My last two posts have focused on some major issues namely declining oil production, rising energy prices and the soaring cost of food staples like wheat and soya. All pretty heavy stuff but, it has to be said, they are things that have been predicted for a long time. Generally speaking, very little has been done in response to these predictions and the really big question is what are we going to do about it all now that there is a reality to the warnings of troubled times ahead?

An article I received a couple of days ago covered the interesting topic of how people react to threats and perceived risks. The key, it seems, is that we need to feel we have some sense of control over the perceived threat. Without being given this we exhibit symptoms of what psychologists call ‘learned helplessness’ - convincing ourselves that we have no control over a situation even when we do.

An interesting learned helplessness experiment is this one: People were asked to perform a task in the presence of a loud radio. For some, the radio included a volume knob, while for others no volume knob was available. Researchers discovered that the group that could control the volume performed the task measurably better, even if they didn’t turn the volume down. That is, just the idea that they controlled the volume made them less distracted, less helpless and, in turn, more productive.

I was musing on all this when I read a piece in today’s Guardian (22 March 2008) about the big rise in vegetable growing in the UK and it really made me feel good. Apparently seed suppliers have seen a big shift in the ratio of sales of seeds for flowers as opposed to vegetables. Five years ago the split was 60:40 in favour of flowers but this year it’s likely to be 70:30 in favour of veggies. And the key reasons are concerns about food miles, rising costs and people wanting to take control back over what they eat.

This is great news. All over the country UK gardeners are reacting to big environmental issues. We are now growing as much veg at home as we did during the second world war and the National Lottery has been overwhelmed by applications for grants to develop local food groups wanting to grow their own produce (the Lottery has now earmarked £50m over the next five years to promote gardening in communities and schools).

It would appear we are overcoming our feeling of learned helplessness and beginning to assert some control here. When I heard Rob Hopkins talking a week or so back about the ideas behind Transition Towns he encouraged the development of the ‘food inch’ concept. Locally grown fruit and vegetables transported only a short distance from the back garden or allotment and eaten in season.

Sounds to me like this may be the start of a really positive gentle revolution. So when the Easter snow has melted why not dust off your spade and start digging!