If I was surviving, what would I plant in my garden? Would it even be as evolved as a Victory garden? I eat alot of spinach because of the protein; is that good?
One I can advise you against is corn. It is good in the world that we live in now. However, if you were needing to plant it for survival. It requires vast quantities of land and upkeep and can't survive without people. Hard to grow crops in between the stalks and produces very little (1 ear typically per stalk.) It is useful, don't get me wrong, but if you are looking for something that is simple and straightforward. Stay away from corn. If you think that it would be good for pig food and such then think greens instead. They will be far more productive then corn. Giving you a head every 20-30 days or so, depending on variety. Don't mean to knock it, but it is one of those where the land and effort can be used far more productively. Beans and squash grown together is a good producer. Peas are also good, as they are not a nutrient starving as some plants particularly if you look to grow a grain such as wheat. Also, be sure to find out your soil Ph. Is very important if you intend to grow crops.
Oh, and before I forget potatoes. Look into the history of the potato after its introduction into Europe. People that adapted and used the potato would find themselves with food. Those who didn't, such as the French at the time of the time of their revolution, starved as wheat is much less hardy and easily destroyed by people and armies moving through. Just a thought.
Native Americans planted what is known as the Three Sisters. Corn, pole beans (climbers) and squash together. However I have seen on different University sites that this practice is considered less then productive. Here is a description of the Three Sisters. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Sisters_(agriculture)
Corn will deplete the ground of nitrogen and beans will replenish the nitrogen and will climb the corn negating the need for poles. The squash will provide ground cover which will help retain moisture. I've not done this for several years as I have adequate space for my crops. It's a real space saver.
Yep you will need to plant corn. Back in the olden days home steaders didn't grow wheat but they did corn.
You can make alot of meal items form corn.
At the Park my son is a Ranger they sale paper back cook books of way back then.
Many resipes use corn.
Also a thought just occured to me that you could make alcohol to use or drink lol
Variety is the name of the game. Beans are your best nutritional bang for the buck and not so hard to grow. My survival garden will be havy on beans and peas. I think root crops are also very important - they are easy to keep (remember that it will be just as important in a survival situation to be able to keep your food through winter and spring as it will to grow it in the first place). Cabbage is going to be key for a couple reasons - high in Vitamin C (this will be harder to get in a SHTF scenario) and easy to preserve. Lastly, peppers will be important - they are easy to dry/keep, and a little adds zest and spice to the same old beans day-after-day!
__________________ I reserve the right to be wrong.
We live off our garden as much as possible every year. Potatoes, corn, zuchini, peppers, cabbage, bush beans, tomatoes, lettuce, radish, beets and squash is bout what we put out every year with a variety twist on all of them.
We can and vacuum seal pretty much everything. Without digging a root cellar, anybody have any suggestions on putting up potatoes as we are wanting to put a large patch out this year?
__________________ Most of my life I've spent hunting,... the rest of it I've just wasted
I recommend "Square Foot Gardening" by Mel Bartholomew. It's great for beginners or experts. It shows how to grow the most in the least amount of space. The vertical method works great for things like beans (which produce nonstop).
It also provide tons of great info on different vegetables. My family uses a modified version of it. We grow in five 4' by 20' boxes and have LOTS of food!
Remember that a lot of greens can be planted "wild" around your property if you can do this. This year I plan on planting chicory seed around the proprety to serve double purpose as human feed and deer forage. Also check the local wooded areas and see what edibles are growing there. If possible transplant wild ferns (fiddleheads), wild leeks, cattails, etc.. Make sure to check with reliable sources before ingesting ANY wild foods. Doing this will help ensure that you'll have grub for those hard times. Also don't forget any wild berries or other wild fruits that can be transplanted.
Oh, and before I forget potatoes. Look into the history of the potato after its introduction into Europe. People that adapted and used the potato would find themselves with food. Those who didn't, such as the French at the time of the time of their revolution, starved as wheat is much less hardy and easily destroyed by people and armies moving through. Just a thought.
Didnt the Irish like me end up in the U.S. because potatoes failed them?
Years ago a friend bought lots of 5-gallon buckets full of corn that had been packed with nitrogen (to kill the weevils) for long-term storage.... he bought them from somewhere out West from a group of Mormons. He maintained that since corn is relatively inexpensive in huge quantities, and since corn itself doesn't product a whole lot of ears on each stalk (and requires significant real estate to grow), that it was better for he and his family to simply buy hundreds of pounds packed in buckets, stack on top of each other, and have for a rainy day.
I couldn't argue with his logic, and would also suggest that with extreme weather conditions we've been witnessing lately, such as this past summer when entire fields of corn were knocked flat from high winds and storms throughout southern Illinois, having corn stored in those buckets wouldn't be a bad idea. All one would need is a grain grinder, and lots of civilizations have survived very well indeed making tortillas and other corn-based foods.
