Posted on 03/23/2008 11:36:40 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny
Americans finding soaring food prices hard to stomach can battle back by growing their own food. [Click image for a larger version] Dean Fosdick Dean Fosdick
Home vegetable gardens appear to be booming as a result of the twin movements to eat local and pinch pennies.
At the Southeastern Flower Show in Atlanta this winter, D. Landreth Seed Co. of New Freedom, Pa., sold three to four times more seed packets than last year, says Barb Melera, president. "This is the first time I've ever heard people say, 'I can grow this more cheaply than I can buy it in the supermarket.' That's a 180-degree turn from the norm."
Roger Doiron, a gardener and fresh-food advocate from Scarborough, Maine, said he turned $85 worth of seeds into more than six months of vegetables for his family of five.
A year later, he says, the family still had "several quarts of tomato sauce, bags of mixed vegetables and ice-cube trays of pesto in the freezer; 20 heads of garlic, a five-gallon crock of sauerkraut, more homegrown hot-pepper sauce than one family could comfortably eat in a year and three sorts of squash, which we make into soups, stews and bread."
[snipped]
She compares the current period of market uncertainty with that of the early- to mid-20th century when the concept of victory gardens became popular.
"A lot of companies during the world wars and the Great Depression era encouraged vegetable gardening as a way of addressing layoffs, reduced wages and such," she says. "Some companies, like U.S. Steel, made gardens available at the workplace. Railroads provided easements they'd rent to employees and others for gardening."
(Excerpt) Read more at dallasnews.com ...
Gore and his crowd, this year have felt God’s laughter, as we feel the cold.
He's certainly getting the last laugh.
I like this global warming. I'm partial to cold weather myself. :)
It's chilly here too, I love it!
Well, God has sure laughed at me a few times.
The older I get, the more of the strings he has pulled, show up.
Amazingly twisted paths, to end up in front of a computer.
“In front of a computer” sharing your wealth of knowledge with so many people. And, we thank you, Granny!
Yes, southern California is ideal for gardens.
I lived in San Diego County for 30 years, but I think our best gardens were in the Otay area.
Still, I gardened the entire time.
There you do need a garden today and storage of food, as like here it is all shipped in.
When I was young, the I-8 freeway, was a 2 lane road, that went through the farm area.
Now it is “Mission Valley”.
Gore and his crowd, this year have felt God’s laughter, as we feel the cold.
He’s certainly getting the last laugh.<<<
Yes, he is going to have the last laugh.
He has shown the gore crowd that ethanol is going to cost more than it is worth and Dr. Bill Wattenberg warned us for the last 10 years that it was not the answer and take a look at what has happened.
What scares me is that they are so brainwashed, that they do not have a clue, of the truth.
Now, you have made me realize that I started seeking this knowledge in 1958.
That is when the letters started to come from the San Diego schools, that told us how our children would be moved out of the area if we were attacked..........on a bus, up a 2 lane road, going through or next to military abase, and with no safe destination.
I went to the school, told them that they were not to move my child and learned that I would be shot, if I attempted to take her off the bus.
For years, San Diego had the evacuation routes marked with an arrow, that pointed straight to heaven.........
There was not one safe route out of San Diego.
Then they told us to stock up on food, as at that time, there was in the grocery store warehouses, a 3 day supply of food.........
Which the gov would take control of and decide who got it.
So we might never get food again.
Just a couple months ago, the gov decided that they would close the warehouse in San Diego, and move it all to Los Angeles, at least the last I heard, San Diego had put a stop to that plan.
What use would all the medical supplies be to San Diego, if they were a 125 to 150 miles away???
Having gone through the depression in the 1930’s and WW2, I know what it feels like to be hungry, or not have enough food.
So it was natural for me to start looking at how to survive and the more I looked, the more aware I became that we needed to be able to live as they did 200 years ago.
That is why I tell folks to look for the Pioneer diaries, those ladies knew things we never heard of..........on tv.
That is also why I keep posting about herbs for healing, the day is already here, when we may not have a doctor to treat us, so we need to know the simple things that will help.
Healing with plants is how people lived this long.
