Farming...

[frostfire]

I saw hunting and fishing sections but not farming...
Throughout the years, I've read sporadic thread on planting your own crops as part of preparedness but they did not interest me until now

To avoid potential contact with COVID outside and not depend on vendors for my greens, I have been growing my own vegetables: Kale, lettuce, arugula, mustard (crops in less than a month! my type of farming lol)
It's been a priceless blessing to eat straight from your garden especially when I recall I used to pay $10 for kale salad at panera bread!

Spinach, beans, tomatoes, pumpkin etc are coming next. I used store-bought seeds but I have been browsing YT instruction on various vegetables you can buy and regrow. Daisy Creek Farms have solid tutorials. Potatoes seem too easy to be true but those will easily provide caloric needs when the rice and flour are gone from the market (Move over Matt the Martian )

Anyone having much success in the same pursuit?

[Pete]

Got the herb section of the garden in. Only 5 tomato plants this year but three have blooms already. Put them in about 3 weeks ago - couldn't wait.

Put in some broccoli just to see how that goes.

And of course cucumbers and jalapenos.

[rsdengler]

Good job frostfire, I used to have a garden every year when I lived in my old house because I was on a few acres. Now I'm in a town home but I am going to grow veggies on my back deck in boxes. I have always done lettuce in a garden box, so I will now add tomatoes, radishes, and sweet peppers. Oh, and strawberries and herbs. Nice to be able to go out your back door and grab dinner. Good luck in your bounty....

[Airbornelawyer]

I hate chickens. I hated crawling through the chickenshit-infested coop to gather the chickenshit-covered eggs and I hated washing the chickenshit off the eggs. I hated the roosters. I hated that even though they could not fly, the chickens learned they could make a wing-assisted jump high enough to get over the fence, so I had to chase chickens around the farm.

Other than that, farming's great.

Oh, there was also that time I crushed my finger in a pea sheller when I was about 7. And the time I got left behind on the combine and had to walk miles back to the farmhouse when I was about 8. My uncle got his finger bitten off by a pig, so I should count myself lucky.

[7624U]

I have all my plants started just have to transfer them into the garden

garden is 50ft x 20ft has 12 rows plenty for just the wife and I

been planting fruit trees, grapes, nut's bearing bushes, and berries.


This book was on the forum once and I downloaded it someplace but can't find it again has good farming info in it.

https://archive.org/details/JohnSeym...e/n21/mode/2up

[frostfire]

Originally Posted by Airbornelawyer

I hate chickens. I hated crawling through the chickenshit-infested coop to gather the chickenshit-covered eggs and I hated washing the chickenshit off the eggs. I hated the roosters. I hated that even though they could not fly, the chickens learned they could make a wing-assisted jump high enough to get over the fence, so I had to chase chickens around the farm.

Other than that, farming's great.

Oh, there was also that time I crushed my finger in a pea sheller when I was about 7. And the time I got left behind on the combine and had to walk miles back to the farmhouse when I was about 8. My uncle got his finger bitten off by a pig, so I should count myself lucky.

Now you’re telling me!

I’m working on getting some chickens for eggs! Free range n all. I figure if the eggs fail I ll cook the meat, used the bones for broth, n bury the rest to fertilise the soil. I’ve never tried the fish head at the base of your plants before but saw a positive review with tomatoes

[cbtengr]

Had to chuckle when I looked at the title of your post. Having grown up on a large farm in Iowa in the 60's and 70's I cannot recall my father ever having a Kale salad anywhere. I laud your efforts to provide sustenance for yourself but tend to think perhaps that you are gardening more than you are farming. BTW I have attached a pic of a farmer in action. All kidding aside though good for you frostfire!

Farming.jpg

[PedOncoDoc]

Originally Posted by frostfire

Now you’re telling me!

I’m working on getting some chickens for eggs! Free range n all. I figure if the eggs fail I ll cook the meat, used the bones for broth, n bury the rest to fertilise the soil. I’ve never tried the fish head at the base of your plants before but saw a positive review with tomatoes

The good news is that you can still follow through with the second phase of your plain even if the eggs don't fail if you have a similar aversion to the farming of eggs as Airbornelawyer.

[PSM]

My wife gardens non-stop. And she feeds all of her friends.

The first pic, on the left, has flowers at the bottom, two herb gardens, tomatoes (protected from the wind), asparagus, and artichokes. On the right, is another tomato plant and peppers. Next to the chairs is another tomato plant (a heat tolerant variety test), more peppers, and squash.

In the second is what's left of the winter crop, collards (now MIA), spinach, and, uh, kale (pttttuuuuie!).

(Not sure why the first pic tipped over, it's fine on my computer.)

BTW, I see a "farm" as producing more than provides just subsistence. The excess can then be shared, bartered with, or sold.

[Badger52]

Originally Posted by cbtengr

...I cannot recall my father ever having a Kale salad anywhere.

Kale is a thing? Is it a salad named after Heironymous Kale? Like the Lee J. Cobb salad?

[frostfire]

Originally Posted by PSM

, and, uh, kale (pttttuuuuie!).

Hey now, Socrates said “The secret of happiness is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less"

What does this have to do with kale you might ask?

Well, quarantine is one hell of a drug

[Badger52]

Originally Posted by PSM

My wife gardens non-stop. And she feeds all of her friends.

I like your landscaping "approach" - the SW has a place in my heart. Tried to get the wife on board with taking that approach up here (and no mowing). "Besides honey it's covered in white 5 months out of the year anyway." No dice. I know it's not really an "approach" just the way the surface of Mars is down there; like it anyway. And in the summer you can hit a 5-iron off the tee and get a LOT of roll.

[PSM]

She's always done that. In Hermosa Beach we had only 40 sq ft of lawn in front of the house. She (there's no we or me in this) ripped it out and planted a garden. We called it the . . . South 40. She grew pretty much everything that is shown it the pix I posted except asparagus. Even with that little bit of 'land' she still was able to share her harvest with neighbors after canning what we'd need. She's a no-nonsense gardener, though. If it doesn't grow on her timeline or produce to her expectation, it's ripped out of the ground and replaced with something that will. I always took that as a lesson.

[Badger52]

Originally Posted by PSM

She's a no-nonsense gardener, though. If it doesn't grow on her timeline or produce to her expectation, it's ripped out of the ground and replaced with something that will. I always took that as a lesson.

Literally LMAO but you're still with us obviously you're trainable. Nice, man.

[frostfire]

You seasoned farmer/gardener may chuckle at this amateur, but it’s finally harvest after harvest after harvest. Even the cucumber is yielding one despite vicious bug insurgency

The tomatoes probably have few weeks left w the heat but I’ve made fresh ketchup, basil tomatoes soup, Enchilada, variety of salads, etc from it. Had a plate of omelets last night with fresh potatoes, onions, lettuce and tomatoes from the garden. So happy 😃 It sure is a morale boost despite being stuck OCONUS with all the gloom n doom news from US. Still don’t have the chickens...yet.

Now, if only I have bacon seeds....