For a while now, I’ve wanted to try out some Hügelkutur in my gardening. This Spring provided an opportunity. This post is a step-by-step of my experiment. I’m always looking for where else around the property I might grow things.…
Our mystery animal turned out to be a big porcupine. For several months, I was content to leave him be. When he started eating on my best apple tree, he crossed the line. I set my defenses and caught him…
Bi-annuals like onions and cabbage are a challenge for seed saving because they don’t make seeds until their second year. While it is more involved than simple annuals like tomatoes, beans, corn, etc., it can be done. Where to Begin…
Our approach to long-term food storage is two-pronged. The more active prong is improved sustainability — growing new food each year. Stored food eventually runs out. The only sustainable long-term food solution is to make new food.
If you grow a garden to be less dependent upon industrial food, or as a survival skill, a useful exercise is to try making a meal out of only what you grew in your garden. We have become so accustomed…
It’s mid-season and the three sisters are looking pretty good. One of them is looking a little too good. The beans are growing well and the corn is looking good. The squash, however, have taken over. In the traditional Native…
Much of what we cook with, what grocery stores sell, comes from far, far away. As an exploration of eating what our land could provide, we made a big pot of what I called Homestead Stew, using only things harvested…
If empty store shelves have you thinking of gardening, maybe you already have some edibles growing around your house. Daylilies sprout so early in springtime that they often come up through the snow. They are a semi-wild edible available long…
The British Navy discovered an old peasant food prevented scurvy during long voyages. Sauerkraut could be the prepper’s solution for grow-it-yourself Vitamin C.
For a “survival garden,” it’s hard to beat the Three Sisters — corn, beans, and squash. Their produce stores well and provide balanced nutrition. This year’s experiment with the Sisters turned out rather well. Each sister her own “room” instead…