He also stored buckets of wheat and rice in the same manner that were also packed with nitrogen. I don't remember what his stacks of buckets cost when he was all done, but he had a couple thousand pounds of grains and I'll bet it wasn't a whole lot, when considering how much food you could make out of it.
__________________ The Cataclysm Scroll is now available! www.gmillercompanies.com
Oh, and before I forget potatoes. Look into the history of the potato after its introduction into Europe. People that adapted and used the potato would find themselves with food. Those who didn't, such as the French at the time of the time of their revolution, starved as wheat is much less hardy and easily destroyed by people and armies moving through. Just a thought.
In the spirit of those good cheese commercials we've all seen and heard,...
...behold the power of potatoes.
In Idaho we're very fond of spuds...
...and they're planted in abundance and stored up in our emergency preparedness supplies.
Here's a selection of seeds that'll do you well in day-to-day gardening and in an emergency, and the seeds can be harvested, stored and reused year after year:
Years ago a friend bought lots of 5-gallon buckets full of corn that had been packed with nitrogen (to kill the weevils) for long-term storage.... he bought them from somewhere out West from a group of Mormons. He maintained that since corn is relatively inexpensive in huge quantities, and since corn itself doesn't product a whole lot of ears on each stalk (and requires significant real estate to grow), that it was better for he and his family to simply buy hundreds of pounds packed in buckets, stack on top of each other, and have for a rainy day.
I couldn't argue with his logic, and would also suggest that with extreme weather conditions we've been witnessing lately, such as this past summer when entire fields of corn were knocked flat from high winds and storms throughout southern Illinois, having corn stored in those buckets wouldn't be a bad idea. All one would need is a grain grinder, and lots of civilizations have survived very well indeed making tortillas and other corn-based foods.
He also stored buckets of wheat and rice in the same manner that were also packed with nitrogen. I don't remember what his stacks of buckets cost when he was all done, but he had a couple thousand pounds of grains and I'll bet it wasn't a whole lot, when considering how much food you could make out of it.
I think I will do this. Does anyone have an idea how long this much grain will last 1 person that's 215 lb.?
Thats a nifty little calculator Livetoshoot! I was suprised at the water however, the gallons per year seemed kind of low to me, but I suppose it is a absolute minimum calculator.
__________________ Most of my life I've spent hunting,... the rest of it I've just wasted
One thing to consider when storing water... IF you have dehydrated foods stored, it'll take a considerable amount of water to rehydrate them. We use the Excalibur dehydrator (rated #1 by Mother Earth News a few years ago, and we like it) and when you rehydrate veggies such as tomatoes, cucumbers or zucchini, your bowls get sucked dry pretty quickly. And that IS a neat calculator, LTS. Thanks.
Been away without Internet for the last week promoting the new novel... lots to catch up on here.
__________________ The Cataclysm Scroll is now available! www.gmillercompanies.com
You will want to include a citrus tree or three in the yard. Also pear, apple trees and grapes for wine. I've planted herbs in the front bed, oregano, basil, rosemary, parsley, cilantro,and dill.
My growing plants are beef stake, cherry, grape, and heirloom tomatoes in large planters. I have ten ripe and 40 something green ones right now. I brought home white flies home from Lowes. With planters you can isolate sick ones.
My squarefootgarden.com boxes will hold 120 plants total. These looked great built in pyramid shapes. You want a sunny spot and a shady P/S spot also for lettuces and leafy cool weather plants. I planted seeds 2 weeks ago. Here's what's coming to a plate near me:
Broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, rutabagas, spinach, okra, 3 kinds of lettuce, 4 kinds of squash, beets, radishes, organic vine tomatoes, cabbage, peppers, fennel and onions.
Idea soil mixture is the key: 1/3 peat moss, 1/3 vermiculite or pear-lite, and 1/3 organic compost. You can add mushroom compost or manure to it but carefully. Watch your water hose for mold. Good eats!
I guess having a garden prior to any SHTF sinero's hit would be be better than attempting to start one and learning hard lesson's could have very real repercussions.
the garden was important, having potato,cucumber/pickle,sweet corn, pumpkin, melon, strawberry patches were all part of growing up in a rural area, tending the family orchards cherry,plumb,apricot,apple,pear,mulberry trees our family had orchards in two locations, my grand parents had a couple as well and that included my uncles and in-laws we all shared what we wanted so if we dident have pie apples Aunt Ednna did.
different shrubs of rasberries,gooseberries,wildplumb,chokecherries,wi ld grapes were all parts of how the family was prepaired and these were family functions, planing and planting shelterbelts and efficently planting the yard as a not only attractive place but efficent and productive.
