Collapse preparation - Organic gardening / farming

[jpsodak]

one thing you might want to think about is establishing a "food forest" aka forest gardening. from what i have read, once it is established it can produce an abundance of food

[papillonaquatique]

Don't feel too badly about your peanuts. This year was the worst peanut crop in history and the price of peanut butter is going to be MUCH higher next year because of that.

[Clempt90]

Great video, love the sounds of the birds. Where do you live ?

[Awatcherofevents]

You should look at silage because it can supplement and create stores of food for livestock. My opinion is that small to medium sized animals are best for logistical reasons. I put a video on my channel about it.

[EconCat88]

I'm not a big lettuce fan myself.

[erminization]

also I hear a good alternative to peanuts, depending on where you live, are groundnuts. they're kind of like peanuts but are bit bigger and more like potatoes. the plant is a vine but the fruit grows in clumps in the soil.

[VariationsPro]

When you start walking its when you get more serious, just something ive noticed hehe

[toddweller]

Don't have a suggestion on the peanuts but if you're looking for good sources protein, plant walnut & pecan trees. Chickens are also great! Easy and almost perfect protein.

[rubbernecker13]

Just found your channel, good work. Youtube JohnJeavonsGrowBio channel. The videos are good but the book is invaluable. The chinese, the aztecs, and later the french have toyed around with biointensive organic ideas and they really have it down to a science now, with all the numbers and sizes and percentages and diet. If I remember right, I think you can live well off 40 100sf beds, might be wrong though, look it up. The related dvd is pretty good too.

[tunnelportterror]

if there is a total collapse you will have to guard that garden 24//7 with an armed guard around the clock, just to stop all the people who will be trying to steal the food. So for every garden, you will need a machine gun to guard it, and 100,000 rounds of ammo.

[Machiavelli1513]

Love the stick setup sectioning off and supporting each vegetable. Are those bamboo sticks?

[steele569]

USE ROCK DUST  (Azomite)

[Itaintnutn]

I would think you would need a higher fence. The deer can jump that fence and tear that garden up. Of course, if you catch em, free meat.

[dracona70]

I would recommend a book "Gardening When It Counts". Its a great book for someone wanting to be relatively self sufficient and that has ample space to grow food. Most gardening books assume a very limited amount of space (due to being in the city), but that assumption makes you garden in high intensity fashion. If you have space, you can take a different, low intensity approach. It works for me.

[Rickdeckard2020]

Has anyone considered cooperating with a number of people to be part of a coop that could buy something like this a tiny farm with electric tractor, car an solar panels?

watch?v=HYsRl9Mh6yE Its probably a difficult proposition, but might allow a small number of individuals to benefit from common infrastructure that could be out of reach on each's own.

[bahana2008]

try not to plant nightshades(tomatoes and eggplant) together..There are a lot of sources of information for companion planting on the net..Looks good though. It's what we all need to be doing,

[ShoveTyranny]

Great stuff. Have you gotten anything like chickens yet? I know you said you have a crawfish pond

[MrGnarus]

You need to plant some soybeans

[jcb570]

low ground temp

[veritasfiles]

Great vid!

[vida130]

I just planted my first garden this spring and I love it. I didn't think I could grow much because I don't have a large yard and I have 26 trees which creates a lot of shade. I found a few sunny patches and put some raised beds there and the growth is amazing. You wife is doing an amazing job with the garden.

[Michigansnowpony]

I see you're trying the 3 sisters with the beans, corn, and squash. I almost did that last year -- very cool concept of the beans providing the nitrogen for the corn and the squash providing the weed control. One thing: In my experience, it seems corn needs to be planted in good sized "groupings" or muliple rows together so that sufficient pollination ocurs.  If you don't get good ear production, that may be the culprit. I envy your good start --- we're still quite cool up here.

[Michigansnowpony]

Hi Aaron, Believe it or not, I grew peanuts last year up here in Michigan. They did very well, although the nuts themselves were smaller. We had quite a hot summer last year, which I think is what they crave. Has it been hot yet where you are? Also, keep the soil around the plants loosened up -- it helps the flower heads penetrate so they can turn into peanuts. Ever consider bees? They really help your yield(s).