No herbs will not cure the major diseases, with our limited knowledge, but then neither does all the expensive medicine and I can show you as many people who use herbs and are still alive, as I can dead folks, who got all the fancy treatments.
Knowledge is what we need and fast.
There was recently a thread on “what did you do when the electric went out”, on one of the Yahoo groups that i read.
A couple were knowledgeable, and still prepared from the Y2K days, but most talked of sitting in the dark and not knowing what to do.
Most had no idea that in the old days, one went to bed when it was dark and worked in the daylight hours.
LOL, I know, you want to hear me admit that I have been known to sit right here in front of the computer and wait for the electric to come back on.
You'll never know how much I agree with that statement.
As an aside, my hubby said he hasn't seen rice in wal mart for almost two weeks. After I got my shoes yesterday, we went with him to the store so I could help our little girl look for a cartoon she's been wanting.
We decided to do some grocerying while we were there. They only had 2 one pound bags of rice. I have never seen it so devoid of rice before. I'm glad we're filled to the rafters with rice in our storage. lol
http://www.livingonadime.com/articles/dont-eat-out.html
Make Life Easier Without Eating Out
I have been saying this for years and I just heard it on Oprah so I’m sure that makes it true! Going out to eat is one of the biggest mistakes people make with their money. Most people would experience a radical change in their finances if they would cut back on eating out even a couple of times a week, let alone all together.
I think that the main reason that people go out to eat is for the convenience. I hope to show you how eating at home can be convenient, too.
We seem to be people of extremes and that definitely spills over into our thoughts about meals. We have the idea that there are only two choices when it comes to providing dinner for our families. The first is to go out to eat and not lift a finger. The second is to become Betty Crocker, an Amish grandmother and Martha Stewart all rolled into one. Oh! And don’t forget to roll in Mr. Clean for the clean up!
It doesn’t have to be an all or nothing situation. For those of you who are extremely frugal, some of these suggestions might seem wasteful, but if making everything homemade is overwhelming to the point that you won’t be able to keep it up, try some of these suggestions to make dinner easier without eating out.
1. Make meals easier by using convenience items. Even if you use nothing but convenience items for your entire meal, it is still less expensive than going out to eat. You don’t need to make homemade bread, muffins, biscuits, or cookies. Buy them already made. You can even buy things like French bread, already sliced and buttered and ready to heat. It’s perfectly OK to use bagged lettuce, baby carrots, or anything frozen.
2. Keep it simple. Our grandmothers didn’t spend as many hours slaving away in the kitchen as we think they did. Instead of homemade bread or yeast rolls, the everyday meal included store-bought white or wheat bread on a plate with butter and jam. Grandma would open a jar of applesauce, a can of green beans or a jar of assorted pickles. She would toss a simple salad and have all her side dishes for that meal prepared quickly.
For years our family raved about my grandmother-in-law’s great homemade noodles. One day when I asked her for her recipe, she pulled me to one side, laughing, and said “No one else knows this, but I always use frozen noodles!” Our grandmothers knew the secret. It didn’t have to be complicated, gourmet, or elaborate for our families to enjoy a meal. It just had to be good, there had to be lots of it and it had to be made with love.
It takes only a couple of minutes to slice an orange, apple or banana and lay them on a platter. Throw in some unpeeled small red potatoes to boil, slice pre-cooked ham, heat up a box of fish fillets or lay out a variety of deli meats and cheeses for everyone to make their own hoagies. It can be as simple as that.
3. Make clean up easy. I line almost every pan I use with aluminum foil or parchment paper, whether I’m roasting a chicken or baking biscuits, cookies or tater tots. I line every casserole dish too.
Use paper plates and bowls if it helps. Use disposable pans when you can. You can usually find lots of them on sale around the holidays. Many people feel a lot of guilt connected with using anything disposable. If you are one of them, I give you permission here and now to use these things. Besides, when you eat out, just as much stuff gets thrown away. It’s just that other people throw it away for you. I would much rather see you at home using paper plates and disposable pans with your family than having to work many hours of over time to pay for dinner out.
