, and industrious little workers who can clear a 40-square-foot patch of grass and weeds in just three days. Now, her family no longer has to buy eggs at the store and even has enough to share with others.
While Pratt, George, and I have been tackling home gardens for years, you don’t need experience, money, or even much in the way of space to start your own tariff garden. Gayla Trail’s You Grow Girl is a fantastic book that offers easy to follow information for absolute beginners as well as more challenging projects for those with a few harvests under their belt. Her work advocates for gardening in all kinds of spaces (like window sills and fire escapes) and taking pride in small-scale accomplishments. That lone cherry tomato plant will enhance snacks and salads all summer long!
No matter what path you follow, remember that the original victory gardens weren’t just about growing food. They were also about well-being. I think the tariff gardens should be seen through the same lens. The joy of learning new skills, connecting with nature, and doing something constructive in uncertain times is just as valuable to me as a basket filled with peppers, broccoli, and beets.
Tariff Garden Tips
- Don’t bother buying perennials. A neighbour will usually be more than happy to divide up their mint, chives, and rhubarb so you can have plants of your own.
- Don’t overlook the produce that is languishing in your kitchen. Lots of veggies can regrow from scraps. Old potatoes with gnarly “eyes” can be chopped up, stuck in the ground or a large bucket, and new potatoes will grow.
- Yard sales are the perfect place to find gardening tools, big and small, for just pennies on the dollar.
- Mix it up and sow seeds which offer quick results (like radishes, which usually come into fruition within a month) and those that play the long game (like parsnips, which many gardeners keep in the ground over winter).
- Don’t get too hung up on gardening “rules.” Who cares if cucumbers *should* be planted two feet apart? You learn by experimenting.
- Connect with experienced gardeners for knowledge and motivation. Libraries and community centres often host workshops and seed swaps.
- Don’t be discouraged if something doesn’t work out. My grandmother once said that gardeners are the ultimate gamblers! Everyone, regardless of experience, has wins and losses.
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Vanessa Chiasson is a freelance writer specializing in travel and human interest narratives, with bylines in Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, Reader’s Digest, and more.
