Food

Discussion in 'Finding, Identifying, and Preparing Food' started by Sourdough, Sep 3, 2019.

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  1. Old Geezer

    Old Geezer Legendary Survivalist
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    Here's some videos on canning lard. I never saw my grandmother do this, so I went online and found these:

    https://duckduckgo.com/?q=canning+lard&atb=v140-1&iax=videos&ia=videos

    I got in two books on identifying edible wild plants and am beyond happy with both of them. I like the first book the most. Here are the two. Again, I most recommend the first.

    Edible Wild Plants; Wild Foods from Dirt to Plate
    by John Kallas; Gibbs Smith printers; 400 pages chocked full of photos, even recipes
    This book concentrates on North America and has maps of where the plants are known to grow wild.

    Backyard Foraging by Ellen Zachos
    This book also has wonderful photos.

    Both books have photos of plants that look like the plant discussed but that are not edible or dangerous to eat. Safety first and all that!

    Those living in other countries would have to obtain books specific to their region. It so happens that in the Southeastern USA, all manner of wild plant life exists. If humans were to disappear off the face of the planet, within 100 years, this place would be so grown-over that visiting space aliens would never know we ever existed. Here, life grows on rocks. Just trimming back brush this year left me with a pile of branches that filled an area 10ft long, 8ft deep, and 5ft tall. I might get a tad of kindling out of it. Short story is that if you wish something called a yard or a garden, then you will mightily have to fight Mother Nature for the space to do so. Leave anything in a gutter and you'll get tree sprouts starting up. Abandoned houses get swallowed.
    .
     
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  2. Max rigger

    Max rigger Master Survivalist
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    This is worth a watch if you've seen it already

     
  3. arctic bill

    arctic bill Master Survivalist
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    You should start that stuff now, it takes years to learn .
     
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  4. TMT Tactical

    TMT Tactical The Great Lizard ! Staff Member
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    AB, I agree with your post but no can do. We just bought a place out in a nice rural town. I am currently renovating the place. Time, money and manpower (me) is very limited. So far I have replaced / installed floors in three bedrooms. Removed and replaced three kitchen counter tops and the kitchen floor. Replaced kitchen faucet and sink. Installed garbage disposal. Removed and replaced 3 kitchen wall cabinets and installed two new kitchen base cabinets. Sanded and repainted existing kitchen cabinets, Plus painted the walls and ceiling in the kitchen and dining room. I also installed new back splash over two kitchen counter tops. This list does not even cover the outdoor items completed. I now have space to build a rain water harvesting system and then the 3 foot high raised beds. plus a second storage building. Bottom line, while I completely agree starting on food production is a high priority. I can hunt and fish, growing food will be the challenge. There is a limit to how much I can get done and how much we can afford, as we pay cash for everything. We have to budget everything, including my time, not a spring chicken any more (70+ years).
     
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  5. poltiregist

    poltiregist Legendary Survivalist
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    that indeed is impressive . Just out of curiosity , what is the purpose of making the raised beds 3 foot high ?
     
    Last edited: Jun 19, 2021
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    1. TMT Tactical
      First , 70+ years and very bad knees and a weak back. I am not going to do any weeding at ground level. Even with the best laid plans and skills (which I don't have) weeds are going to try and grow in the raised bed. Mother Natures has mean streak and will try and reclaim any available soil.
       
      TMT Tactical, Jun 19, 2021
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  6. arctic bill

    arctic bill Master Survivalist
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    I know 70 + in fact i bet that most of us are 70+. keep it up it keeps us healthy and alive,
     
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  7. TexDanm

    TexDanm Shadow Dancer
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    Back when I was a kid most of what we now call prepping and survival was just how people that were country folks just did things. We grew gardens and canned and raised all sorts of animals and we processed and at them ourselves. We canned a lot of what we ate and I can and have butchered almost anything that people eat be it domestic livestock or wild animals that I killed hunting.

    I am NOT 70 plus yet!!! No No No! I'm not going to go there for at least 2 more years... I am considdering just staying 68 from here on out... Raised beds are great things. I didn't have them 3 feet but they were a foot and a half to two feet to the top of the soil.
     
