Comforting Crops: How WCK Fosters Growth in Ukrainian Soil
Gardens have long been a part of Ukrainian tradition, providing food, structure, and a connection to home. Even as the war continues, families across the country are still planting.
This spring, WCK distributed 50,000 seed kits to households in nine regions. Each kit contains familiar vegetables and herbs like zucchini, cabbage, tomato, beetroot, dill, and parsley to support practical, well-rounded gardens.
From individual backyard plots to shared community greenhouses, these gardens are helping people prepare for the season ahead.
In 2022, Ludmyla’s home near Chernihiv was destroyed by an airstrike. She and her husband have spent the last three years rebuilding it themselves.
Each spring, Ludmyla receives seeds from WCK and plants them with the help of her grandsons, Tymofii and Hlib. This season, the boys run out each morning to check on the plants and pick vegetables straight from the vine.
“They’re especially excited for the peas,” she said. “That’s their favorite.”
Ludmyla and her grandsons look forward to gardening every year
WCK distributed seed kits to households in nine regions this spring—from Kharkiv and Sumy in the north to Kherson and Mykolaiv in the south. Each kit includes crops well-suited for local conditions and diets, helping families grow familiar foods that they know how to preserve like carrots, beets, and cabbage.
In the village of Mykhailivka, a shelter for displaced families has turned part of its yard into a communal garden. Today, the shelter houses 39 people who care for a shared greenhouse.
In many homes and shelters, people are planting with reused materials—buckets, plastic bottles, and salvaged containers used to foster plants. Residents here start seedlings in reused plastic bottles and tend to cabbage and tomato plants together.
In Bezvodne village, Olha helps coordinate aid and support for her neighbors through gardening. She planted spinach, carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes, and more in her yard with the seeds she received from WCK.
“I love this land,” she said. “Here, if you plant something, it will grow.”
In combination with the laying hens she received from WCK, which now provide fresh eggs and a daily routine that helps bring structure and calm.
I love this land. Here, if you plant something, it will grow.
Olha
WCK Recipient, Ukraine
Across Ukraine, gardens planted with WCK seeds are beginning to grow again. Each one is a step forward toward resilience, food security, and a more stable future.
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