By Kat Bryant

Grays Harbor News Group

Harborites are getting their hands dirtier than ever before as they ride out the pandemic at home.

That’s because they’re working in their gardens.

Barb Anderson, co-owner of Marshall’s Garden & Pet Supply in Aberdeen, has observed an uptick in enthusiasm for general home- and garden-based activities as people seek a diversion from the daily news. “A lot of people are just working on their lawns more, birdwatching, things like that,” she said.

But for many, there’s a more practical motive.

“There’s been a lot of interest in vegetable gardening because people are becoming concerned about food security,” said Anderson. “Seeds are at a premium, and we’re scrambling to find enough plants to meet demand.”

Many are cultivating gardens for the first time. Adam Zeigler, co-owner of Ambrosia Technology, saw that trend and acted on it by organizing a giveaway of starter kits for beginners.

On March 26, nearly 250 families in Raymond and Aberdeen received packages containing a quart of Sea-Crop plant nutrient donated by Ambrosia; a gallon of fish fertilizer from Pacific Gro; and a bag of assorted fruit, vegetable and flower seeds from the Dennis Co.’s Raymond store.

“The current stay-at-home order and layoffs will create a lot of urgency to return to home gardening and disaster preparation,” said Dennis Co. store manager Doug McDonald, who donated over 1,000 seed packets for the effort.

Zeigler announced the giveaway in advance through Facebook, then passed out the kits that weekend in Raymond and Aberdeen with help from some volunteers.

The response was staggering.

“It’s always really hard to anticipate what the real demand will be with something online, because it takes way more effort to show up than it does to hit the ‘like’ button; so I was actually blown away by the turnout,” said Zeigler. “We ended up having to restock before heading north to Aberdeen, because our expected volume for both events was hit within the first hour and a half in Raymond alone.”

Folks ranging from young families to retirees seized the opportunity, he said.

“The gratitude from everyone was palpable, and many people made comments about how much they were looking forward to gardening with their kids this year,” said Zeigler.

Zeigler said several people who picked up the startup packages drew parallels to the victory gardens that were planted in yards nationwide during World War II, when food supplies were often sparse. Neighbors would grow different foods and share their crops with one another.

“In a trying time, you plant a vegetable garden, a victory garden, and it’s a kind of assurance in an unsure time,” said Karen Tully of Raymond, who recalls her grandmother tended one during the war. “It’s not a parallel to WWII; it’s more, I think, an expression of hope for the future — of security in the knowledge that working a plot of land and planting seeds and watching them grow will always work to bring food and stability in the coming year.”

Tully used one of the free kits to start a backyard garden with her son and daughter last weekend.

“I think seeing and experiencing how food is actually grown will be a good ongoing lesson, rather than thinking it just comes in a package from the store,” she said. “I also hope my daughter will be more willing to eat a vegetable or two if she has a hand in growing them!”