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  8. lonewolf

    lonewolf Societal Collapse Survivalist. Staff Member
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    back when I was a kid what we now call prepping and survival was just called COMMON SENSE, now common sense isnt common anymore.
     
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  9. poltiregist

    poltiregist Legendary Survivalist
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    China now has a new racket . They are now manufacturing plastic rice and sending this fake rice out to the supermarkets . Yep plastic rice . A couple of tests you can conduct to see if your food was derived from an oil well . Put your rice in water . If it floats it is plastic . If it sinks it likely is real rice . Another test is to put a flame to the suspect food . If the heated rice smells like burnet plastic it is likely because , it is plastic . --- More information can be obtained from you tube . Just type in plastic rice or synthetic rice .
     
    Last edited: Jun 20, 2021
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  10. poltiregist

    poltiregist Legendary Survivalist
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    Are you buying some of that healthy cheese ? Beware many cheese companies are adding wood pulp " saw dust " to their cheese to make more volume and thus more profit . I find it doubtful you will find a cheese company actually including saw dust as part of the ingredients of their product on the label . Like above you can find more information on this on you tube .
     
    Last edited: Jun 20, 2021
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  11. Max rigger

    Max rigger Master Survivalist
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    looking online the wood pulp is cellulose, they are allowed to add 4% and its a cheap way to add fibre to the food and generally only found in ready grated cheese and been happening since the 70s.

    Never skimp on cheese, cheap cheese is shite full stop and thats before they add any little 'extras'
     
  12. lonewolf

    lonewolf Societal Collapse Survivalist. Staff Member
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    I stick to good old British Cheddar cheese.
     
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  13. Max rigger

    Max rigger Master Survivalist
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    Cheddar........the King of cheeses. Keep a block of cheddar and a good slice of Stilton and you can forget the other cheeses. Jar or three of pickles, crackers and I'm happy in fact thats my lunch sorted (got no Stilton today).
     
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  14. lonewolf

    lonewolf Societal Collapse Survivalist. Staff Member
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    Cheddar and Lettuce is my favourite sandwich.
    having soup for lunch today.
     
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    1. Ystranc
      White Stilton and sardine on wholemeal
       
      Ystranc, Jun 25, 2021
  15. poltiregist

    poltiregist Legendary Survivalist
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    Subway franchise is now facing a law suit . The suit alleges subway is selling to it's customers some concoction they claim to be tuna . However after multiple tuna sandwiches were bought at various subways and sent to multiple labs the test revealed there was zero tuna in the concoction . There wasn't even a trace of any kind of fish in this stuff . At this time what this stuff actually is hasn't been revealed . Video on this matter can be found on you tube .
     
    Last edited: Jun 21, 2021
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  16. poltiregist

    poltiregist Legendary Survivalist
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    A few hours ago my son threw away a suspect pork roast . He bought it at a supermarket and it was questionable if it was really even meat . It didn't have the texture of meat or cook like meat and fell into pieces when lifted in the pot for inspection of this strange looking glob .
     
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  17. poltiregist

    poltiregist Legendary Survivalist
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    Under the new bought and paid for regime in the U.S. , I suspect these strange foods appearing with the intention of passing this stuff off to U.S. Citizens to put into their bodies will become the normal . I don't know whether other countries are seeing an emerging fake food market . Preppers with the ability to bypass the fake food market will have the advantage over those depending on a grocery store . There simply isn't much nutrition in food made from discarded plastic bags .
     
