Should we start growing our own food???

[Amanda]

After seeing this below, it's making me think we need to grow our own food. I have no idea how long this "greatest depression" is supposed to last. I think I read some guy (Doug Casey?) saying longer and worse than the great depression.

Vermont Decrees Home Farming “Non Essential”, Forbids The Selling of Seeds… (https://theconservativetreehouse.com/2020/04/02/vermont-decrees-home-farming-non-essential-forbids-the-selling-of-seeds/)https://theconservativetreehouse.com/2020/04/02/vermont-decrees-home-farming-non-essential-forbids-the-selling-of-seeds/


Anyone know of things that are easy to grow?
What about fruit or nut trees?? I know those would not yield anything for many years, but still might be good to do, since this could go on for a very long time.

[ziero0]

They etymology of 'farm' is 'tax collector'. Farming is of course non essential and I would suggest you avoid it (them) entirely.

As to growing your own food your body is composed of processed food. If you have no idea where it comes from then you have no idea where you are from. At least when you grow your own you can identify the soil that you are a part of.

[woodman]

I plant a garden every year. I will do so this year and make it bigger than ever. The deer are numerous around here and do much damage to my garden every year. I reciprocate and do much damage to the deer. They are tasty and look so tidy all canned up in rows on shelves in my basement. The best food on Earth is what you can grow in your garden. There is nothing more satisfying than harvesting your own food.

[JDRock]

I still have 4' snow drifts in my yard.

[woodman]

I still have 4' snow drifts in my yard.
I bet your summers are finer than anything though. I would guess you are up in the foothills?

[Neuro]

I still have 4' snow drifts in my yard.

What grows best in snow?

[Shami-Amourae]

Grow indoor hydroponic rainbow swiss chard. Shit grows like a weed and you can cut it down 6 to 12 times before it bolts. I can produces POUNDS of food out of a little space, and it pays for itself despite electricity costs very quickly. You remove the outer leaves/stems and inner/baby ones become big again in 2 weeks. The output is ridiculous.

@1:43

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoycN3EtOAc

Follow these directions to setup system:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCxNhnAmqWM

I grow many veg indoors with this method ranging from gai lan, celery, tomatoes, lettuce, herbs, and bok choy.

Gai Lan is like broccoli without the sulfuric aftertaste. You can cut it and it will grow back. The only issue with gai lan is it is inconsistent in size and growth in hydroponics. One of the tastiest veggies I've had and something you must grow since you can't find it in many stores.

Bok Choy is good but you only get one harvest, but it does grow very fast. Only grow the Shanghai variety as the bigger White Stem variety takes up more space. The smaller varieties may be smaller but you can fit them in more densely for higher yield.

I've done fruiting plants like green beans and tomatoes, and would say they aren't worth the effort even though they are the best tasting I've ever had. The only indoor fruiting plant I'd recommend is rare chili peppers like the Carolina Reaper.


I mostly do rainbow chard in in soups and stir fries, but it's more verstile than you'd think. You can also dehydrate them with some olive oil and salt and make chips like kale chips, but healthier. Use the leaves to wrap around foods like tacos or lettuce wraps, or make a salad:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufXybml-Okg
Rainbow chard is also the 3rd most nutrient dense veg out there (#1 watercress, #2 napa cabbage). It's delicious, grows like a weed, super versatile, and my fav veg overall after getting into hydroponics.

[JDRock]

I bet your summers are finer than anything though. I would guess you are up in the foothills?
Im up at 6,200' elevation. The summers and fall is epic here! Warm days , no humidity and cool nights so no one needs air conditioning. Woodman, the foothills surround me and in turn they are surrounded by the mountains. The only thing that grows in a garden here are potatoes,lettuce and berries. But... the neighboring ranch has 1,000 head of herefords and about 8 employees, so If things go to crap, plenty of protein. How are things by you?

[hoarder]

I have a 6 1/2 foot game fence around my garden/orchard, along with two lines of electric wire and a motion sensor that activates a radio to play rap music for any 4 legged varmint drawn in by the smell of ripe produce. I'm at 3400 feet elevation. Freezer is almost always stocked with venison.

[ziero0]

.. the neighboring ranch has 1,000 head of herefords and about 8 employees, so If things go to crap, plenty of protein
Are herefords better than employees?

[Jewboo]

Grow indoor hydroponic rainbow swiss chard..




https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jx0uNp2dzAU

What MINERALS do you add to the water? Doctor Mamboni in many threads preaches that most veggies now lack essential MINERALS.

:)

[JDRock]

Are herefords better than employees?
ha! just saying the 8 cowboys wouldnt mind me culling a few! There actually great guys and its calving season right now.

[ziero0]

Never thought of that. I might give Warren Buffet a call and ask if he would mind me culling a couple million.

