Let Your Fruit Trees Save Sugar
A cartoon shows two women as fruit trees: 'Mrs. Patriot's Fruit Tree' hands out jars of jam to marching jam-jar figures under a 'U.S. Preserves' banner, while 'Mrs. Waster's Fruit Tree' stands beside bins of wasted and rotting fruit. The contrast of two named types of housewife turns a request to preserve fruit with less sugar into a choice between patriot and waster.
Propaganda techniques used in this poster
- Date
- 1918
- Period
- First World War
- Made by
- U.S. Food Administration; R. M. Brinkerhoff (artist)
- Region
- North America
- Country
- United States
- Medium
- Poster
- Issuer type
- State
- Regime
- Wilson Administration
- Leader
- Woodrow Wilson
- Audience
- Domestic public
- Purpose
- Mobilize or secure compliance
- Themes
- Home front, Economy and finance
- Event
- World War I
- Regime
- Wilson administration
- Leader
- Woodrow Wilson
- Source
- Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
- Source
- U.S. National Archives (NARA), RG 4 (U.S. Food Administration), World War I Posters (NAID 512439), retrieved October 3, 2026
- Rights
- NARA Unrestricted; hosted by owner decision
U.S. Food Administration. National Archives and Records Administration, 4-P-75.
Text on the object
Let Your Fruit Trees Save Sugar MRS. PATRIOT'S FRUIT TREE JARS OF JAM U.S. PRESERVES JAM JELLY MRS. WASTER'S FRUIT TREE WASTED FRUIT ROTTING FRUIT R. M. BRINKERHOFF U. S. Food Administration
Labels on the jars are repeated 'JAM' and 'JELLY'; the artist signature reads approximately 'R. M. Brinkerhoff'.