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  18. TMT Tactical

    TMT Tactical The Great Lizard ! Staff Member
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    For all our gardening GURU's--- How many square feet of garden is required to provide enough produces to feed a family of two? I plan to build raised beds for next years garden but I don't have a clue as to how many square feet of raised bed I will need to feed the wife and myself. I am currently located in the 8a -8B growing area. I would like to grow enough to have some left over for canning for the future crop failures or nasty weather. Mother Nature does have a mean streak and is best friends with Mr. Murphy, of Murphy's Law. Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. Any and all suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
     
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  19. poltiregist

    poltiregist Legendary Survivalist
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    I can't help much on the raised bed question but can point something out that may be of help . Depending on what you plant would you need to get down low much . For example my tomatoes usually reach about 6 feet in height making harvesting easy . Just as a novelty a couple of years ago decided to see how high I could grow my string beans . After they reached about 20 feet high I then started them running further horizontal for about another 10 feet . Running string beans produce a lot of food for the amount of ground space from which they came . If it wasn't for breaking anonymous protocol on your part I could send you some heirloom string bean seeds that would likely be the best tasting string beans you ever put in your mouth . Those seeds have been in my family for decades . --- Just an after thought , the above mentioned string beans grew about 30 feet long and started producing food at about 4 foot high ,and continued producing heavily until they stopped growing , were grown out of containers . The round containers measure 22 inches across and had about 14 inches deep of soil in them . From each container there was about 6 string bean vines growing . --- Another after thought A container elevated 22 inches inches that is 14 inches deep in soil would give the 3 foot height objective .
     
    Last edited: Jun 22, 2021
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  20. lonewolf

    lonewolf Societal Collapse Survivalist. Staff Member
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    The British Allotment society says a growing area of about 250 square metres or 300 square yards is sufficient for an average family to grow enough fruit and veg, I'm assuming by the average family they mean a family of 4 so therefore a family of 2 would need half that area.
     
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  21. Max rigger

    Max rigger Master Survivalist
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    Growing food is new to me, I 'played' at it last year but have put thought and effort into this year. Seems to me one of the biggest issues is long term over winter storage, growing seems the easier part of being self sufficient? I will have an abundance of tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet pepper, chillies, aubergines and courgettes certainly more than two of us can eat before they spoil so food prep/storage is next seasons project for me.

    I've learned something new today after reading LWs comment on alotment sizes in the UK, turns out they are measured in 'Rods' 10 rods in size which equals 250 square metres...thats one for the pub quiz night :)
     
  22. TMT Tactical

    TMT Tactical The Great Lizard ! Staff Member
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    I am starting to feel like I have badly under estimated the required amount of square footage needed to feed me and the wife. 125 square yards is about 5 times the amount of raised beds I had originally planned. While material cost is a consideration, the biggest issue now is the amount of space required. I had planned on 4 raised beds -- 3 foot wide by 6 foot long and 3 foot deep, for a total of 72 square surface feet. Not even beginning to be big enough, according to what I am reading. I would need about 20 raised beds to fulfill the needed food producing requirements, if I am doing the math properly. I don't think I have any where close to the needed space. I also have take under consideration the issue of security. I do not want to advertise to a hungry world, my place is a food source. Since I am Clueless NOT in Seattle, I think I will have to plot out my available land layout and post it on this forum and hopefully the resident experts can offer me some viable options.
     
    1. Ystranc
      Don't panic, just work with what you have and you should be able to get multiple crops from each of your raised beds. If you can back fill with the used straw from stables or goat sheds before adding a top dressing of soil medium it makes an unbelievabley rich bed to plant in.
      We used half barrels from a winery, goat bedding and soil/grit/compost dressing. They're mobile and take up very little space
       
      Ystranc, Jun 25, 2021
  23. Old Geezer

    Old Geezer Legendary Survivalist
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    The space you need is contingent on the crops you grow.

    Were you heavy into corn, your garden would be way too small. Were you growing squash, your garden would be way too big ... as a matter of fact, squash vines spread out and start taking over your yard or rest of your garden.

    The crops you plan to grow define how you lay-out your garden. With the Three Sisters concept, you have three food plants in the same space.

    https://duckduckgo.com/?q=three+sisters+gardening&atb=v140-1&ia=web

    https://duckduckgo.com/?q=three+sisters+gardening&atb=v140-1&iax=images&ia=images

    .
     
