Growing Food and Kids

There’s so much to love about Walt Disney World. We just returned from a week there with our boys, and while I expected the rides, the games, the food, and the souvenirs, I didn’t expect the gardens. That’s right, even Mickey and Minnie have a vegetable garden.

Here’s a look at some of Minnie’s gardening supplies and her lovely rose garden.

But the cartoon characters aren’t the only ones gardening down in Orlando. Disney, which seems to do everything well, is also into  sustainable agriculture. At Epcot, the amazing work of Disney’s own Sustainable Agriculture and Research Center is on display. At “The Land,” we took a boat ride through the Disney greenhouses where some of this research is at work.

There, plants are grown in the air, in the sand, and in motion through the use of conveyor belts. Tomato plants are trained to grow on trees, and root vegetables are trained to grow in water. Plants are grown sustainably in all types of containers and environments. The whole place is full of experiments that could make a huge difference for the state of agriculture around the world, potentially helping to solve hunger problems in agriculturally poor areas.

It’s almost enough to make you feel like you’re doing something charitable by visiting Disney World. And because the organic fruits and vegetables grown at Epcot are served in restaurants throughout the parks, we definitely felt good about eating the yummy food (especially when dining with Mickey, Donald, Goofy and the rest of the gang!).