survival gardening or guerrilla gardening

oh also, i know its a little off topic but we had such a good laugh over the 4x4 garden plot story(it was so cute we just wanted to pinch her lil cheeks, ) that i had to throw this up..

this is a pretty damn close to accurate chart (at least we find it to be) on what one needs to grow and store back to feed four people year round.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_DnyLywo1F...U/605g0AXs10w/s1600-h/garden+planner+image.jp

note :space required to grow all this can be cut in half by practicing intensive gardening practices such as square foot gardening.

lol, yeah, when you figure out how to grow that in all 3 of your 4x4 plots an 22 containers (much less one 4x4 plot) you be sure and post plenty of pictures...once again,we aint amateur gardeners..

anyway,to try an get back on topic here.

this thread has been all over the board so i am not sure its even been mentioned.

in a bug out situation especially,but in our minds always,one should make sure everything they plant is open pollinated heirloom seeds so they can save seeds for the following years harvest. in our eyes this is the number one most critical thing a person can do when it comes to growing their own food in any situation but much more so in a survival situation..

saving seeds is a relatively simple process and can be done in the most primitive of circumstances.i urge everyone to research the finer points of doing so and to begin saving your seeds.

its very rewarding to know all your seeds were collected from your previous years yields..

 

lol i wish yins had a thank you button... glad u giggled over me, pinch pinch..

and hey hippiehillbilly, i have so many questions about your land... but i cant pm u. blaaah.. . i may have to make a call out thread, i am so curious over your land man !

oh and yes i save my seeds. have to , cant afford not to both financially and spiritually. the difference between me and you is i am an Urban gardener your land seems so grand , i loved your photos! you are a lucky man and have a lucky family.

our garden is built from debris, despair and blithe like a phoenix rising from the ashes.. & we do actually survive from it. lol it or not...we feed many families from that gardens here in the projects.

this year btw we have 12 by 12 foot plots. haaa .. and i do promise you that we survive nicely. now that does mean that we dont always get to eat what we want for supper . we have to eat what we HAVE .... the selection on the table does run small,and i do hear complaints from the kiddos on turnip stew AGAIN .. i never said you would always like what was for supper.. i just know it is possible to have a great yield from what i have and survive starvation. ive done it and i live it. we have to , we are low income Americans , hand to mouth . from yard to table.

anywhooo you are completely delicious ! this was a good read. i would love to have you come to our community garden and talk to the low income families , if you are ever in my end of Mother Earth dont hesitate to ring my bell.


peace hempmama

oh and i did bookmark that link

 

:smilielol5: Busted!

 

Seeing as youse city folk, see if you can get your hands on a copy of "Ragnar's urban survival" by Ragnar Benson. It's a little vague on details but has some good rules of thumb. He's talked with people from places like Beirut who have survived the more or less continuous fighting and shelling and bombing there and passes along some of their thoughts on what it takes to survive.

Hopefully that can't happen here but let a word to the wise.....

 

thanks friend, i called the public library and they can order it for me..
peace lve mama

 

Hope you find it helpful.

May you never thirst,
OWB

 

I'll cop to preparing just such a bug-out plan for Y2K. I even stocked up on some non-hybrid seeds and started gardening. But then Y2K was a bust so I let my garden go to hell while I chased corporate greenbacks.

I'm actually glad I did cause now I can afford to garden the way I have always wanted. We live on the side a hill surrounded by woods and only have a few plots that get good sunlight for food crops. The biggest area is on the front yard. We can't really till it up because of covenant restrictions and we can't build regular raised beds. So I have opted for huge plant boxes that hold half a cubic yard of dirt. We have 7 of them built so far and have begun soil conditioning.

Now that I have had time to think about it, I am convinced the only way to even consider a "survival" garden is to have a basic gardening habit already established. Even if it's just tomatoes and peppers in pots. It's also a good idea to have a few herb gardens growing. Herbs and spices can work wonders during hard times. Even your neighbor's annoying mutt can be turned into a feast with the right seasonings!! (Times are hard right?)

On the issue of seeds though you have to think diversity and numbers. You have to make as many attempts as possible to propagate a crop. So every pot you own should have some stage of development happening at all times. I also hear a lot of talk about non-hybrid seeds. Sure they are an essential element of any long term plan. But they are not necessarily the best option in the short term. Consider that many hybrids are sold for performance as well as disease resistance. Imagine working on a crop for 4 months only to have the entire crop fail to some blight or other failure. This happens when you don't diversify.

So the first crop you plant after all hell has broken loose and all the tribal, feudal or barbarian gang wars have ended and there is relative calm should be one with the fastest turn around possible. That first crop should probably be 2/3 hybrid if not 3/4 hybrid. The remaining heirlooms will be where you spend most of your time ensuring seed crop, but the hybrids will be your first to 5th primary food crop simply because bulk productivity is what you will need most at that time.

What I wish I could find is a good matrix of production that takes the fullest advantage of pollination across productive species of food crops, nutrient recycling and seasonal timing so that you can grow the greatest variety. After all, there is a reason to be planting pretty much every month of the year.

-Jal