  24. TMT Tactical

    TMT Tactical The Great Lizard ! Staff Member
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    I have so very much to learn to become food self sufficient. I am going to have to determine what we will need to grow vs. what we eat now. Right now it is just salad type produce from the grocery store but we also buy many items to add to our meals. These extra items may not be available in the not to distant future. We may need to grow a lot more variety to make a proper diet. I had forgotten about the "Three Sisters". Thank you for the reminder OG.
     
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  25. poltiregist

    poltiregist Legendary Survivalist
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    300 square yards is a lot of land for gardening . This I find surprising . I have a question though if every rural family has a 300 square yard gardening allotment " where is this gardening lot " ? Does it set by each house or is there a community acreage somewhere ? Or perhaps this is just what a fortunate person is allowed to buy for gardening space . Excuse my ignorance but I find this interesting .----- I suspect there has been a mistake made somehow . In my opinion it should take only a much smaller space to feed a family .
     
    Last edited: Jun 22, 2021
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  26. Old Geezer

    Old Geezer Legendary Survivalist
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    I just posted some stuff about wild plants, a.k.a. "weeds", that are edible. Eating broad leaf weeds can fill you up. In your garden grow high-nutrient veggies like tomatoes and squash. Sweet potatoes / yams are nutritious. Actually dandelions are rather nutritious. If you kill some small game for the meat and fat, add these to your greens and you'll at the very least get by during terrible times.

    Put back dry goods like rice and beans. Rotate your stocks. For rice storage, I buy the exact same brand we normally eat. We human don't need a lot of meat, we just don't. We rotate our supplies of Spam. I like the bacon flavored Spam. Put back dried fruits -- they last on and on.

    As far as weight goes, the bulk of my stored ammo is shotgun shells loaded with birdshot. Survival ammo is not just self-defense, no no no -- it's .22 LR for your accurate rifle and birdshot for your shotguns. My maternal grandfather and I put the meat on the table for many a supper via small game and fishing. We Americans have gotten used to eating way too much meat. When you are poor, you come to truly appreciate the eating of meat.

    If you feed the local birds scraps, then in hard times you can blast a flock with birdshot and get enough meat to season the wild greens you've picked. I mean hey, people have lived like this. Think of Mother Nature's wild areas as your garden's adjunct. We preppers will all be foraging.

    Oh, kippered snacks. They are salty. Tins of kippers will keep on and on. Keep stacks of kippers.
    .
     
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  27. Old Geezer

    Old Geezer Legendary Survivalist
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    Here's articles on which veggies are packed with nutrients:

    https://www.almanac.com/most-nutritious-vegetables-you-can-grow

    https://www.gardeningchannel.com/most-nutritious-vegetables/

    The second article talks a bunch about greens. Growing greens takes up space, OK; keep that in mind. Listen, I swear you can pick a lot of greens that just grow in the wild. I've eaten a whole lot of poke weed in my day. Double boil (pouring off the water) poke greens and mix with curly mustard.

    https://migardener.com/5-weeds-that-are-actually-superfoods/

    https://blog.paleohacks.com/10-wild-foods-that-are-healthier-than-store-bought-produce/
    .
     
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  28. TMT Tactical

    TMT Tactical The Great Lizard ! Staff Member
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    Thanks OG. just some more items to add to my ever growing plans. I do have some wild / uncultivated land behind my back fence. This may be an excellent area to plant wild food plants, as it would not take up my cultivated space and would also not attract unwanted attention. Weeds to almost everybody but close to hand for foraging. Once I map out my available growing space in my side and back yard, I will have to create a list of what items to grow and in what season / order and of course where to plant them. I will also have to learn and develop methods to store any excess home grown foods. Darn I wish I had started down the prepper path a few decades ago.
     
  29. Max rigger

    Max rigger Master Survivalist
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    Have you thought about 'Square foot gardening'
    https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/home/gardening/a20706747/square-foot-gardening/

    You get the most from your space. I'm using the principle but using containers not raised beds, I've nothing growing in the ground other than some grass; grow bags in the polytunnel and 30cm containers for everything else and its working well. I got home from Wales about an hour ago and fare play to my lad he's watered everything in my absence and I'm amazed how much plants have shot up in my few days away especially in the tunnel...cucumber plants like a bloody Triffid, I'm scared to go near it!!!

