Jackpine Savage
Veteran Member
Near Long Prairie, MN.
FOOD Food Shortages | What You Can Do Before It’s Too Late
- Thread starter Bps1691
- Start date
Samuel Adams
Has No Life - Lives on TB
Anyone within driving distance of Fulton county, Illinois..... if you need a course on home butchering, any size animal, or a complete intro to general homesteading/self-sufficiency, pm me and we’ll set it up.
Bps1691
Veteran Member
Be sure to drill some weep holes in the bottoms of plastic containers so excess water can escape.
Marthanoir
TB Fanatic
Old Gray Mare
TB Fanatic
I'd skip the bell peppers or maybe only plant one or two plants. They're really not that productive. I've been lucky if I get a four or five peppers per plant. Now I'm not saying don't plant peppers. Just that there's other varieties that are way more productive.
Marthanoir
TB Fanatic
As if things weren't bad enough we have an avian flu outbreak here that's hit egg production hard.
www.rte.ie
Drop in egg production after avian flu outbreak
An outbreak of avian influenza in Ireland has led to a drop in egg production.
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Bps1691
Veteran Member
How to Plant Seed Potatoes in the Ground, in Pots, & in Straw
Not sure how to plant seed potatoes? Use one of these three methods to produce big yields of tasty spuds in your garden.
savvygardening.com
Potatoes are among the most productive crops for home gardens. For every pound of seed potatoes you plant, expect to harvest three to five pounds of spuds in return. That’s a great investment! Plus, with the long storage life of potatoes and the myriad of ways you can prepare them, they are a must-grow crop for many gardeners. And, to sweeten the deal even more, potatoes are a simple crop for beginner gardeners to grow. Every potato-growing adventure starts with seed potatoes. In this article, we’ll look at what seed potatoes are, how to plant seed potatoes, and how to grow them successfully – no matter how much, or how little, space you have to grow.
more at link
Bps1691
Veteran Member
How to Grow Vegetables in Rubbermaid Containers
If you don't want to plant your vegetables in the ground, you can easily grow vegetables in Rubbermaid containers. These strong plastic containers can make an ideal home for growing vegetables, particularly for people who don't have a large yard. You can place the containers on a balcony or porch. The key to successfully planting a vegetable garden in Rubbermaid containers is to prepare the container for planting.
more at link
Is it Safe to Grow Vegetables in Rubbermaid Storage Containers?
homeguides.sfgate.com
If you don't want to plant your vegetables in the ground, you can easily grow vegetables in Rubbermaid containers. These strong plastic containers can make an ideal home for growing vegetables, particularly for people who don't have a large yard. You can place the containers on a balcony or porch. The key to successfully planting a vegetable garden in Rubbermaid containers is to prepare the container for planting.
more at link
Is it Safe to Grow Vegetables in Rubbermaid Storage Containers?
Is it Safe to Grow Vegetables in Rubbermaid Storage Containers?
Container gardening is a good option for those who live in spaces that don’t provide enough room for a traditional garden bed. This type of gardening offers a way to create garden beds in a way that is both tidy and relatively inexpensive. An important part of container gardening is choosing the...
You need to plant the right varieties. I've been developing several varietues which are givung me up to 20 or nore full sized CV peppers per plant, in our short and often cool summers. There is a variety cslled Doe Hill Golden kor orsnge... can't remember) that will produce 30 or more smallish (maybe 2x the size of a golf ball) peppers per plant . The first time I gave a couple plants to my son to grow in pots, he kept snipping the blossons off, because he was sure the plants couldn't support that many fruits! He found out he was wrong...
Summerthyme
twobarkingdogs
Veteran Member
One thing to be aware of when home gardening is if you think that in the future that you may be trading or selling some of your excess produce then you need to grow something which looks like folks would expect it to look like. So something like Doe Hill Golden peppers which produce a miniature bell'ish pepper might not be as easy to sell or trade as a traditional bell pepper would.
I say this because if we are entering a GD2 economic environment then having the ability to produce and sell/trade your excess might be an important trait to insure your survival.
Specializing in a few things also would help so use this time to figure out what works best for you.
