[Marcella]

Let’s take a relatively small space, say your space. What foods would be best to plant in order for that food to keep you alive in a survival situation? Now, I’m not talking about strains or which tomatoes, I’m just talking about the general food. Consider in general, foods easier to grow anywhere that would give the most food value, to keep one alive.

Beans: For instance, one of the foods needs to be beans of some sort, whatever kind grows better for your space.

Tomatoes: The kind that grows best for the space.

What foods after those top two?

See, if I had a list of the best survival foods, I could eliminate others and find the survival strains that would grow best in my space. Do you understand?

[JRandomFreeper]

Food hat on.

You have to have proteins. They need to be balanced. Beans fall short of being complete. Corn completes beans.

Gotta have Vit. C. Tomatoes and peppers work well for that.

Seriously, I go with what folks in Texas were cooking 1000 years ago, 200 years ago, etc... 3 sisters (beans, corn, squash), tomatoes, peppers and some spices can get you a long way in Texas or NM. And that mix has a track record.

/johnny

[Ellendra]

Beans, corn, and squash are called “the Three Sisters” for a reason. Together they can provide all the nutrients necessary for survival.

(Caveat: That assumes that you are an average person with an average metabolism. There is a portion of the population that cannot survive on a vegetarian diet, for such people adding eggs or meat will help tremendously.)

After those three, I'd suggest tomatoes, potatoes, and some kind of greens.

Personally, I'd also grow beets, cucumbers, melons, amaranth, millet, sunflower, wheat, herbs, and a whole slew of berry bushes. And I'd also make sure there were enough extras to keep a small rabbit colony, because I know for a fact that I'm missing the enzymes needed to obtain protein from vegetable sources.

Working on expanding my garden so I can do all that.

[greeneyes]

Yes, I understand. We have talked a little about this. It is kind of an individual decision. Just like the food that you have chosen to stock up on is.

If you look at your book eating off the grid-it tells you what you need for a bare bones survival diet. That is what you need to grow plus whatever else that you happen to like to eat to avoid monotony, and give you a little enjoyment. At least that is my thinking.

You know you need protein. Pinto Beans are a good source of protein, and potassium, but not a complete protein. A slice of wheat bread makes a complete protein. So you’ll grow beans and wheat, both of which will be part of your dry storage-no refrigeration required.

Myself, I can live on Beans, taters, maters, cornbread, onions, wheat bread and a little veggie soup. Here’s a plan that supposedly has all you need for a balanced diet from the grow biointensive project:

67% diet and compost, 22%for your diet, income crops and/or diet.

Fall/Winter garden:Wheat, Rye, Fava Beans, Clover or Vetch

Plant 5 weeks before the first frost-when they get to 18 inches, trim them back to 1 inch and add trimmings to compost pile. Don’t trim after Feb 1- let them mature and harvest the seeds.

Winter/Spring: Early spring, trim 1/3 of garden, and prepare and plant potatoes at appropriate time for your area(a little sooner if you have green house cover) let the other 2/3 mature.

Summer: Sunflowers Fava Beans and vetch or clover These will also yield lots of compost material.

Early bunching onions, Mangels, and Lettuce can also be income crops.

Diet Crops: Grain Amaranth, Millet, Dried Beans, Sweet Potatoes, Winter squash, Peanuts.

Prior to summer planting, fertilize the beds by adding finished compost.

Three weeks after the first hard frost, plant the fava beans and sunflowers in flats. Transplant to garden at appropriate time.

Start peanuts 3 weeks before last soft frost date transplant when 3” tall.

Sprout sweet potatoes in flats 3 months before last soft frost date. After about a month fill flats with soil. When leaf sprouts are 3 inches long, they can be nicked out and planted.

Acorn squash gives better yield than butternut. Sow in flats 3-4 weeks before last soft frost date. Transplant when they have 3 true leaves.

Sow Amaranth in flats 6 weeks before last soft frost date. Transplant when 4-6 inches high.

Sow millet in flats 3 weeks before last soft frost date. Transplant when 2 inches tall.

Plant dried beans in a flat 1 week before the last soft frost date. Transplant when they have 2 true leaves.

Sow mangel seeds in flats 3-4 weeks before you plan to plant them. plants and roots will be 2-3 inches high when you transplant.

Lettuce: For winter plant little gem or other cold hardy lettuce. Spring and Summer black seeded simpson are good.

Sow last 6 weeks of winter, last 4 weeks of spring and fall to get yield for the next season.

Evergreen early bunching onions are winter hardy and can be grown year round. You can get 2 crops every 4 months.

Tree Collards may also be grown, and are IIRC a good source of calcium.

Other crops to substiute: Parsley, Celery, Basil,English Lavendar,Garlic,Cumumbers. Most are also good income crops.

Well, that’s just one plan in a nut shell. Like I said, you may want to plan out the meals to make sure you will get your nutrients.

The LDS classes have you write down 7 breakfasts(one week), 14 mid day meals(2 weeks). These are then rotated and the amounts you need figured from that. Supper is bread cooked in solar oven, broth or soup and a glass of milk or other high calcium food.

Hope this gives you some ideas to start your own planning on what is best for you.