Vladimir Putin recalls days on parents' vegetable plot

'There are around 20 million regular gardeners in our country and another 60 million people are less regular gardeners,' said President Vladimir Putin at a press conference in Moscow today. Putin stressed that he has firsthand information about agrarian problems, which he received at a meeting in the Kremlin with leaders of Russia's agrarian movement. The president said that about 90% of Russia's potatoes, 80% of its vegetable and 60% of its fruits were produced on private plots. 'These are unbelievable figures,' Putin said, adding that his parents 'slaved away on a typical plot and made me work, too.'

Putin stressed that gardeners have many problems, including purchasing seeds, bureaucracy and security. He said that these problems would be resolved by the state and, more often, by local authorities.