Should You Focus On Growing Only High Calorie Garden Crops?

Growing your own food would guarantee you food security after a disaster and while some advice that your focus should be on growing food which your family will like [+ already do] or anything that could grow well where you are there are some who think it's wiser to choose nutrient dense crops like corn, potatoes, soy and others like them.

Which crops would you choose?

 

I probably would choose high calorie value crops too. Also, would grow crops that provide a decent source of proteins too. Such crops, including various oilseeds and grains, are important in meeting the nourishment requirements of farm animals.

 

This is a pretty smart way of thinking about gardening I think. I'd definitely look for high protein crops also like soy, and compliment with other plants with a lot of nutrients like potatoes, carrots, and spinach. You're gonna want some variety as well as some foods that are more filling.

 

I think it's a smart idea to focus on all different types of crops. I don't think that it's necessary to only focus on high calorie crops. It sounds good on paper, but eventually it's going to be a good idea to have a variety of crops to choose from. I know that the main focus is survival, but even the survivalists tire of having the same food on a day to day basis. I think it'd be smart to grow crops that are high in fiber. Not everything needs to be high in calories, but in a time of crisis, it might be nice to feel full rather than be full of calories alone. Lettuce may not be high in calories, but it can make you feel incredibly full when you are hurting for food. The same goes for other low calorie crops as well.

 

Personally, I think the ideal growing option is contained, indoor, rapid-growing fruit. It digests easily, is the most safe (peels offer more protection than most vegetables), is the most hydrating and contains so much natural goodness that you never need to cook.

You can definitely live off of mostly fruit, and of all the foods you could live off that you don't have to cook, none are as tasty or satisfying as fruit. Really gotta be sure they're ripe though or you may as well not eat em.

 

I never really thought about raising things higher in calories, but it certainly makes sense. However, I would also consider a few other factors as well. Like how much does a crop yield per certain amount of space (if space is an issue) and nutrients (as opposed to straight caloric content). For instance, I feel it would be wiser to grow kale vs iceberg lettuce. Kale and other darker greens tend to have more vitamins than lighter leafy vegetables, like the iceberg lettuce.

 

Yeah, but iceberg also proportionally has less calories in general...even if calories from greens tend to be somewhat insignificant. Space is definitely a concern, but the problem is that the most space efficient fruits come from trees, and you're probably not going to be able to contain and secure that as easily as vine-grown fruits like squash and melons, sadly. No plums for us

 

OftheEarth, what fruits would you grow inside? I have a sun room and crops planted outside often begin to burn beginning in July. I would like to start growing items year round in my sunroom. Any ideas?

 

^ Personally, I would look up exotic berries. The thing about modern culture is that we do not see fruit past our own region, yet there are countless fruits on this planet. I am not at that stage of my life where I can be doing that type of growing, but I'd absolutely have squash, melon and berries available if I had rich soil and a place to put them. Squash is one of those fruits that has the nutrient profile of vegetables while still being good enough to just take a bite of (you can even make noodles out of squash and make pasta without ever cooking), and you can also just grow tomato and have your own sauce blends, too.

The reason I said berries though is because you can grow them up and along the walls while keeping the vine-based stuff on the ground for efficiency. Also, berries usually have an amazing profile for nutrients without taking a billion years to grow. They're not so filling, but they'll keep you lively.

 

I think variety is the key, after all not all nutrient dense foods have all that we need. If you have the space then you should grow a good variety of different plants, they will give you a little extra effort but will end up being worth while. Having good food can be a morale booster and it's especially necessary after a disaster.

 

I always believe in growing ideal vegetables in prepping for survival situation. Something that will give out high yields quickly. 30 days maturity is ideal grow time for me. I wouldn't want to be waiting for a harvest to mature and have to start all over again. In 60 days you would have gotten 2 harvest out of that lone vegetable that takes forever to grow.

Here are but a few of the faster growing vegetables out there. I'm not apposed to having a lot of banana trees in your yard either.

• RADISHES. One of the fastest growing vegetables are radishes. ...
• GREEN ONIONS. ...
• LETTUCE. ...
• BABY CARROTS. ...
• SPINACH. ...
• KALE & OTHER LEAFY GREENS. ...
• PEAS. ...
• BUSH BEANS.

 

I would choose beans and kale. Actually I would choose anything that's easy to grow. I would really like to have potatoes because they fill you up.
Sweet potatoes are healthy also if I could grow apples I'd choose them to.

 

^ Forgot to say beans, yeah. Beans are amazing, if you can get them out at any reasonable pace...the only problem is its so easy to stock up on dried beans and just soak those that it kinda gets redundant to grow them. I suppose if you just wanted a constant stash yeah, but when you can just buy a week's worth of organic beans for like $1.50 or something ridiculously cheap like that if you're buying in bulk