[ziero0]

Food is a word that has been hijacked with the 1906 Pure Food Act. It is a substance the FDA controls for 'man and other animals'. Biblically man is not an animal and all FDA regs that treat him as one come with a religious exemption.

[woodman]

Pretty good shape around here. About 11/2 hours from a large city. More people around now at their vacation places but it is still fairly mellow. My ground is not the best. Light soil (sandy); gotta keep putting the manure to it but it is better than being in the city. I call it an oak desert; some rolling hills, lots of water, lots of sand and lots of oak trees. 30 years ago it was the sticks; now it is getting a little crowded. I need to move north of the Mackinaw Bridge.

I've got a friend who has over a hundred head of cows. Worked for him many years ago and we remained friends so I suppose I won't go hungry. Though with the beer I've been drinking lately, I could stand to miss a few meals. Life's good and I have no complaints. I do love the mountains though and always figured I'd get a place out West.

[JDRock]

Pretty good shape around here. About 11/2 hours from a large city. More people around now at their vacation places but it is still fairly mellow. My ground is not the best. Light soil (sandy); gotta keep putting the manure to it but it is better than being in the city. I call it an oak desert; some rolling hills, lots of water, lots of sand and lots of oak trees. 30 years ago it was the sticks; now it is getting a little crowded. I need to move north of the Mackinaw Bridge.

I've got a friend who has over a hundred head of cows. Worked for him many years ago and we remained friends so I suppose I won't go hungry. Though with the beer I've been drinking lately, I could stand to miss a few meals. Life's good and I have no complaints. I do love the mountains though and always figured I'd get a place out West.
I know right? the covid 19 stands for the pounds we gain sitting out this faux pandemic! Good to hear your well.

[Shami-Amourae]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jx0uNp2dzAU

What MINERALS do you add to the water? Doctor Mamboni in many threads preaches that most veggies now lack essential MINERALS.

:)

MasterBlend has everything you need in it. This link has a breakdown of all the minerals in the blend, and they are scientifically selected and ratioed to be the best blend for most plants.
https://www.masterblend.com/vegetable-and-tomato-formula/

Get all the parts here:
https://www.amazon.com/MASTERBLEND-4-18-38-Complete-Combo-Fertilizer/dp/B072F2BL9D


It has all the trace minerals plants need so it's literally superior to organic.

For every gallon of water I mix the following:
-2 grams MasterBlend
-1 gram Epsom Salt
-2 grams Calcium Nitrate

You also want a hose filter to remove Chlorine and Chlromomine from your water supply as it messes up plants.
https://www.amazon.com/Camco-GardenPURE-Filters-Gardening-40691/dp/B00G2586NK

If you combine the filter and the MasterBlend you probably wont even need to test the pH since it usually comes out at the desired range of 5.5 - 6.8 pH.

If you are interested in lights get T5 or T8 LED lights, ideally the purple/pink ones rated for growing. The T5/T8 are the cheapest, last the longest, and most efficient in power consumption. Make your own PVC fixture and hang it with pulleys you can buy online to lower/raise lights.

[Jewboo]

For every gallon of water I mix the following:
-2 grams MasterBlend
-1 gram Epsom Salt
-2 grams Calcium Nitrates.



:(?? I'm confused. MasterBlend says don't add Epsom Salt or Calcium Nitrates because it is already included:


Tomato & Vegetable Formula



Masterblend’s Tomato & Vegetable Formula is an easy to use, 2-part fertilizer system for the home gardener that uses the same technical grade fertilizer trusted by professional growers for decades. The kit contains two parts to be mixed together in water resulting in the ultimate formula for amazing tomatoes and vegetables. The first component is our popular water-soluble 4-18-38 formula pre-mixed with Epsom salts – for a final NPK formulation of 5-12-25. The second is Calcium Nitrate, for full and fast absorption of nutrients by the plant. Combine these two formulas with water according to the directions and you have pure nutrition your garden vegetables will love.

[Shami-Amourae]

:(?? I'm confused. MasterBlend says don't add Epsom Salt or Calcium Nitrates because it is already included:

MasterBlend is a 3 part formula. I was showing you the link to the main "Tomato" part of it, which is the green stuff with all the minerals in it. The other two are salts (Epsom and Calcium Nitrate).

This ratio was created SPECIFICALLY for hydroponics, and not regular dirt fertilizer.

If you're only using this for a dirt garden then you probably only need the green Tomato MasterBlend, but if you're doing hydroponics you need the 3 part blend as I outlined. Dirt has plenty of the other stuff which your hydrowater won't, if that makes sense.

I strongly recommend you mix it in this order too:
1.) MasterBlend (green stuff)
2.) Epsom Salt
MIX WELL
3.) Calcium Nitrate


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUV5Ew5AODo
I mix it like this but would do it in 5 gallon buckets with a stir rod in bulk so it takes less time.