Food

[JCP]

12 minutes ago, kj35 said:

Do you compost ?

 

I compost using red wigglers and the Urban Worm Bag. Not only do the worms break down waste super fast, but the result is high quality worm castings.

The flow-through design makes it really easy too. Load waste in the top and harvest castings from the bottom.

 

https://shop.urbanwormcompany.com/

 

[Tinfoil Hat]

I've just got a tiny back yard. I've just started digging the overgrown patch out and clearing all my pots (mainly of weeds) and preparing to replace everything with fruit & veg. I already have herbs out there and some strawberries. Late in the year, but better late than never.

 

Just bought a small rotating drum composter and ordered a semi dwarf Braeburn but am planning to grow mainly from seed so it's mainly prep ready to make the most of it next year 

 

I'm excited to have made the decision after initially feeling it wasn't worth it. I had an allotment years ago but had to give it up due to health and work commitments and I miss that fresh, vibrant food.

 

Your enthusiasm in this thread has inspired me to get my finger out.

[eddy64]

yes its nice to potter about in the garden on a fine day, good for the mental health and also fun at least to me.

[Golden Retriever]

On 6/19/2020 at 3:49 PM, kj35 said:

It makes me think it's like a flag to those in the know. Ie " prepare " we've moved to the next stage and you have a 3 year window before no meat...worldwide droughts etc.  It's like they do it small-scale but enough to be noticed then pull back so the masses stop worrying about it and preparing but it's enough of a signal to the other elites .

 

"Fuck the New World Order"

 

 

 

Edited July 1, 2022 by Golden Retriever

[Tinfoil Hat]

At the weekend I found some trays of 6 x strawberry plants in The Range that were mainly dead from neglect, so I switched the plants in a tray to select ones that looked like like they'd a chance of surviving and haggled with staff so got them for £2.50.

 

I stripped the dead bits & planted them up with some root booster and 2 days later they look happy and healthy.

 

Has anyone tried the little blackberries that can grow in pots? I love berries but have no experience with blackberries so wondered if anyone can recommend a variety (I've seen Black Cascade & Little Black Prince) please?

 

I'm all for foraging from the wild in principle but many years ago, my parents and neighbours were harvesting some mushrooms they'd found until one day my Dad found the council spraying them. He asked what they were using, and they said paraquat! 

[Storm in the garden]

First off, I love the "Fuck the NWO" poster. Anyone know where I can get one?

 

Secondly, when I had a rest away from the site for a while I was surprised at how little activity there was on this thread when I returned. It appears that most are more interested in meteor strikes, aliens, magnetic pole shifts etc. and don't appear to think that food is "sexy" enough of a topic? 

People need to realize that you can't do anything about the above but you can about food? It's obvious that the whole food supply chain is under constant threat and that without food you will die, it's that simple. 

I suppose it's easier to just sit at a keyboard and talk about abstract possibilities than it is to actually do the real physical stuff. Just don't show up at my door in the future hoping to swop your theories for my bag of potatoes.

 

And just a couple of observations for the few who are interested in the real world, boring stuff.

5 years ago I could see problems coming down the line, and even though I didn't know the specifics of it I started putting some long life food by for a 'rainy day'.

Well time flies as they say, and some of that canned food I thought at the time expired in the far distant future I've discovered yesterday is expiring now (or soon)? 

In other words it's time to start eating (and replacing with new stock!) that initial food reserve, which means I'm going to be eating a lot of tuna over the summer and tinned stew this winter. So if you also prepared for shortages maybe best to check what you have and move the short date stuff to a place where you'll see it and use it?

Tip: Get a permanent marker and write the BB year (25 or 27 etc. on the top of the tin/jar so it's easier to spot and organize.

 

I know I talked about this before but pak choi is an amazing vegetable, seeds easy to propagate, grows quickly and in any weather, no maintenance and no digging. Just remove leaves as needed and it will continue producing, and at the end of the season provides tons of seeds for the following year. There's no excuse for anyone not to be growing this as all you need are a few small/medium plant pots and some soil (and maybe some sort of tray underneath to keep it well watered)

I boiled it for the first time this week (well simmered for about 7 minutes actually) and it was delicious.

And for anyone struggling with the rising cost of food....

I had the boiled pak choi (free) with a 213g tin of wild pacific salmon ( €1.35 in Aldi) which provided over 40g of protein and lots of fibre which equates to 30% the cost of a McDonalds crappy happy meal?

Double the protein and 30% of the cost, it's a no brainer really isn't it?

 

[Storm in the garden]

2 hours ago, Tinfoil Hat said:

At the weekend I found some trays of 6 x strawberry plants in The Range that were mainly dead from neglect, so I switched the plants in a tray to select ones that looked like like they'd a chance of surviving and haggled with staff so got them for £2.50.