    This is new to me so its purely a learning experience until I get more space some time in the future. Good luck with your plans TMT.
     
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  30. lonewolf

    lonewolf Societal Collapse Survivalist. Staff Member
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    Allotments here are what you would call "Community Gardens" I think, usually run by an Allotment Society for which an annual rent is payable, the size of the allotment also usually includes room for a shed and an area for composting. I think like you the size is rather generous, I have had several allotments during my adult life and a full allotment is a large area for one person to look after, especially part time whilst working elsewhere at a job.
    the last allotment we had was a half plot and we grew enough on that for the 2 of us.
    currently I dont have an allotment but am growing stuff in containers, any kind of container I can get my hands on, old recycling boxes mainly which work well with a few holes drilled in the bottom.
     
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  31. poltiregist

    poltiregist Legendary Survivalist
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    I could see there being a problem with hungry starving people raiding those gardens sitting well away from the allotment renters home when S.H.T.F. . Concentrating gardening efforts right beside ones Alamo certainly is a more reasonable plan for the starving times . ---- My guess is those full allotments were set up with the expectation of using motorized farming equipment or draft animals to work the land . After the collapse fuel for equipment or having a draft animal and the required plows for that animal to pull would be non-existent . Gardening smaller areas , using only human labor will change the way of gardening for those expecting to plop their butts down on a tractor seat and ride across their garden .
     
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  32. lonewolf

    lonewolf Societal Collapse Survivalist. Staff Member
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    Allotment plots here are so close together with just a narrow path between each that a draft animal is not feasible, some people use motorised rotorvators but a lot are old school and still dig it by hand.
    smaller areas and some raised beds where "no dig" is the norm would cut down on a lot of the manual labour post SHTF.
    over the years I have grown a lot of plants in tyres, multiple towers of tyres for potatoes and single tyres for other planting, a tractor tyre would make a decent large area for planting.
    most tyres are either thrown away by the roadside or can be had by asking your tyre dealer.
    most of your "starving masses" dont know what fruit and veg looks like in its natural state and could end up eating something that is toxic.
     
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  33. poltiregist

    poltiregist Legendary Survivalist
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    Perhaps I am just figuring wrong . It has been a few years since I sat in a math class . I am thinking of the allotment being a garden row with the length of 900 feet and having a row about every 4 foot apart would put there being about 220 rows wide . --- Squared off like a house site , the allotment would be more like 90 foot by 90 foot . --- My thinking process likely stems from back in the day when we would take our horse and plow and cultivate a somewhat large tract of ground for our survival needs that had about 500 foot long rows and around 50 rows wide .
     
    Last edited: Jun 23, 2021
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  34. lonewolf

    lonewolf Societal Collapse Survivalist. Staff Member
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    most allotments are more oblong than square, longer in length than wide.
    I dont think a "public" allotment would be very secure post SHTF, our last one was 5 miles away and the gate was never locked, which is why I am looking for land that I can lock the gate when not in residence.
     
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  35. Old Geezer

    Old Geezer Legendary Survivalist
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    Real estate prices have gone nuts, nevertheless it's important for preppers to do everything in their power to own land.
     
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  36. poltiregist

    poltiregist Legendary Survivalist
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    I totally agree that land prices are high right now , but are as cheap or cheaper than likely will ever be seen any where in the future . Some preppers saw this coming years ago and made their land purchase . Others just thought about it but had higher priorities to spend their money on such as going out to purchase their food at restaurants , shiney objects to hang on their bodies , smart phones or a nice new vehicle . Now that teotwawki has arrived and we are sinking in the quagmire of society collapsing , those properties suitable for a prepper are indeed expensive but again are not likely to ever get any cheaper . One of my strongest assets is to be able to look farther into the future than most and then make my survival plans on what I believe to be the future . --- This is where the younger preppers have the advantage as loan institutions are reluctant to loan money out to old preppers as they are likely closer to death than their younger counterparts . Buying that survival spot knowing with the government printing up bogus , unbacked money and throwing it out like beads at the Mardi Gra will cause inflation and probably hyper inflation might be a smart move . If the loan payment is set at a fixed amount then the prepper will be paying the loan back with inflated dollars that or worth much less than when the loan was taken out . During that same payment scheduled payback period as the money is worth less the property is worth more than when originally purchased .
     
