If you have spent any amount of time growing crops, either in a small backyard garden or a large multi-acre farm, you probably know by now that producing bountiful, healthy returns is anything but easy, and doing so repeatedly can be maddeningly difficult. Between irrigation, pest control and dozens of other variables that must be … Read more
Starting seeds indoors should be a vital part of any prepper’s food security plan. You do not need a greenhouse nor a lot of expensive equipment to successfully provide all the plants you will need. Even preppers with space and light limitations can start seeds to grow their own garden plants. Growing your own vegetable, … Read more
Every family has their own goals for prepping, and creating a seed stockpile follows our goals to have a self-sufficient homestead. Seed saving allows you to have a self-sustaining garden each year. You won’t depend on the garden store for your vegetable seeds each year. Saving seeds also give you an opportunity to share with … Read more
Over the past few years I have tried growing potatoes. Not wanting to use precious garden space for experimenting with potato’s – I tried growing them in containers. I found it surprisingly easy. In the Spring of 2010 I planted 27 buckets and had great success. Potatoes are generally started in cooler weather. For those … Read more
by Contributing Author One of the best ways to be prepared for the many uncertainties that life hurls at us is to grow our own food. Gardening can be a vital skill to learn ahead of time, before a disaster strikes. There can be a decent learning curve if you’ve never raised your own food … Read more
This past summer much of the U.S. suffered prolonged droughts. In many areas wells ran dry and towns implemented water use limits. Farmers, gardeners, and homesteaders watched as their crops wilted and died. While this was devastating for any commercial growers, everyone else simply made a few more trips to the local grocery store. Unfortunately … Read more
by Karen One of the most important aspects of survival after the collapse of society is how to ensure you and your family have enough food. You may have a few months of food stored away, but eventually that will run out and you will need to hunt, forage, and grow your own food. The … Read more
When it comes to aspects of preparedness gardening is one of my favorites. There is just something about preparing the dirt, dropping some seed in it, watering – and then watching as a bit of green breaks through the soil within a few days. Very satisfying. Although I have an in-ground garden and a couple of … Read more
My brother bought me the book Mini Farming: Self-Sufficiency on 1/4 Acre a while back. He knows my passion for gardening as well as a desire to learn everything “homesteading” that I can. I live in a typical suburban community – so I am maximizing my property within confines of the Rules and Regulations of the community … Read more
We spend tons of money on guns, ammunition, knives, backpacks and all kinds of things labeled “tactical” – but what about seeds? Many of us that prepare for “bad times” ahead consider gardening an integral part of our systems. Seeds are ultra-inexpensive and readily available most anywhere. I am not going to get into the … Read more
From Rourke: This post was originally posted over at SeasonedCitizenPrepper.com. It can be seen HERE. By Beverly Sandlin For all of the hype about square foot gardening and raised beds, when two of my sisters, both avid and experienced gardeners (better than I am) stopped by last week, we had a little discussion and all … Read more
The raised bed I built a few weeks ago is doing well. The cucumber plant has climbed the cage I surrounded it with and is reaching out the top. There are approx. 1 “boatload” of mini-cucumber growing on the vine. If we do not get rain I water it every day or so. There are a … Read more
We spend tons of money on guns, ammunition, knives, backpacks and all kinds of things labeled “tactical” – but what about seeds? Many of us that prepare for “bad times” ahead consider gardening an integral part of our systems. Seeds are ultra-inexpensive and readily available most anywhere. I am not going to get into the … Read more
The following post was originally published at SeasonedCitizenPrepper.com. It can be seen in its original form HERE. By Bev When I was a little girl a yearly ritual was when my Mother took us all out to hunt for blackcaps. Blackcaps are those delicious little wild berries that pop up everywhere. We always took … Read more
I just completed another project building a rotating compost bin out of scrap deck wood. I am no carpenter and focus more on utility than appearance (obviously 🙂 ). I have had a compost bin located in my garden for several years and wanted another. Originally I created a couple of circular enclosures with some … Read more
This past weekend I completed a project I had wanted to do for some time: I built a new raised bed to add to my gardening. Certainly not an architectural masterpiece I had a bunch of scrap wood that a friend gave me when he replaced his deck. Seeing gardening beds like this before I … Read more
The garden is looking good so far this season. In previous years I tended to overpack my gardening space with plants. I guess my thoughts behind this was to try to get the maximum harvest possible as if it was a survival situation. I did use a decent amount of fertilizer (Miracle Grow) so the … Read more
Back on April 29th an article titled “Cheap Survival Gardening” was published. Several follow up comments were left including a request for pictures of the garden. Well – author “JP” has obliged and sent some pictures in. Thanks JP!!
I live in a suburban neighborhood that doesn’t allow chickens or rabbits, but I decided that I wanted a homestead survival garden at least to grow some of my own food. I don’t plan on becoming a total vegetarian, but want to provide some plant protein and vitamins for my family during a grid-down situation. I … Read more
Echinacea The beauty of Echinacea is equal to its value medicinally. The intense purple daisy-like flowers outshine most flowers in the herb garden. Even the Monarch butterflies find it attractive. Tall and impressive, this perennial plant’s natural habitats are the prairies and dry plains of North America, mainly in the U.S.A., from southern Saskatchewan and … Read more
I have found gardening to be a continuous learning process. Fall/Winter gardening is something I have little experience with and decided to do a little this Fall. In one raised bed I planted lettuce (Red Seeded Simpson), broccoli, carrots, and radish. In a small portion of my main garden I planted peas, broccoli, and more lettuce … Read more
There are many reasons to have your own garden. Growing and eating vegetables that you grew from scratch by preparing soil, planting seeds, weeding, watering and picking all yourself is incredibly rewarding. Money can be saved as seeds are much less expensive than the corresponding produce. Fresh produce harvested straight from the garden taste … Read more
I started my gardening this year in early April. Back then I started cucumbers, zucchini, and summer squash from seed along with a few other things. Here in South Carolina some crops can be planted twice to get two rounds of growing. Just this past weekend I had to pull up a few cucumber and … Read more
Just a quick note and a few pictures showing my garden has just started providing for my family…… Those that have been hanging around here at MSOnline for awhile know I really recommend developing gardening skills. Being able to supplement foods stored “just in case” with fresh fruits and vegetables is essential. … Read more