As an example I grow onions. But I live in an area with lousy clay soil so normally I grow the onions in barrels on my deck so that I can provide better soil for the onions. But I can also easily drag a couple of fallen pine logs up near the house and throw together some raised beds. So where normally I grow about 60 onions a year I could scale that up to 600 without to much effort. Same with raising chickens for eggs. If I collect eggs for a week rather then eating or giving them away I can incubate about 50 chicks and with a 50/50 ration thats 25 new hens and 25 roos to raise and process for meat. Are the roos as good as current grocery store chicken? No. But if may not matter if there are shortages and the price is kept right.
tbd
Bps1691
Veteran Member
Always a good source of storable calories and minerals…
7 Ways to Grow Potatoes in Every Kind of Yard
www.goodhousekeeping.com
7 Ways to Grow Potatoes in Every Kind of Yard
7 Ways to Grow Potatoes in Every Kind of Yard
Digging trenches isn't the only way to go.
www.goodhousekeeping.com
Yeah, people are going to have to get used to "real" chicken again, after buying frankenbirds from WM all this time. Real chicken is tougher, but has actual flavor.
Marseydoats
Veteran Member
They have to have some shelter even in the summer time. You can't leave them out in the pouring rain or a hail storm. And they have to have shade. My husband is an over-achiever, my chicken tractor has a roof. If you have predators, even stray dogs, you need a secure area for them at night. I've seen tractors that were built like Fort Knox, (the downside to them is that they're generally too heavy for one person to move alone) and some simple mesh wire ones that the people just used during the day when they were outside themselves and could defend the chickens if necessary.
The chickens usually live in the tractor which you move around the yard. Google "chicken tractor" and you'll get tons of ideas.
Meemur
Voice on the Prairie / FJB!
The potato crop has been endangered because it has been so wet for the past two summers. Mine are going in raised beds with excellent drainage (SAND) because I can't afford to lose this crop. Avoid things like planting them in tires or other alternatives, unless you did it last summer and know that it works in your area.
If you are new to potatoes and can't afford a crop failure, check with your local co-op extension about what types grow best in your area.
If you are new to potatoes and can't afford a crop failure, check with your local co-op extension about what types grow best in your area.
packyderms_wife
Neither here nor there.
Most of the lockers around me are now scheduling slaughter dates two years out... lots of folks, and possibly some small delis/butcher shops, are coming down here from the Twin Cities and are buying up everything they can get their hands on at the moment.
Grouchy Granny
Deceased
We're going to use potato bags with wood chips and compost (about half and half). This year I'm putting them on the edge of the deck so I remember to go water when the sprinkler system is not running. At least they are easy to harvest! Just dump bag onto tarp, separate out potatoes and dump the leftovers into composter.
packyderms_wife
Neither here nor there.
You need to do this today! There's been several runs on canning jar lids already and then couple this with the normal spring time canning of jams, jellies, and certain fruits... yes there really is a shortage of canning lids. And Pectin is getting dang hard to find as well.
packyderms_wife
Neither here nor there.
Automatic ones look like the freakin' space shuttle, ready to launch off your counter.
Thank you, like 20Gauge recently we've been having issues with our sealer and it's probably 18 years old now.
packyderms_wife
Neither here nor there.
OC and I've been thinking the same exact thing and once we're done with this batch of chicken he bought we're going to start canning down our freezers. I just don't trust the grid at the moment. I was so pleased with how the canned hamburger patties turned out, now he's talking about doing hamburger rocks and possibly straight ground pork rocks as well.
Grouchy Granny
Deceased
Just talked to the rancher we get ours from here in Colorado. He has a slaughter date in June, but couldn't remember if that was for Bison or beef. Other slaughter date is in October, so we put in an order for 1/2 cow (don't have room for Bison - big sigh).
At any rate, he had 40 lbs of ground he was willing to part with (90% and it's good) for about $4.00 lb. Going out Monday to get that - it's a 2 hour drive, but worth the gas (since it's so cheap). 93% is 5+ a pound here and his meat is superior to the stuff I can buy locally.
If I need an overflow freezer I can use my mothers which hasn't been used in several years (she's 93 and really doesn't need it anymore). Would love to bring it down here, but I already have 2 freezers and a spare refrigerator in the garage and no more room (dang it anyway).
Support your local ranchers is all I can say!
packyderms_wife
Neither here nor there.
Same here, last year my arugula, chicory, and kale did really well so that's what I've planted this year, in addition to chard and four types of radishes which do well for us, and beets. Tomorrow I'll plant beans and peas. Last year, the tomatoes were meh, cucumbers nonexistent, and we got only three zucchinis.
packyderms_wife
Neither here nor there.