    Last edited: Jun 23, 2021
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    1. TMT Tactical
      Well stated and is exactly how we are looking at the future. Purchased a small place out in the countryside. Bought a new truck for hauling building supplies and growing material. That is just part of our prep plans. No more apartment living or city living. Get what is needed now and let inflation be damned. Debt free would be better but we need to be able to move forward with our prep plans now. The time to prep is quickly evaporating.
       
      TMT Tactical, Jun 23, 2021
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  37. Old Geezer

    Old Geezer Legendary Survivalist
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    Because I job-hop and move with the opportunities, we have moved several times to multiple states across America. When moving, one first takes an apartment so as to look for real estate to buy. Not that long ago, moved to a small city where rent was not cheap (University town), yet cheaper than large cities. We did our searching and found a place in a little town not far away where our mortgage + taxes was far cheaper than any apartment rent in the city. Could get buy on very low wages if I had to do so. We like living in the middle of agriculture and near forested mountains. I've always commuted into towns for work. I do NOT like living in cities, even small ones. Gotta have garden space and trees. Having some big fine house means absolutely nothing to us. Give me a porch and lots of dirt to grow stuff in. I do like having a workshop; one does need that or a workshop garage.
     
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  38. poltiregist

    poltiregist Legendary Survivalist
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    Trying to depend on garden food for my survival is only one leg of a multi food source plan . So really having to have enough garden space to provide 100% of my households food intake is not the plan . Just speculation on my part but am looking at about 50% of food intake to be from the garden and 50% wild fish , squirrels and venison . Then we can wash it down with goat milk from our herd . All obtainable from my own property so no problem with the likely-hood of being shot trespassing onto someone else's property trying to obtain food . ---- Those depending on hunting public land will quickly find it barren of food unless they turn cannibal and eat the other people running around on the same property , with the same plan . Anyone that has hunted public land know how the wild game vacate the area within minutes of a hoard of humans arriving . ---- To protect our turf we have another well prepared survival group on our flank . Within our group we have members that are of the salt of the earth type that could rotate guard duty 24/ 7 .
     
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  39. lonewolf

    lonewolf Societal Collapse Survivalist. Staff Member
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    anyone in England who thinks the masses will be "hunting" is having a laugh, they wont have a clue, the game will be long gone before any urban types get anywhere near them, just dont fall over the rotting corpses (of the humans) on your travels.
    any of them who thinks they can survive in the woods over winter will be dead long before Spring comes.
    most wont know how to start.
     
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  40. Old Geezer

    Old Geezer Legendary Survivalist
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    Are there any large forested areas in the UK?!

    I've looked at maps, have done Google Earth flyovers, and whatnot. I've seen no large forests. I've seen some areas that constituted a very few square miles ... very few. However, I've just not seen big forests. Everything is agriculture or urban. One map I saw showed the "most green" areas and surprisingly these were near London where woods have been intentionally set aside. Even national parks in England seem not to be forested.

    Here in the States, heaven only knows how many people go missing in the forests each year. Forests extend for hundreds of miles. The Park Service isn't too keen on releasing the numbers.

    "Why hundreds of people vanish into the American wilderness"

    https://nypost.com/2020/07/04/why-hundreds-of-people-vanish-into-the-american-wilderness/

    "According to NamUs (National Missing and Unidentified Persons System), more than 600,000 persons go missing in the United States every year. Anywhere between 89 percent to 92 percent of those missing people are recovered every year, either alive or deceased. But how many of those disappear in the wild is unclear. Neither the Department of the Interior, which oversees the National Park Service, or the Department of Agriculture’s US Forest Service keeps track.

