In the midst of what has otherwise been a heavy, unrelenting year, many Midwesterners have found solace in the dirt.
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So-called “COVID gardens” have popped up all over the country since the beginning of the pandemic with more people working from home and becoming self-reliant in the wake of food supply disruptions.
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“I can tell you right now, if the pandemic wouldn’t have happened, the garden would not be as big as it is now, because I wouldn’t have had enough time to plant that stuff and take care of it,” says Robert Jones, an Illinois resident who got serious about gardening this year.
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COVID gardens harken back to “victory gardens” from the World War II era, when governments encouraged people to plant gardens to supplement the food supply and boost morale.
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Andrea Bouck also lives in Illinois and says gardening has helped take her mind off of the pandemic.
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“If there’s any silver linings that you can draw from a national and worldwide tragedy, I think that one is what it is for me,” she says.
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“If there’s any silver linings that you can draw from a national and worldwide tragedy, I think that one is what it is for me,” she says.
Follow Dana on Twitter: @DanaHCronin
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