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November 20, 2009 · 4 Comments

Thoughts on Seeds for Survival and Garden Skills

Why We Garden

This morning’s Minneapolis Star-Tribune brings news of the latest must-have item for survivalists. For $149, you can buy a canister filled with enough heirloom seeds to plant an acre of vegetables, enough to feed a small group of people for a year.

Several authors of a decidedly non-survivalist bent have written books on how to grow your own and the physical, emotional and spiritual benefits of doing that. My favorites are This Organic Life, by Joan Dye Gussow, and Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, by Barbara Kingsolver. Both books tell the story of how a family began to live off its own land — in Gussow’s case, a standard suburban lot. Last spring, Northern Gardener profiled a couple from Prior Lake, Mn., who fed themselves and three teen-age sons very well from a large vegetable garden. Obviously, you can grow much of the food a family needs on an acre or less.

Have More survivalist book

The Have More Plan is a 1940s classic on self-sufficiency.

What this survivalist seed offer seems to ignore, though, is that to “grow your own” you need a good deal more than seeds: You need knowledge, and lots of it. Most of the folks I’ve known over the years who are very self-sufficient grew up on farms, or they devoted considerable study to horticulture and animal husbandry as they gradually moved to a grow-you-own approach. To successfully garden on a largish scale (particularly post-apocalypse), you need to know when and how to plant seeds, how to sharpen and repair tools, how to make your own compost and build your soil, how to build fences to keep critters out of the garden, and, if you are an omnivore, how to keep and butcher chickens or other animals among many other things. Most importantly, you have to know how to process enough food to get you through the winter .

So, to any survivalists out there, I say, by all means, put down your guns and plant a garden — though you may be able to get a better deal on seeds than $149. Buy some canning equipment, too, and a dehydrator. Go to the library or a book dealer and pick up a couple of basic manuals on going it alone, such as the 1940s classic The “Have More” Plan or the more recent, The Backyard Homesteader. Enjoy yourselves, learn some skills, and you may find that whether the world ends or not, working in your garden has given you a healthier, happier life — and that’s a lot better than just surviving.

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Comments

  1. Bill McDorman says

    November 20, 2009 at 6:21 pm

    I agree. It takes way more than a can of seeds. You can find free seed saving instructions on the website of this 20 year-old nonprofit:

    http://www.seedsave.org/issi/issi_904.html

    This way you can really survive by saving seeds from the heirlooms you plant.

    Best advice is to find open-pollinated seeds already adapted to your specific climate. Organize a pot luck dinner for the seed savers in your region. Price of admission; some seeds they have grown and saved from their own garden. You can all trade each other for what you need. This is a simple, sustainable way to survive with seeds and information important for your region.

  2. Growing Tomatoes says

    December 6, 2009 at 11:13 am

    By having non-hybrid seeds which you have harvested and kept means that should you ever be faced with a survival situation, you can start growing food such as tomatoes, corn and peas again. The only way to be fully prepared as far as growing plants is concerned is to practice, practice, practice.

  3. Survival seeds says

    December 11, 2009 at 12:29 pm

    I agree, just having seeds is not enough, it is important to learn how to garden! Initially, when beginning to plant a garden, start small and work your way up. Have a small garden plot or do container gardening if you are short on space.

  4. Grasshopper says

    December 14, 2009 at 7:06 am

    There are a lot of things that need more time to learn about so it will be much appreciated in the long run. And growing seeds is one of these things. It’s not only about surviving. It’s also about sharing food to others.

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My Northern Garden book

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What’s a northern gardener to do all winter? In What’s a northern gardener to do all winter? In these pandemic times, I’ve been having fun making quilts. Small, easy, no stress quilts. And, these garden themed fabrics on discount through Etsy were irresistible. 

I’m a beginner quilter and learned the craft through YouTube! (My favorite tutorials are the scrap buster quilts from @justgetitdonequilts) This fabric bundle included 21 different half yard prints, so I’ll probably have fabric left over for next winter too. 

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Sometimes amaryllis are just so extra—like extra Sometimes amaryllis are just so extra—like extra large! What I really like about this one (it’s called Magic Green) is that the blooms are just right. Showy but not excessive. So far, the color is more cream than green though there is a pale green undertone. Beautiful variety! 

And, for those who may notice those tell-tale yellow strips in the pots—yes, I am having an ongoing fungus gnat issue. Not out of control, but definitely irritating. 

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We’re still a few weeks away from seed starting We’re still a few weeks away from seed starting time, but I’m looking forward to having baby plants in the house. 🌱My conversation with Meg from @seedtofork on the Grow it, Minnesota podcast got me thinking about how I might change my set up this year. I’ve never used heat mats for seed starting since I keep my seedlings in the heated part of the house. But maybe this is the year to try that for peppers and tomatoes? Meg swears by heating mats! 

She also got me thinking about LED lights vs. fluorescent. I’m not inclined to replace lights that are still good, but light technology is changing. A lot to learn! 

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Wondering about what garden zone you are in or wha Wondering about what garden zone you are in or what first and last frost dates mean for your vegetable garden? Here’s the zone info for Minnesota and Midwest gardeners. 

My latest blog post on MyNorthernGarden.com has the basics on zones and frost dates. (Link in bio.) Knowing a few simple things about your climate is a key to success in the garden. 

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Super excited about tomorrow’s episode of the Gr Super excited about tomorrow’s episode of the Grow it, Minnesota podcast. My guest is Niki Jabbour to talk about cold frames, mini hoops, poly tunnels and her new book, Growing Under Cover. The book is packed with information for northern gardeners who want to stretch our short growing season. The episode goes live tomorrow morning and you can subscribe in Apple, Google, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. 
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Top nine images from 2020! A bit surprised my tool Top nine images from 2020! A bit surprised my tools made it into the list 🤔 but the rest are plants I love. I’m looking forward to more gardening friends and fun in 2021. Happy New Year! 🎈 
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I was listening to the @plantramapod podcast on my I was listening to the @plantramapod podcast on my walk and the hosts were waxing poetic about wax plant, aka Hoya. I could not agree more! It is a great house plant, and the first one I had success with. My two plants are offspring of a Hoya that my grandmother had, which was passed to my mom and now me. The original plant 🪴 was planted at least 60 years ago! Hoya are long lived, don’t need much watering or fuss and do well in many sun situations even in our dry Minnesota homes. 

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