    "Strangely, the most reliable info on missing people in the wild comes from Bigfoot hunters. In 2011, David Paulides, founder of the North America Bigfoot Search, launched a database of wildland disappearances that occurred under 'mysterious circumstances.' From his research, there are at least 1,600 people, give or take, currently missing in the wild somewhere in the United States.

    "The biggest obstacle to getting any information about missing people in the wild, according to Paulides, is National Park Service red tape. He speculates that the Park Service conceals the true data on how and where people disappear and how many have actually been found because it 'would shock the public so badly that visitor numbers would fall off a cliff,' Billman writes."

    ----------------------

    https://lauthinvestigations.com/missing-persons-park-bizarre-disappearances-national-parks/

    "Government doesn’t keep track of missing on federal land"

    "Experts believe the public would be concerned and alarmed if they knew how many people simply vanish, never to be seen again, while visiting national parks.

    "The federal government does not track the number of missing persons in national parks, but experts believe about 1,600 individuals mysteriously vanish each year while visiting parks throughout the United States. While many reported missing are found, it is estimated hundreds remain missing.

    "Many are found, but many are never to be seen again, leaving families suffering the trauma of ambiguous loss – not knowing. Families who have experienced this say knowing your loved one is dead is easier than the 'not knowing' what happened."
    .
     
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  41. Old Geezer

    Old Geezer Legendary Survivalist
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    Just above, I did a post about people going missing in forested national parks in the US. No telling how many just wandered off and didn't take with them any emergency supplies whatsoever -- not even a pocket knife and candy bar. Then there's the matter of day-hikers who go out for just a few hours and who take nothing with them "just in case".

    Somebody aught to start a thread about what a day-hiker should take with them. Right now, I've gotta get back to the land of responsibilities, else I'd start a thread. What do y'all think would be a kit's contents for some folk not familiar with wilderness areas? We preppers ourselves know what we'd take, but folk reading this site sure may not have a clue or think that they know, but are really not thinking things through as they really should. If you were telling a novice what to take, what would you say?

    Somebody start that thread. Me, I have to jump off this site and get back to work.
    .
     
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  42. Max rigger

    Max rigger Master Survivalist
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    There is a large Deer population in the UK...in Scotland which actually needs reducing dramatically

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-51295296

    Your not going to go off into the woods here and live like Robin Hood and his merry band, slim pickings to be had certainly in the winter months in most of England and Wales. Growing food is great but you need to grow produce you can store, you need to access to a good river and or coastline for fish which I'm guessing would be of more food value than animal meat for many.

    I don't know how to fish, I'll learn sometime in the future but just don't have the spare hours to learn just now. If it hit the fan today all I have are some Gill nets, no rods and crayfish traps (I have used the traps in the past and they work well when you find the right spot).

    Open question: How will you store your veg/meat/fish, how will you preserve it? Do you practise this now? Pro's and con's?
     
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  43. Rebecca

    Rebecca Master Survivalist
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    If we are talking about storing in a world where you no longer have a freezer. And storing to carry you over at least a winter, than my suggestion is look into learning to can, dehydrate and smoke.
    Some vegetables are just fine stored in a cool dark dry space, like a root cellar. These include but are not limited to, garlic, squash, pumpkin, potatoes, certain fruits, cabbage. Some last better than others in a root cellar or basement.
    A great many things can be canned. No offence intended to our American friends here, but a great deal of information on canning available on the internet is based off what the USDA and Ball canning company has to say. They may be the be all and end all of food preservation in glass jars to many US folk, but us in other places realise you can take tomato canning instructions from Italians who have done it for centuries. Preserved garlic in oil like the French. And on and on. And you won't die despite what the hard USDA fans may sprout. There is a group on Facebook called Canning Rebels, I lurk there and learn lol. You can preserve everything from meat, fish, fruit, berries, and vegetables this way. Investing in an All American or Presto canner and a lot of jars, lids and rings may be wise. If you do it correctly and safely home canned foods can last for years.
    Dehydrating. Again so many things can be dehydrated one can't list them all. Pineapple, peaches, cherries, tomatoes, meats, eggs, potatoes, garlic, herbs etc etc. You can either buy an electric dehydrator and make a plan to run it off batteries and solar panels, or buy/build a solar dehydrator.