Where are you located? I'd buy one butcher it and can that sucker up!
packyderms_wife
Neither here nor there.
You should try it, seriously! I've some small square seed starting trays that I plan to plant peas in for microgreens later this week. It's a great way to get your greens in, flush out a rather bland meal like beans and rice, etc.
packyderms_wife
Neither here nor there.
Don't forget Eliot Coleman!
Old Gray Mare
TB Fanatic
Please don't make my mistake and make it too heavy and awkward to move easily.
Meemur
Voice on the Prairie / FJB!
I've got some space in the community garden. I'm preparing the raised bed as my back allows. I've added 200 pounds of sand, which I got cheaply from Walmart at the end of last year. I'm growing on crop of potatoes there because my backyard can flood. The herbs do just fine but the potatoes don't like wet feet.
packyderms_wife
Neither here nor there.
This man has everything you need to know about container gardening, etc. Gardening with Leon
Gardening With Leon
www.youtube.com
Found out about him through Daniel Arms from the Arms Family Homestead on YT.
Arms Family Homestead
Arms Family Homestead PO box 167 Sulphur Ok, 73086 Homesteading and Homesteaders, what is it all about? Well for us it is small town people just trying to li...
www.youtube.com
And also Keeping it Dutch is worth following.
Keeping It Dutch
I am a family man that wanted out of the city life, so we found a 10 acre lot and started our homestead journey. Its been a great experience and my family lo...
www.youtube.com
And if you've had enough of the news and are fixin to be mad then pull up to the Dry Bar Comedy Club for some good clean comedy.
packyderms_wife
Neither here nor there.
I need to unbury mine, there's a pile of stuff on top of them, lol.
packyderms_wife
Neither here nor there.
Those peppers are incredibly popular in my area to the point that there are times when those are the only peppers you can find and no big bell peppers. When I asked the produce guy at HyVee he said the smaller bell peppers sell better.
You can reuse canning lids. It is not recommended but in a pinch you can. I don't plan on throwing any of mine out unless they are bent or the seal is damaged. Just wash them, boil the and set them aside. I have tried it with just canning water and the seals worked fine. Again only as a last resort but it beats wasting food.
night driver
ESFP adrift in INTJ sea
Marigolds are there as pest discouragement.
Grouchy Granny
Deceased
Mine are 4-ft tall which really saves my back. Thank you YS for the mothers day present last year! They are 4x4x3 and are really cool. We're going to build hoops for them this year so I can extend the crappy Colorado season and pray to the snow gods we get them in before another late May snowstorm!
Pictures welcomed!
twobarkingdogs
Veteran Member
In my previous post I said that to prepare for the GD2 you should specialize and practice.
Well below is a pic on how I currently practice for growing onions. Currently I grow a short day onions in 4 barrels, the other 2 are garlic. Each barrel has about 15 onions growing in it. I normally start from seed on Dec 1 and plant around the beginning of march. Harvest will be sometime around june or later depending on how large I want each onion.
Now 4 barrels of onions won't help me much for trading or selling in a GD2 economic environment but the same method can be scaled up for raised beds. A couple of rectangles of logs with mulch, chicken litter and good dirt and you have a similar growing medium as I have with the barrels. And in my area with the hard clay soil this is the way for me to grow onions and garlic. So for right now where I raise 60 onions I could easily raise 600. And I believe that onions will always be a crop which is in demand
tbd
Well below is a pic on how I currently practice for growing onions. Currently I grow a short day onions in 4 barrels, the other 2 are garlic. Each barrel has about 15 onions growing in it. I normally start from seed on Dec 1 and plant around the beginning of march. Harvest will be sometime around june or later depending on how large I want each onion.
Now 4 barrels of onions won't help me much for trading or selling in a GD2 economic environment but the same method can be scaled up for raised beds. A couple of rectangles of logs with mulch, chicken litter and good dirt and you have a similar growing medium as I have with the barrels. And in my area with the hard clay soil this is the way for me to grow onions and garlic. So for right now where I raise 60 onions I could easily raise 600. And I believe that onions will always be a crop which is in demand
tbd
Capt. Eddie
Veteran Member
California wonder does really well for me. Average 20 or so nice big ones per plant. That's with lots of miracle grow though.
hiwall
Has No Life - Lives on TB
The used lids work great when you use canning jars for dry storage items too.