[puffrooster]

You can grow potatoes in the winter... not here you can't; what region of the country do you reside in?

[Myrmecia]

All gardens look great at this time of year, yours included. You are right about needing more food before this garden becomes a self-contained source of survival. From what I can see, your corn is your main source of calories and this garden will keep you and your wife in calories for about a week - when the corn is ripe. Remember about the peanuts: not all plans work out. Will you have poultry for eggs (fat and protein) and rabbits, poultry or fish for protein and fat? A milking goat?

[Myrmecia]

Hybrid seeds will produce in the second generation, but won't necessarily be "true to type". You can't tell us how good your tomatoes are till they are ripe, you measure (and compare) your yield and compare the taste.

[CHEECHAKOSMONTANA]

Do you have fruit trees planted?

[goldorargent]

Have you considered hemp, their seeds are the perfect replacement for high protein and don't need much care. Garlic and green onions or all root vegies, are easy to grow and keep the insects at bay. Try to rotate every other year and more tips at "open source Farming dot com".

[silverexplosion]

Organic is what my family and I eat about 90% of the time....we eat junk every once in a while.

[lordraveneyeofra]

Have you used any chicken fodder in your fertilizer? It works rreally well if you mix chicken and horse fodder together in your compost! Be careful not to use too much chicken fodder though, as it can be to hot a fertilizer for some foods!!!

[brainnoise1]

Garlic! every garden needs Garlic.. and they require so little maintenance... as do onions.. and potatoes.. not sure where you are in terms of herbs and spices.. but it's also a good post collapse antibiotic (garlic).. for ear infections.. local infections and i hear they keep vampires at bay!

[brainnoise1]

@brainnoise1 I want to add, your garden looks really great. you wife is doing a wonderful job..

[mostlymichaelcanada]

Have you considered using mulch? This would balance moisture for you and prevent weed growth. Great looking garden. :)

[lduve1010]

Have you ever had your soil tested? We bought a test kit for the first time this year, and it told us that we were low in nitrogen and had soil that was too basic. We added some blood meal and fertilizer and hope it makes a difference. (too early to tell- central Ohio).

[Greltam]

Awesome. I've been waiting for you to post your garden. Looking healthy so far. I live in zone 6 and haven't been able to plant yet because of all the rain.

[brown55061]

What's the ph of your soil down there? That obviously effects how certain cultivars grow. If you want literary help, check out "Seed Sowing & Saving" by Carole B. Turner. She details how each plant needs sown, how to save seeds for the following year, and what ph soil each one likes. Looks like you'll have plenty of veggies. I expanded more than double this year as well. Good luck farmer!

[waypastprime]

My prediction is your garden will be quickly overwhelmed by the squash... rendering the rest of your plants unable to thrive.... I would have planted the squash outside of the fenced area, as when it takes hold it will quadruple in size and run all over the place. Also, corn will get 8-10 feet high... blocking all sun from anything in it's shadow. I would move the easily transplantable plants now... Good luck! My 2 cents. I too overplant my garden, but it is in high to low format!

[StormCloudsGathering]

@waypastprime - We are transplanting quite a bit right now. For the corn it shouldn't matter much. Where we planted them they will be getting very heavy overhead sun during the summer... but we'll see.

[eliden]

i cant grow anything, i would just get an infestations of aphids and caterpillars and other insects. how do u deal with them?

[StormCloudsGathering]

@eliden - diatemaceous earth mostly and occasionally Pyrethrin. These are both approved for organic agriculture.

[Cookiefox]

That's a very nice garden and although its not enough to live off, it can be easily expanded when need be. I'd suggest you also put in a small greenhouse to incubate plants early in the season.

[geraldcaron]

Boy, your garden is doing well, we are barely starting in the greehouse here in Northern Canada. We still have frost at night. Another 2 weeks, and we should be frost free.

