The last couple of days have been about updating our pantry. Our can goods and toiletries are doing pretty well -- I'm guessing about two to three weeks worth -- though our canning this summer will certainly add to the mix. Our goal is six months of food stored in a rotating pantry. The big need right now is an upright freezer.
We're also continuing to purge. We have quite the pile ready for a Goodwill trip and, as I mentioned in an earlier post, a dumpster in the driveway that's piling up, as well. Simplify!
Seedlings are doing great. Still sprouting. I now have some peppers coming up, as well as some Butterking lettuce. I'm calling a guy tonight about a couple of 2' x 4' fluorescent fixtures that I can convert to additional grow lights. My goal is to create a year-round food production system in the basement.
Yesterday, I stopped by Starbucks and picked up a bag of coffee grounds for the compost pile. I have about a half a trash can of compost, now. I'm also thinking of starting a worm bin in the basement.
Showing posts with label food storage. Show all posts
Showing posts with label food storage. Show all posts
March 13, 2009
March 9, 2009
On Grains, Soils & Pantries
I'm currently planting seedlings for our new garden, primarily lettuces and broccoli. Once they've begun to germinate I'll place them under the new grow-lights I built and installed in the basement (I'll place pics later).
We did a bit of a seed swap yesterday at our get-together and I picked up almost 20 new organic heirloom varieties. I'm most excited by the Amaranth, which is a native grain that's been used for thousands of years for food production. Our friends said that the six plants they grew last year produced about five paper grocery sacks of grain. Not bad! I'm excited to see what kinds of breads my wife could concoct with those yields.
All of this is causing me to update my plans for the garden, which currently includes two 4' x 8' raised beds and a single 4' x' 4' raised bed for herbs. We'll also have a number of containers, including a large pot for strawberries (wahoo!).
We blessed that God has placed us in the middle of one of the richest growing areas (read: incredible soils) on the planet. These rich alluvial soils have made our area the heart of the heartland and the softest, sweetest roll in the middle of the breadbasket of the world. People I know around here do absolutely nothing to the soils in their suburban backyards and they're growing big, strong healthy plants, year in and out.
I now have seeds for 79 different vegetable and herb varieties. Naturally, planning for that many varieties (we'll never use all of them this year, I know) is a fair bit complicated, so I'm trying a Web-based software solution to help me plan it all out. I'll let you know how it works out later.
Building Up The Pantry
We're also working hard to expand and grow our pantry. Our goal right now is to have six months of food stored for our family of six. In in the event of an emergency, that will certainly carry our family through, as well as enable us to help our friends and neighbors. After all, it's all about family and community, right?
We did a bit of a seed swap yesterday at our get-together and I picked up almost 20 new organic heirloom varieties. I'm most excited by the Amaranth, which is a native grain that's been used for thousands of years for food production. Our friends said that the six plants they grew last year produced about five paper grocery sacks of grain. Not bad! I'm excited to see what kinds of breads my wife could concoct with those yields.
All of this is causing me to update my plans for the garden, which currently includes two 4' x 8' raised beds and a single 4' x' 4' raised bed for herbs. We'll also have a number of containers, including a large pot for strawberries (wahoo!).We blessed that God has placed us in the middle of one of the richest growing areas (read: incredible soils) on the planet. These rich alluvial soils have made our area the heart of the heartland and the softest, sweetest roll in the middle of the breadbasket of the world. People I know around here do absolutely nothing to the soils in their suburban backyards and they're growing big, strong healthy plants, year in and out.
I now have seeds for 79 different vegetable and herb varieties. Naturally, planning for that many varieties (we'll never use all of them this year, I know) is a fair bit complicated, so I'm trying a Web-based software solution to help me plan it all out. I'll let you know how it works out later.
Building Up The Pantry
We're also working hard to expand and grow our pantry. Our goal right now is to have six months of food stored for our family of six. In in the event of an emergency, that will certainly carry our family through, as well as enable us to help our friends and neighbors. After all, it's all about family and community, right?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
