I'm going to start a few seeds today. This year I'm going to slim down a little. I'll probably grow potatoes, corn, peanuts, watermelon, squash, okra, carrots, sweet potatoes, peas, beans, tomatoes, and peppers. I have a pretty good compost pile now. It should be a good year.
I guess I'm just virtue signaling, but you never know. Some extra food might come in handy this year.
I started canning boiled peanuts. You only have to boil for an hour or two, and then you can. Saves you the boiling for 20 hours or whatever it is
That's a great idea. I gave almost all of my peanuts to my chickens :(.
my recipe to make them more heart healthy is
I do half and half sodium / k salt
Increasing your self sufficiency is never virtue signaling.
As a reminder, our benevolent rulers don't want us to buy seeds and gardening supplies
Same
we started a few years ago. This summer, the plan is to covert the detached garage to a greenhouse / bee house. We can rig it so the bees have outside access in the spring / summer and will be able to do their thing inside the greenhouse during the winter.
I wouldn't mind getting into some gov't grants to help pay for and then get paid for either the honey production or the keep of the bees - gov't in Canada has programs for both. Buuuuuttt.... I don't really want the gov't knowing what I'm doing in relation to self sustainability soooooo... probably won't end up going that route.
If you make extra honey, watch out when selling it, the health dept folks watch for that since they want all honey pasteurized. You might end up in a list for future inspections.
Barter. System. Maybe?
Yes, we're aware of that, but definitely thank you. I think the only way we'd go the honey route IS if we were doing through the government. I'm already tin foil hat enough, I definitely don't want to give them a direct reason to enter my life on a personal level in a negative way hahaha.
We're more just about the straight conservation in the end. Same with butterflies, if we could figure a way to keep butterflies where we are all year, we'd probably try that as well.
I believe though, in Canada, we have to somewhat go about it legally no matter what. We can buy bees from a private seller, but they, obviously have to be registered... which means, they're going to want to know where the bees are going. We'll find out soon enough ;)
Go find bees that have swarmed .but with technology nobody will be allowed to be self sufficient.
I'm with you here. I haven't done okra yet. May try it this year. I love me some fried okra but beyond that it's meh
oh! pickled okra is pretty good
Yes, and also building up my food storage considerably. Storing a lot of rice and other foods. I do not think that Bill Gates being the number one holder of farmland in the US is a good sign.
Recommended easy things to grow:
Use 2' tall raised beds, and when you build them out, put hardware cloth at the bottom. trust me. I did this and mine are perfect.
Any idiot can grow potatoes, just take some potatoes that are sprouting and plant them in decent soil where the rain can get at them. Corn is pretty easy once you find the right place. Tomatoes are possible but need plant food and attention.
Carrots? Bane of my existence. Zucchini takes some practise. If you have a decent indoor space, “greens” like spinach and arugula are possible.
Rhubarb and raspberries grow on their own and propagate.
Best idea? Find a hippie farmer couple and give them $300 now. You will get a box of good stuff every week for months.
I agree Carrots are bullshit. They never turn out right.
The key to zucchini is never water them from above. Stick your hose behind the leaves and water sparingly
Thanks, I will try that with the squash. I’m going the soaker hose route this year, wish me luck.
Grandma always had great peas and carrots and mine suck. Sandy soil, Nantes style carrots thicker than my thumb and 6-8 inches long. Just right for pickling.
I forgot to mention it, but the kids love the crazy Color potatoes you can get at Lowe’s, the purple and red ones. There is a yellow fingerling among those that is great.