[1x93cm]

yah you need to space out your stuff for the future- you may not want to plant all these things all in the same place because they'll compete for the space- the squash and pumpkins shouldn't be so close but over all your stuff is looking good- so far everything this year hasn't been growing so well except for the potatoes and corn where i live

[rigbym99]

How about a recipie for that Kapooto? Squash. Thanks for the Vid's

[brainnoise1]

I am not sure if you guys are gluten free. But I have been planning my gardens and one thing i noticed was missing was wheat. Nutritionally, it has fat, protein and is very nutritious. Not to mention it stores very well, and can survive a family over a winter. This would certainly be one of the bulk crops you sproke of. And a good bartering crop. I would also mention chia since it does not require pesticides- and give a nice gelatinous texture to foods and my kids love chia... in salad., tea..

[StormCloudsGathering]

@brainnoise1 - We are planning wheat next year... we just didn't have enough time to prepare the space for that this year.

[erminization]

@StormCloudsGathering don't you need a lot of space for wheat? How many acres do you have?

[MickScarborough]

@brainnoise1 Wheat is 100% unnecessary for the human diet and can lead to disease. It really should be avoided. It offers nothing good to us unless you are brewing beer.

[brainnoise1]

@MickScarborough I have been moving away from wheat as well, due to allergies etc.. and i have been learning much about brewing since I never let anything go to waste.. I wish i drank beer though.

[onemealperdaynow]

check your plants at night with a flashlight , you may be getting raided by slugs, only see them during the day if raining. beer, they love beer so set a empty tuna can into the ground , pour in some beer and inthe morning you will know if slugs are killing your produce. They hide very well.

[btigtime2]

Zucchini, man... The greatest fruit of them all.... Your eggplant has to have hot weather, which for some crazy reason we had 45 nights. Peanuts too, hot soil..seems to take forever. Cool Garden My garden is the same size, it will grow plenty... I get and 5 gallon bucket full a day. Plenty for family of 5. with eggs, fish, and Rabbits.

[yourmajezty]

i mostly order heirloom. GMO ar terrible

[MrDeathstyle]

Have you looked into creating a potato box or hill to increase production? Alot of people claim they can work but I haven't seen any evidence. Would be fantastic if you could produce so much food in so small a space though.

[TheHumanAgenda]

=]

[rea1001]

One thing to remember that will optimize space is progressive planting. Every two weeks or so plant more of each, so that you will be able to have a perpetual garden during the summer instead of waiting for everything to ripen. So every week you are reaping produce. You can then store most of it with the method of choice, and eat at the same time. The peanuts have to much moisture.

[StormCloudsGathering]

@rea1001 - That's weird that you say it is too much water. For a while we were giving them less water and they were struggling even more. Then we increased the water some and the leaves started looking healthier, but they never took off.

[ewetubesuxass]

Hey Aaron check out ironhead41 on You Tube he grows peanuts I think in North Carolina somewhere but if you message him through You Tube he can probably help you with your problem. as for the pill bugs the best way I have found to combat them is with milk jugs, cut off the top and bottom of the jug and you have a 4 to 5 inch plastic collar that you place around any young plant.

[StormCloudsGathering]

@ewetubesuxass - that's a great idea to use milk jugs like that.

[1sueism1]

your garden looks AWESOME, regardless of how tight alot of your plants are.

FYI - i'm in cali and my pepper plants are slow to grow this year as well.

you can check online to find out what plants compliment each other - you probably already know that some veggies grow better next to other veggies.

and i've tried to grow peanuts since i was 10 years old, never with any luck :(

[2skullscrushing]

Hey folks. You need to bring your production inside. hydroponic. With chemtrails, and radiation, i'm growing everything inside, and got a separate water supply already. you really cant rely on outdoors remaining clean and good for you.

[MrColt45acp]

nice garden

[MegaCurioso1234]

StormClouds The other day you said that you have changed your mind about President Obama. In this video you talk about preparing for the collapse that we feel might come soon. How can you concilliate both? I admire your family. You seem to have a lot of peace as one can hear it in your voice, and you cetainly love your baby and wife as one can feel it in your videos. I´m just wondering who is sending us to the collapse?

