Apparently, just in the nick of time (it getting set to
rain), I was able to get one of my two main raised beds seeded with an
assortment of vegetables. And, that brings me to point number one when it comes
to survival gardening.
#1 ‘Any sized
prepared and planted bed is better than none at all!’
Right now I have about 32 square feet of good soil seeded
with an assortment of carrots, peppers, green beans and romaine lettuce. Of
these, the carrots are most likely the most nutrient rich of the group.
However, the bean will also provide many of the essential amino acids needed to
sustain life. If you have some rice in the pantry then you could live by eating
just
these two, although it would be boring to do so.
Another great addition to any survival garden would be the
common potato. It’s a breeze to grow, will tolerate many soil types and you
probably have a bag of them sporting in the pantry somewhere right now! The
picture at right shows a four foot trench I dug. At the bottom (just under the
soil) are two spuds I cut into pieces. After the spuds form plants that grow up
through the soil, I’ll add a couple more inches of soil to keep the level just
below the growing points. Later in the spring, I’ll allow these to grow higher
before adding any more soil. By late summer, I’ll have some spuds I can dig up
for the occasional meal. (As a survival measure, it’s a good idea to have some
spuds in the ground or pantry in and around your house. These can easily be
multiplied into a whole field of nutritious ready to eat meals should bad times
come around). Now for rule number two.
#2 Plan to have at
least seventy square feet of ground ready to plant per person!
Seventy square feet of space is pretty small. So, even those
people living with small lots can certainly find some space in which to grow
vegetables. Even if you’re the type who loves flowers, you should be able to
sneak in the odd carrot or two. Nobody will notice.
Note: If you live in a large city with little to no land
available for growing, you are basically screwed from the get go. Plan on being
the first in a long list of causalities in the event of a complete societal
collapse.
I came up with the number of seventy square feet per person as this is just enough space to grow
high nutrient crops (a hundred pounds or more) to get you through the first
year of surviving on your own. I’m assuming, of course that you have stockpiled
food items prior to everything going south. In your pantry should be such items
as powered milk, yeast, flour, canned goods, beans and pasta. All these items,
when properly stored in airtight containers, can last for long periods of time.
Make sure, also, to have really basic long lasting kitchen tools like iron
skillets in your home in case you have to cook over a wood fire. If you haven’t
already, be sure to acquire a good resource book on survival. There are many to
choose from on the internet and more be written every day. (Ya think they know
something you might not)?
#3 Acquire the
ability to protect what’s yours!
I wanted to through this rule in early because it is an
important item to consider. And, that is, no matter how well you have prepared
for you and your family, it will all be for naught if someone sashays in and
takes it from you because you were defenseless. Make no mistake. When a society
crumbles, it doesn’t take long for people to loose the facade of civility. Thos who have something to eat will at first
be visited by neighbors who did not prepare. At that time you will probably
give freely of what you have. Then, as time goes on the requests will become
demands and if the man standing at you door has a gun and you don’t – you’re
screwed.