 

I stripped the dead bits & planted them up with some root booster and 2 days later they look happy and healthy.

 

Has anyone tried the little blackberries that can grow in pots? I love berries but have no experience with blackberries so wondered if anyone can recommend a variety (I've seen Black Cascade & Little Black Prince) please?

 

I'm all for foraging from the wild in principle but many years ago, my parents and neighbours were harvesting some mushrooms they'd found until one day my Dad found the council spraying them. He asked what they were using, and they said paraquat! 

 

Sorry I can't help on the blackberry question. I have wild blackberry bushes bordering my field and I know nothing is ever sprayed there so I just pick them when in season? However I too like berries and have a bit of experience of what grows well and what doesn't in the Irish climate?

Raspberries grow like crazy here. I planted a few canes a couple of years ago (in the ground not in pots) and they're shooting up all over the place, and right now I'm picking a jar of raspberries every day (and freezing most of them). 

Blackcurrant bushes grow really well here too. 

I'm growing Alpine strawberries in a small raised bed and they produce lots of small ( about half the size of a grape) fruit.

The one failure I've had is with blueberries. I've tried a number of times in different soil etc. but they just don't seem to be a success. Maybe they need more sunshine than Ireland can provide.

Anyway I know it doesn't directly answer your question just thought I'd let you know what works for me in case you're in a similar climate?  

[Tinfoil Hat]

I love blackcurrants and gooseberries and rhubarb but have very little space, so will get to grips with more every day veg first then look into growing those in pots if feasible if space allows.

 

Thanks for the tips - my mum's tried growing blueberries a few times without success and she's very green fingered so I'll leave those at the bottom of my list for now.

[Storm in the garden]

7 minutes ago, Tinfoil Hat said:

I love blackcurrants and gooseberries and rhubarb but have very little space, so will get to grips with more every day veg first then look into growing those in pots if feasible if space allows.

 

Thanks for the tips - my mum's tried growing blueberries a few times without success and she's very green fingered so I'll leave those at the bottom of my list for now.

 

Well I'd definitely steer clear of the blueberries in that case. I have one bush out of 4 that looks like it will produce about a dozen berries, but nothing else.

I tried gooseberries but they were attacked by some insect (name escapes me) that eats all the leaves and just leaves a stem, so I don't bother with them now.

The rhubarb plant was very productive but the problem now is that it's sharing it's space with the raspberries and the raspberries are winning that battle, so the rhubarb is losing out. Maybe it will make a comeback when I cut back the raspberry canes when they're finished producing. I already got a crop from the rhubarb earlier this year so my preference now is collecting raspberries.

Anyway, keep up the growing. It's a learning curve for us all to figure out what works best and involves it's fair share of victories and defeats. 

[Bombadil]

9 hours ago, Storm in the garden said:

It's a learning curve for us all to figure out what works best and involves it's fair share of victories and defeats. 

Never a true sentence spoken! For every failure I’ve had, I’ve had another success.

At least we will be able to provide some food for our loved ones if needed. And it certainly seems it will be

[TheConsultant]

On 6/30/2022 at 9:50 PM, kj35 said:

The storing of seeds is something I would like to learn more about. 

Storing and sowing seeds after being exposed to one side of a singular magnet can help yield far more healthy produce. That is a seed tip I can give you.



Magnetic field regulates plant functions, growth and enhances tolerance against environmental stresses
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6745571/

Magnetic field effects on plant growth, development, and evolution
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4154392/ 
 

Exposure of maize seeds to stationary magnetic fields: Effects on germination and early growth

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0098847205001711
 

Works for any seed, give it a try. Each magnetic pole has a different effect  Try a patch without exposure and one with (if you have the space of course)

[Storm in the garden]

J

 

Just emptied my first planter weighing in at 2kg. Not bad for two supermarket bought potatoes which had gone to seed?

Only another 37 planters to go most of which still have some growing to do, but if they're all similar to this one they would yield around 76kg or 167.5 pounds of spuds

From the last of the harvest I'll save some and hopefully they'll become next years seed potatoes, along with all the other seeds I'll be gathering from this year.

Sorry Klaus but I don't think I'll be needing "ze bugs" just yet? 

[Tinfoil Hat]

They look very impressive. Yummy! Mashed potatoes may not light many people's fire but it's been my favourite thing since I was weaned., and they look really good. 

 

With being so late planting I've been very fortunate with this weather. It's less than 2 weeks since I put a few seeds in, and there are raddishes coming through (expected) but also a small crop for winter showing through of turnips, carrots, kholrabi, beetroot, chard and spinach, none of which did I expect to see evidence of for a few weeks yet.

 

I put in 20 strawberry plants and have partially buried 9 runners off them which hopefully will root. I could have planted more of the runners if I'd had the space.

 

Am getting some herbs and microgreens started in the house this weekend.