[StormCloudsGathering]

@MegaCurioso1234 - Come on man, are you serious? That video was satire. Jimbob is a fictional character.

[MegaCurioso1234]

@StormCloudsGathering THANKS FOR YOUR POLITE ANSWER.

[matrixview]

My suggestions: get 1 or more milking goats and drink the milk RAW and make butter, kefir and cheese (yes you can mix in your herbs). Also a couple of chickens for the eggs, a number of broilers for the meat. A couple of pigs that you take to the butcher once a while. Rabbits, a big freezer and solar/wind power. Bees for honey and your plants. Fruit/nut trees. A sun based food dryer. A greenhouse.

If you're vegetarian... you might want to reconsider... study Weston A. Price (or Sally Fallon)

[ryanswan0]

Where in the world do you live that you need a fully zipped-up fleece jacket in mid-May?!?!

[LJPpro]

@ryanswan0 where I live in New England I was wearing a winter jacket today...Maybe a bit overboard but a regular long sleeve shirt would've been too cold.

[StormCloudsGathering]

@ryanswan0 - Texas, but there was a cold front and a storm last night, and I was up early to film this.

[fakeham]

You should grow some hemp, hemp seeds are a crazy good source of protein.

[TheConspiracyRealist]

@fakeham Illegal in the US. The US government doesn't see a difference between hemp and marijuana. Otherwise great recommendation, healthiest source of food on the planet.

[WoodlandRavah]

No Potatoes?

If the different regions are unfriendly to various species and strains, we need to develop a network for trade in post SHTF... I cant grow tomatos up here but I can grow raspberries, wheat, and potatoes... So I'm sure someone with excess tomato would willingly trade for excess potatoe. Right?

[StormCloudsGathering]

@WoodlandRavah - I have one potato plant. I should have planted more, but I wasn't sure it would work that late in the season. It ended up getting very big, so it was a mistake not to plant.

[ally4free1]

what do you use for pest ??

[SheyOneTen]

I see that you're going organic, but since this is for collapse preparation (survival garden) are you (or have you considered) stock piling chemical fertilizer (concentrated stored energy)? And if not, why not?

[StormCloudsGathering]

@SheyOneTen - We've stockpiled compost and some organic pesticides. The reason why not to use chemical fertilizers is that you actually make a much less resilient soil when you do that. It's like getting dependent of steroids. Once you're dependent it's harder to do without. I prefer to work with the materials that we will have available in the long term regardless of what happens to the economy.

[Balzy73]

@StormCloudsGathering Also add earthworms to your garden. They are very good at aerating the soil.

[SheyOneTen]

With regards to your comments on hybrids: It's not that seeds from hybrid plants will necessarily be sterile (although some certainly will be), they just won't be 'true' to parentage. If you planted seeds from a Meyer Lemon, or Haas Avocado (or whatever cultivar, doesn't matter), you'd get a lemon tree and an avocado tree, but they would be genetically different from the Meyer or the Haas.

[DanielSnedden]

We always planted twice what we thought we needed to account for weather, poor harvest and animals & bugs. If you want to minimize insect problems get some DE (Diatamaceous Earth). Perma Guard has a food grade version that I use since my son is asthmatic and I don't like using poisons. For the trellis get some of the steel lugposts at the hardware store. You can hang wire and it is very sturdy. You might need to allow more space for your vine plants. Everything can be canned for winter use.

[piptaac101]

Thanks friend. Love to see others gardens. We have expanded this year abit. We also planted a month earlier this year and have things popping out everywhere! Thanks again. I am one of those looking for the house update. Good day.

[selvmordspilot]

I've heard there are some health risks when you grow and eat food from your own compost (closed loop). Don't know if it's true, but maybe u should investigate, unless you already have :)

Peace

Oh, and thnx for the talk on V-radio the other day. It was very interesting!

[StormCloudsGathering]

@selvmordspilot - If you compost it fully it just becomes dirt. It's the normal cycle of things.

