Think times are tough?

In a new series of columns starting on Page A4 today and continuing on Wednesdays, Jim Wilson writes about the hardships and the good times in Vicksburg, starting in 1931 and continuing through the Great Depression.

Wilson, now 83, lives in Columbia, Mo. He’s the author of 10 books on gardening and may be best known for the 10 years he spent as a presenter on the PBS series, “The Victory Garden.”

His memory of detail is remarkable – and readers are invited to converse with him by postal or e-mail methods.

His family moved to Memphis on his 15th birthday and after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor two years later, he joined the U.S. Army Air Corps as soon as he turned 18, earned his wings and became an air-to-air gunnery instructor.

His 50-year horticulture career followed for the next years and he lived in 14 homes in nine states.

Today, he writes, lectures on gardens and gardening and has served as a guest speaker aboard river cruises which, from time to time, have brought him back to Vicksburg.

The series will also be at www.vicksburgpost.com.