LEFTY PREPPER MOM

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  • Home
  • About
  • Blog
  • Preparedness
    • Where to begin
    • Bug-Out Bags
    • Basic Disaster Supplies
    • Car Preparedness
    • Medical Issues >
      • Medical Supplies
      • Health Preparedness
      • Disaster First Aid
    • Water Storage
    • Long Term Food Storage >
      • Food Shelf Life
      • Stocking Up
      • Food Preservation
      • How to Store Food
      • Where to Store Food
  • Survival
    • Cooking without Electricity
    • Gardening Basics
    • Sanitation & Laundry
    • Personal Hygiene
    • Security
    • Outdoor Survival
    • Starting a Fire
  • RESOURCES
  • SHOP
    • Books
    • Cooking Supplies
    • Emergency Kits
    • Food & Water Storage
    • Food Preserving
    • Sanitation
    • Medical Supplies
    • Gardening Supplies
    • Security

Gardening basics

GARDENING BASICS
 
Like everything else related to long-term survival after disasters, it’s best to have experience with gardening BEFORE things go wrong.
 
If you’re already a gardener you’re probably not going to read this section, I guess. But if you are, and you have advice to share, please comment at the end of this section!
 
WHAT DO YOU NEED?
Seeds
  • Purchase at your local feed store, online or by catalog
  • Have on hand: Non-GMO seeds stored in a vacuum-packed bag in the freezer
  •  “Seed vaults” are available online containing a variety of fruit/veggie seeds
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Tools
  • Round-headed shovel
  • Japanese gardener's knife (or “hori-hori”)
  • Shears
  • Hand pruner
  • Transplant spade
  • Gardening gloves (latex-coated cotton, heavy-duty leather)
  • Leaf rake
Good location
Moist, well-drained soil
At least 6 hours of sunlight per day
Close to a water source
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Picture
GETTING STARTED

Prepare your garden area
  • Prepare the soil
  • Till/loosen soil at least 6 inches deep – use a tiller or hand dig
  • Add organic matter/compost if your soil is sandy, rocky, or contains a lot of clay
  • Row cropping
  • Decide how large an area you want to clear
  • 10 x 10 foot garden with good soil can produce a lot of produce
  • Raised beds
  • Good for areas with poor drainage
  • You can bring in good soil
  • Easier to work (less bending over)
  • Containers
  • Can be used on rooftops, balconies, small yards

​
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​Plant your seeds & starts
  • Follow directions on the seeds RE: depth, nighttime temperatures, spacing
  • some can be started indoors, others should wait until all risk of frost has passed before being sown outdoors.
  • Purchase plant starts
  • These are more expensive, but will produce earlier than seeds sown directly
  • Keep track of where you planted your seeds (keep a garden log)
 

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Picture
Care for your garden
  • Water regularly (usually every other day)
  • You can fertilize OR you can apply organic compost once per growing season
  • Weed and watch for pests
  • * There are natural ways to treat for aphids, caterpillars, etc. (give examples)
  • Support plants that need it (trellises for peas and beans, cages for tomatoes, stakes for sunflowers)
 
Harvest at the right time
  • Too small/too green: bitter/tart/poor flavor
  • Too big/too old: too much water, not enough flavor, over-ripe
  • Try one before you pick them all!
  • Some plants are ripe for a long time and keep producing
  • * snap peas, green beans, strawberries, lettuce, kale, carrots, rhubarb
  • Some plants ripen within a few weeks (cherries, plums, melons, tomatoes??)
 
Keep track of your harvest:
  • How much (by weight)?
  • When harvested?
  • Any lessons to remember?
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Please check out my blog post (Growing Food at Home - Anyone can do it!) for information about gardening in small spaces and recommended plants for areas with different amounts of sun exposure! 

    Please share your ideas and suggestions RE: home gardening!

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Photos used under Creative Commons from fred_v, Muffet, denisbin, MizGingerSnaps, BLMOregon, Local Food Initiative