    And finally yes I do practice this now. It's still early in the gardening season for me, so I currently only have mint leaves drying. (They can be used for mint tea, added to dessert or meat dishes, or added to water for a refreshing drink)
    I should get enough strawberries by this evening off my two raised beds to make a batch of strawberry jam. After the jam if I still get a good harvest which judging by the still tiny green berries I should do, I will dehydrate the next lot.
     
  44. lonewolf

    lonewolf Societal Collapse Survivalist. Staff Member
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    I guess there is the New Forest and Sherwood Forest but they are both probably a shadow of what they once were, Exmoor and Dartmoor have some wooded areas, mostly around the edges, Dartmoor was cleared of trees around Neolithic times by the first farmers.
    fish and meat can be preserved, bottled and smoked being the main 2.
    vegetables will keep over winter in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight, back along I used to keep veggies in an old chest of drawers in a spare bedroom with the curtains(drapes?) permanently closed and they lasted all winter like that, taking care to remove any bad ones so they dont spoil the others.
    fishing-forget rod and line thats for hobby fishing, post SHTF traps and nets will be the order of the day, if someone lives near the sea dont forget coastal foraging, and rock pools if there are any, I had many a good meal from rock pools when I lived near the coast.
     
  45. Max rigger

    Max rigger Master Survivalist
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    Food for thought on this thread thats for sure, excuse the pun.

    I've been looking at canning supplies, jars etc and its not cheap here in the UK compared to the USA but home canning apart from jam and pickles is not common here. Can't do anything just now with work looming but I'll have canned my first stew before the end of this summer that for sure.
     
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  46. paul m

    paul m Expert Member
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    I was fishing this morning.I fish a lot,and though I say so myself,I am a skilled angler.mind you,I’ve been at it 50 years!
    In the first twenty minutes,I caught enough to feed 4 people.With rod and line. In a SHTF situation,that would be sufficient ,WITHOUT the hassle of preservation.That same trip could combine foraging/ shooting ( hunting), and you would be set for two or three days. I am not suggesting NOT preserving,but it is an approach that could save work. Netting ( inland) is extremely indiscriminate,and can soon deplete a watercourse of fish.Here in England,we have seen it happen,as Eastern Europeans have gill netted lakes to near extinction.I know that places like Poland and Hungary,much of the fishing is terrible.That’s because they have eaten everything with no forethought towards sustaining stocks.
     
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  47. lonewolf

    lonewolf Societal Collapse Survivalist. Staff Member
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    I dont doubt that someone could catch enough fish to feed themselves but for us lesser mortals it can be very time consuming, I've been fishing myself in the past and caught nothing, so leaving a net or a trap in a SHTF situation and going off and doing other chores does make sense. so does leaving out baited lines overnight.
     
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  48. poltiregist

    poltiregist Legendary Survivalist
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    Consider , is that fishing spot within a reasonable WALKING distance ? If not scratch through that plan as when fuel for transportation is not available after the collapse , walking to and then back with the catch before it spoils could be a problem . When all the surrounding human population converge on that fishing location , how long will it take to deplete the fish population ? I agree fishing is a viable option and is also on one leg of my multiple leg plan but most folks are not like me and have their own private fishing location within a easy walk .
     
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  49. lonewolf

    lonewolf Societal Collapse Survivalist. Staff Member
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    I dont have large rivers near me, most are small tributaries that feed into larger rivers further down stream and any fish will be small, but what there "may" be are signal crayfish, they are in a lot of British rivers, post SHTF I will be putting out traps for these and coming back later to check them.
     
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  50. paul m

    paul m Expert Member
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    I live in a ‘watery’ area. Travel to and fro will be no problem at all. I certainly won’t be walking either; that’s why the bicycle was invented!

    We also have a burgeoning population of signal crayfish too. Damned nuisances they are, but as mentioned, they are an easily captured food source.

    I suppose that wild food, and the way it is gathered, depends largely on your own local environment, and your skill set too.
     
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