Relax, enjoy your meal. Your family and pocketbook will thank you.
Try these easy recipes to simplify your dinner at home!
Hamburger Casserole
Minty Peas and Onions
This food shortage is a bigger deal than we are ‘knowing’, as yet.
It is more than the rice, it is wheat and corn and even poultry, as the bird flu still kills many flocks.
I knew of the problems, but not the fact it was affecting the entire world, until recently.
promedmail.org puts out news bulletins on the diseases of the world, people, animal, and plants. They are part of the World Health Organization and they have sent out the news, and I did not realize what the bigger picture was.
Now the politicians are involved all over the world, so our problems are now real.
I have walked into a grocery store to be met by empty shelves.
That is one of the most frightening experiences of my life, like living a nightmare......and even then I had food on hand as I have never been a day to day shopper.
About 1978, Safeway grocery store truckers went on strike.
At that time we had one Safeway store and a couple mom and pop types.
Safeway was huge and it had nothing for sale, the shelves were bare.
Near the registers, were a few basics, such as boxes of cereal, bread and milk...........one kind of each and you were allowed to buy one of each.
The Manager was driving the 110 miles to the warehouse in
Las Vegas and hauling back all he could in his pickup.
I regret, that I never went and thanked him personally for his efforts.
Now when I hear the words “Truck Strike”, I know what it means and am in the automatic shopping mode.
If one can imagine, all the trucks being forced to stop, no gas, no roads or martial law, then one can see the empty shelves in ones mind.
Martial law to me does not mean, “the evil gov will get us”, it means that we may well need to be confined, so the enemy troops can be trapped, as they are doing in towns all over Iraq.
It means that a disease could break out and be so quickly transmitted from one person to another, that we should all stay locked in our houses, by order of the gov or by common sense.
When I was young, houses were quarantined all the time, a sign went on the door and you stayed away from that house and kids.
I don’t invest in stocks and bonds, never wanted paper to line the walls with........but have saved a lot of money, for having been smart enough to buy some things .........before the price went up....
No one ever mentions what happens to shipping if we are attacked and the Panama Canal closed...
I would like to see everyone, stocking up on food of course, but so few think of an extra coat, extra shoes or basic clothes that wear out.
I believe you're correct.
Now when I hear the words “Truck Strike”, I know what it means and am in the automatic shopping mode.
We're sitting very very good here when it comes to our stored supplies and our ability to keep them. (if you know what I mean)
Martial law to me does not mean, “the evil gov will get us”, it means that we may well need to be confined, so the enemy troops can be trapped, as they are doing in towns all over Iraq.
We wouldn't have to leave our home for many many months. I can't say exactly how many on open forum.
I would like to see everyone, stocking up on food of course, but so few think of an extra coat, extra shoes or basic clothes that wear out.
I agree. But we've thought of it. lol
It's 12:30 and I have to get up at 6:00. School ends this month and I'll be able to come on FR more during the day. I'll pull out her calendar and see just how many more days she has left. The law requires 180 school days.
I'll see you when I get back. Good night and God bless you and yours.
To focus specifically on the bees, you might want to look at the Yahoo
organic beekeeping groups, or check out this website:
http://www.bushfarms.com/bees.htm. The proprietor is a frequent
poster on the group and quite experienced at beekeeping.
K
Yes, you are a busy lady, with all that you do.
It does my heart good, to know that some of you are ready and able to take care of yourselves.
I always smile, when I see you posting so when you can, we aren’t going to disappear in the near future.
As long as we keep having new people check in, we know that the message is going out.
Sleep well and do rest.
My husband made me a dehydrator. Simple set up, really. Large cardboard
apple crate with one of those lids/tops that acts as a sleeve, going
over the entire box. Lined with tin foil. CPU fan at one end, blowing
out and holes at the other end to allow air to be drawn in.
He mounted the CPU fan to an adapter that’s capable of 1.5 volts up to
12 volts. It runs nicely on 3 volts. The heat source is a 100 watt
flood light.
So far, so good. I have some pepper slices in there now and after 1 1/2
hours, you can see that it is working. That’s with repeated stops and
starts to do the tin foil and other adjustments.