[selvmordspilot]

@StormCloudsGathering : ah, i see. So it's only when you use it as fertilizer then? Glad to hear that, since i love the idea of sh'tting rich dirt for the garden.

Will you be making a video on the project you unveiled in the radio talk anytime soon?

[DanielSnedden]

I think you are doing a great job so far. This is the best way to get your learning curve accomplishment. When I was young we had about 2 acres but we did not have to do the intensive method. We had corn, beans, peas, melons, carrots, onios, etc. but each in their own rows. I don't they know anything about growing peanuts although I always thought they grew in the warmer southern states.

[matteo311]

Did you consider using hydroponics for space concerns?

[StormCloudsGathering]

@matteo311 - No. In my opinion hydroponics cannot produce vegetables with the same nutrient content of good composted soil. Also I don't want to be dependent on electricity which is much more failure prone than dirt.

[matteo311]

@StormCloudsGatheringI can see soil being much easier when you have the space, I'm in NYC. I actually got to check out an excellent hydroponics setup that is on a boat in the hudson. It uses solar panels and rain collection to run the system. If needed it filters water from the Hudson. You should check it out its called The Science Barge

[32937isready]

Some of those plants are way too close together. They are going to get huge and they will spread out.

[StormCloudsGathering]

@32937isready - Probably right. It's going to be a mess, but hopefully a productive mess.

[briankofke]

That is beautiful. You have done a great job. You are in a pretty good position as long as you are in a safe location. And all I know about penuts is George Washington Carver.

[briankofke]

That is beautiful. You have done a great job. You are in a pretty good position as long as you are in a safe location.

[happygalmarried]

Peppers, eggplant and peanuts need HEAT. They love it.

Would your wife be kind enough to share her recipe for the squash soup, please?

[1sueism1]

@happygalmarried well, then, that would explain a lot in my area - it's been an uncommonly cold spring here in NoCal. thanks!

[happygalmarried]

@1sueism1 Your welcome, always glad to help ; )

[Bassmarko]

As a kid we grew a ¼ acre garden every year. We composed and tilled the soil to get it ready for planting. Prepping is a huge part of the process. We also had structure to watering and planting. We would pull healthy plants if they were to close together to prevent small plants with low yields. Did you have Carrots, onions, potatoes? I can’t remember but these are excellent things to have available and store well. Your comments at the end made sense.

[brainnoise1]

where'd your seeds come from... good garden..

Are those rutgers tomato's.?. they are a good and hearty breed...

[ed7hunt]

Get you some rabbit cages and you can catch varmint to eat for protein. You need a beehive in there, too.

[somezemos]

i tried growing peanuts before i had probably a 6ft row, all i know is that they take for ever to get anything from them and you dont get much. you will probably be lucky if you get a hand full at best with what you had. like you said you will need a field of them just to get anything.

[paulkawsek]

radioactivity from fukushima pose no problems?

[StormCloudsGathering]

@paulkawsek - Buying from the store doesn't exempt people from that. If anything it would likely be worse since most produce comes from Cali which is getting the most contamination.

[billhaigh]

Great video and I'm jealous of your garden! :-) I'm trying some backyard gardening here in California but our soil is 99% clay, so I'm having a tough time. If the SHTF, we'll be the first to starve to death (unfortunately). I view my efforts as "practice", so hopefully time will be on my side.

[TheRevengeOfFlaff]

Don't peanuts grow underground?

[StormCloudsGathering]

@TheRevengeOfFlaff - yes but the plant itself grows above ground like all plants.

[TheRevengeOfFlaff]

@StormCloudsGathering I wouldn't worry too much. From what I've seen, the foliage above ground doesn't get that large, and it is early in the season. Interesting though, growing peanuts.

[JP5466]

I am anxious to hear your input on the radiation pouring out of the blown up Fukushima reactors. I do not believe you've addressed this yet.

Questions: Do you believe the food you are growing is safe to eat? Are you going to let your little child eat it?

[YouSayYouWantA]

@JP5466 I'd rather risk it than just starve.

[TashiRogo]

@JP5466 lol. that is all.

[JP5466]

@TashiRogo Hmmm.... are you living in a cave?  That is all.

