Gardening to live, or at least to not go hungry, or "Survival gardening", is something few people in the modern western world would ever contemplate.
After all, why should we? The shops have always been there for us. Whenever we need food, we just go and buy some, and I guess we'll always have money to do so, right?I mean, things like hyperinflation and/or economic collapse could never actually happen to us, especially here in the western world, that sort of thing only happens in, poor countries, with corrupt governments, doesn't it? Besides, we have people in place to prevent that sort of thing from happening, and if it does all go wrong, our caring governments will be there to look after us, and feed us - I mean, that's what we pay them for! Right?
So, is the concept of survival gardening worthy of our attention, or it is just a waste of our time contemplating and learning such skills that we may never need?
A world in turmoil? As each day passes, the world in general seems to be heading deeper into a tailspin. We're already in the grips of an economic recession. Every day we hear whispers of news that make us raise an eyebrow and wonder about the security of our financial futures. There is continuous chatter about the impending collapse of some of the major currencies, Gold and silver prices are growing like never before, and just recently the press has been talking about the sobering topic of global food shortages.
If you are living in the US, COSTCO have just started advertising survivalist and preparedness supplies in the form of #10 cans of freeze dried foods, food storage and rotation systems, among many other items. Until recently, items like this were only available in specialized stores. Now there is significantly increased demand for such items as more and more people contemplate hard times ahead and start to prepare accordingly by investing in items they feel will bolster up their security and safety.
Of course it's not just man made events that could bring about a need for survival gardening skills. There are many different potential scenarios and reasons to be prepared including one that NASA is warning of; something called a Solar Maximum that is due to peak around 2011 to 2014. Scientists are saying that a solar storm from the sun could potentailly disable or destroy the electronic infrastructure of the planet, potentially plunging modern civilization back 100 years in technology.
Already this year we have seen an increase in earthquakes and volcanic activity, and some people are attributing these to the coming solar activity.
It’s ironic that I happen to be writing an article on survival gardening whilst snowed-in at my house. Europe is currently in the grip of what feels like a mini ice-age! In fact it’s only been a week, but there have already been widespread reports of panic buying, and fights breaking out over food. Some shops are rationing bread, milk and eggs.
Preparedness Personally, I’ve always been an advocate of preparedness. I think a measured degree of planning ahead to cater for unforeseen (and especially foreseen) predicaments, is a sensible and reasonable move. It ensures you are covered for a wide variety of things if they hit, such as economic crisis, or any kind of breakdown or interruption in the delecate infrastructure we rely on so much.
Survival gardening skills are just another part of the preparedness concept. It is putting into practice the art of providing food for yourself and your family, without dependence on the supermarkets for your continued existence. Learning the knowledge, and more importantly, gaining the experience of growing and foraging for your own food will stand you in good stead should the worst happen and you find yourself relying on your own efforts to feed you and yours.
I am also a big fan of foraging for wild food. Edible plants and other wild foods, including edible weeds like dandelions, and Stinging Nettles are all around us and can be used in all sorts of ways to supplement our food and medicine supplies. Why just rely soley on your garden when there is so much to be had in the nearby surroundings? All it takes is a little knowledge and practice to arm yourself with these valuable and potentially life-saving skills.
Delicate Infrastructure In the early naughties, the UK was virtually brought to its knees by fuel protests. The truck drivers arranged a mass blockade of the major fuel terminals and the resulting chaos that ensued shone a very bright light onto just how delicate our society and infrastructure really is. The protests lasted for about 4 days, and in that time, the supermarket shelves became empty, and people were panic buying. This was just a minor disruption, nobody starved, but it was a sobering lesson in just how dependent we have become on our delicate infrastructure, and on our supermarkets providing us with food.
What would happen if some other kind of disruption brought our finely-tuned infrastructure to a halt? Perhaps for a considerable time? How long would it be before getting your hands on food, something we all take for granted right now, becomes a matter of urgency and survival? Well if the fuel protests were anything to go by, I'd say about a week, no more than two before people would find themselves queuing in bread lines and relying on others for their very existence.
Growing Survival Food Requires Experience If it was to be a long term thing, then people would be turning to their gardens to grow their own, only to discover that survival gardening is not as easy as they thought it might be, especially if there is
limited space
, in which case the right choice of vegetables would be essential to provide the highest sustenance and yield per square foot.
Having a good stock of the right kind of seeds is also vital! If you think you are safe with all the seeds provided by the big seed companies from their glossy catologues, think again! See my article on buying seeds here
More and more people are now catching on to the idea that these scenarios which at first glance seem impossible, when looked at more closely, do appear to have potential to become reality, and therefore merit further investigation. Those who do make the effort to look a little deeper beneath the surface, usually tend to be shocked at what they find.
By entering into the practice of growing your own food now, you are to all intents and purposes, learning the art of Survival gardening, even though you won't actually think of it as that - after all, it's far too much fun! But whatever label you give it, it could be one of the best moves you'll ever make.
Learning the process of survival gardening gives you valuable life skills and the experience of growing your own food.
Now is the time to learn, so you can gain experience and learn from your mistakes, when the supermarket shelves are there to supplement you after you find out it's not as easy as you first though it might be.
Waiting until a crisis starts, leaving it to a time when you actually need food before attempting to learn survival gardening skills, could be costly.
Do You Have A Great Story or Comment About This Topic?
Click below to see contributions from other visitors to this page...
Stinging Nettles - More than a food source.
Hi Rick, Just reading about your experiments with Stinging Nettles reminded me of a time when I experimented with making a biodegradable nettle insecticide....