His next challenge? To build one out of wood with metal lining and a
permanent light/heat source. Today’s endeavour took an hour for him to
make once I told him what I wanted.
Mona
Posted by: “Cheryl”
Date: Sun May 4, 2008 4:56 am ((PDT))
I used to sell the essential oils at festivals and flea markets. One
September in Indiana at an outdoor festival the bees were EVERYWHERE. I
had heard about bees and peppermint oil, so I put a drop of peppermint
oil on about 6 cottonballs. Then I scattered the cottonballs down the
25’ length of table in my booth. Immediatelyl the bees left.
The lady selling the cinnamon rolls came over after someone told her
about the peppermint oil trick. Her booth (as you can imagine) was
being swarmed by the bees attracted to the sugar. She bought a little
bottle of the oil then did the cottonball trick one the screens and
counters. Bees gone!
I don’t know if it works on hornets, but it sure works for bees.
3,590,000 seeds later we need a break!
By Matt Cortina on May 4, 2008
Alright. Thanks to all of you who have ordered free seeds from us to plant in your community. The past 24 hours have been a period of unexpected and overwhelming amounts of seed requests, so we unfortunately have to suspend our free tree seed program until further notice.
http://www.plantingamerica.org/
[As usual, too late, see above, it appeared in a group as a free seed site.............
They at least went and did it, 2 college men, touring America on their bikes, planting seeds............granny]
No-Cook Freezer Jams
http://www.care2.com/greenliving/no-cook-freezer-jams.html
Adapted from The Big Book of Preserving the Harvest, by Carol W.
Costenbader
Copyright (c) 2002, by Carol W. Costenbader. Reprinted by permission
of
Storey Books.
Today’s world doesn’t always allow time to stock a pantry the
old-fashioned
way.
No-cook freezer fruit jam is an easy way to skip hot days of canning
and yet
still process the bounty of summer produce. This no-process, low-sugar
fruit
jam is wonderful with strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, or
blueberries. Experiment with combinations. No-cook jams keep up to 6
months
in the freezer and 3 weeks in the refrigerator.
INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon lemon juice
3 cups washed, hulled, and finely chopped berries, at room temperature
(about 1 quart whole)
1 cup cold water
2 tablespoons agar flakes
1/4 cup mild-flavored honey, such as clover
1. In a mixing bowl, stir the lemon juice into the fruit. Set aside.
2. Place the water in a small saucepan and stir in the agar flakes.
Wait 1
minute and then, without further stirring, bring the agar to a simmer
over
medium-low heat. Once it’s simmering, stir for 2-5 minutes, or until
the
agar is completely dissolved.
3. Stir the honey into the agar. Use a heatproof rubber spatula to
scrape
the sides and bottom of the pot.
4. Pouring with one hand and stirring with the other, add the agar
mixture
to the fruit (do not add the fruit to the agar). Continue stirring
until
they are completely mixed. Taste at this time and add more honey, up to
3
tablespoons, if desired.
5. Pour the mam into hot, scalded half-pint jars, leaving 1/2 inch of
head
space.
6. Cap and seal. Let cool in the refrigerator for 10-12 hours before
freezing. Label and freeze the jam for up to 6 months.
7. When ready to use, thaw the jam in the refrigerator. It will keep
about 3
weeks in the refrigerator.
Yield: Four 1/2 pints.
FROM:
http://www.care2.com/greenliving/the-green-dish-make-butter.html
Make Butter:
Bring heavy cream to around 50F degrees, this took about 30 minutes out
at
room temperature for me.
Pour cream into the bowl of a stand mixer, cover top with shield,
plastic or
a dish towel. Really, do this or you will be wiping buttermilk spray
from
your kitchen ceiling. Whip with whisk attachment on medium-high for
about
five minutes, beyond the stiff peaks of whipped cream, until you can
see
that the fat has separated from the liquid. Alternatively, you can use
a
food processor or hand mixer.
Pour over a strainer into a bowl, and knead the butter to release more
liquid. (This will make your hands very soft and give them a deep
buttery
flavor until you shower, which is kind of lovely, but can get a little
gross
after a while.)