[kuanged]

Under S510, aren't organic farms going to subject to federal regulation? So if S did indeed HTF, the federal government has legal grounds to shut you down, no?

[StormCloudsGathering]

@kuanged - The government likes to think they can regulate everything. I don't play their games though.

[kuanged]

@StormCloudsGathering I feel the same way as you do, but I know I can't outgun trained professional forces, even if I decided to stockpile weapons. What's the alternative though - subterranean farming? Personally, I'm thinking indoor farming - potentially underground. I've also thought about building low-tech DIY carbon gasification technology, and using fast-growing bamboo as a fuel source to power subterranean lighting. I'm interested in hearing your thoughts on this.

[StormCloudsGathering]

@kuanged - I'm not planning to outgun them, I ignore them. I just don't obey, I don't report to them, and I wouldn't respond if they contacted me.

[kuanged]

@StormCloudsGathering I wish I had your confidence. I imagine that they would physically eliminate (murder) all those who are non-compliant, so that no free-thinking individuals were left who could inspire dissent. I know that if I were bent on establishing a big brother society, that's what I would do.

[VeneratorDeorum]

@StormCloudsGathering Have you ever tried the deep bed method? It's supposed to increase yield by around 4 times in less space. I havent tried it yet but its supposed to be an old sucessful practice where the plants have more room to grow their roots downwards instead of laterally because the soil is loose and dug well.

[bezant1971]

@StormCloudsGathering Hey shoul try with the Moringa, it has several nutrimental topycs over the regular foods, you should try it, i have been growing moringa for the past 2 years, and I am very happy with it.

[tommy0135]

@kuanged I think that "food modernization act" mainly prevents you from giving, selling, or trading those home grown crops. So so long as you've a complete jerk and keep everything you grow to yourself, you're in the clear as far as the government is concerned..

[GivingYouTruth]

Very good video. Thanks for sharing.

[gerbrak]

What's that white stuff you have around some of the plants??

Might I suggest looking into the principles of permaculture? You seem to have a lot of land and permaculture would be the best option in my opinion. If you do it right once the plants have established themselves after a few years, you won't have very much work to do gardening wise.

[StormCloudsGathering]

@gerbrak - That's lime, we were trying different methods of keeping the pillbugs from attacking seedlings.

[negadelph]

@StormCloudsGathering I've been told that placing strands of your own hair near the plants will keep rodents away...

[OkieJohn1950]

Really liked your video. No idea on the peanuts though. Planting corn, squash and beans in the same row has been used for centuries by the Cherokee. They each contribute needed nutrients to the other plants. It's called "Three Sisters." Squash, and pumpkin, can overwhelm some gardens. Pinching back the runners and removing excess blooms focuses growth on the existing fruits.

[SlvrStkr2]

quick thought: Once we have to stop relying on the "just in time" food supply chain, it is a full time job just surviving and growing your own food. We will be busy people; nobody will be able to say "I have nothing to do". Go weed the garden, go hunt rabbits, go plant tomatoes, go grind some wheat and make tortillas for dinner. Etc....

[SlvrStkr2]

I bought a few hunded dollars worth of Non hybrid seeds to augment my backup food supply. Your plants look really healthy and weed free! that's the hard part. I look forward to getting a garden going now!

[therealvirginiawind]

You've a beautify garden. Can't say the same about mine, but i'm doing what I can on my mountain top. I have several videos of it posted.

I look forward to your videos by the way. It's nice to know there's a generation behind me that's paying attention to things. :)

Kent

[Neo31rex31]

Now, do you make starter plants? Or do you plany directly into the ground?

[StormCloudsGathering]

@Neo31rex31 - We started the tomatoes and peppers in small pots, the rest were direct seeded.

[Carrie3570]

I don't know the answer to your question. I started my first garden this year in TN. I posted a video today with questions of my own. I started most of my garden with seeds as well, they are not anywhere the size of yours. But, on the bright side at least it's growing!

[SpotRatio]

Cool video. I'll be doing a backyard garden next year when I move back into my house! :)