When butter stops releasing liquid and feels so creamy—voila!
Save the liquid “buttermilk!” and drink or use for cooking.
Salt if you like (guilty non-local Eco-sin confession: I added
Himalayan
pink salt).
Scoop with your fingers, experience weak knees.
[Granny note:
I have made butter this way several times, it is what happens when you are making ‘real whipped cream’ and get carried away with the beating.
In real butter making, a flat wooden spoon would be used to work the butter and then it was put into a wooden box, and pressed, to remove the balance of the water.
I do not ever remember, using my hands to work it and we had a paddle churn as well as a gallon jar, that was half filled with cream and the kids shook it until the butter formed.
granny]
If you don’t know what to have for dinner tonight ...
The ginger in this recipe adds zing to your healthy saut€ ¦éed cabbage.
Serve
with chicken or fish for a complete meal.
Healthy Saut€ ¦éed Red Cabbage with Ginger
Prep and Cook Time: 5 minutes
Ingredients:
* 1 small head of red cabbage
* 5 TBS low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
* Mediterranean Dressing
* 3 TBS extra virgin olive oil
* 1 TBS + 1 TBS lemon juice
* 1 medium clove garlic
* Ginger, sea salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
1. Quarter cabbage, slice into 1/4-inch strips, and let sit for 5-10
minutes to bring out the hidden health benefits of cabbage.
2. Chop or press garlic and let for at least 5 minutes.
3. Sprinkle cabbage with 1 TBS lemon juice before cooking to prevent
it
from turning blue.
4. Heat 5 TBS broth over medium heat in a stainless steel skillet.
When
broth begins to steam, add cabbage and cover.
5. Transfer to a bowl. For more flavor, toss cabbage with the
remaining
ingredients while it is still hot. (Mediterranean Dressing does not
need to
be made separately.)
Granny note:
This recipe struck my funny nerve.
Cabbage now has a union, that wants it to have rest periods.
It knows it will become food, but wants the right to not be over worked.
And it wants to come to the table in all it glorious color, not some tired faded color.
And of course, when Mr. Garlic heard of the extra rights Mrs Cabbage had, his union spoke up and insisted on equal rights.
Of course to get them to sign the agreement of being served for
dinner, you may need to force them to sign at knife point.
I would have liked this dish, but maybe not now, not when I can hear the unions yelling in the background.
[from one of my Yahoo groups]
granny]
Spiced Apple Marmalade
1 - 2” cinnamon stick
1/2 tsp cloves
6 cardamom pods, cracked
1 fresh lemon, unpeeled, quartered, seeds removed, thinly sliced
6 medium sized apples, peeled, cored, and finely chopped (6 c)
2 c water
1/4 c orange juice
5 c sugar
Combine spices in a cheesecloth bag. In an 8 to 10 quart kettle,
combine
spices, lemon slices, apples, water and orange juice. Bring to a boil.
Reduce heat and simmer until apples are tender, about 10 minutes.
Remove spice bag. Add sugar. Boil for 15 minutes, until the mixture is
thick and clear, or until it sheets when poured from a metal spoon.
Remove from heat and skim off foam. Pour at once into prepared jars
leaving a 1/4” headspace. Process jars for 10 minutes in a boiling
water
bath. Adjust time according to altitude.
Makes: 3 pints
Pumpkin Flour
Description: Pumpkin flour is a great substitute for use in just about any
recipe that uses flour. Pumpkin Flour is rich in minerals and vitamins, many of
which are believed to have several medicinal benefits (see below).
Pumpkin Flour most likely originated in Mexico, the origin of pumpkins. It is
popular there today. But, Pumpkin Flour is most popular in Japan and in Asian
countries. We have also found reference to it’s use in Nigeria, Thailand, and
Brazil.
Potential and real medical benefits include:
* Aids gastrointestinal ailments
* Cancer avoidance and treatment
* Kidney ailments
* Diabetes- both helps in deterring the onset of Diabetes, as well as treatment.
* Heart ailments.
Note: If you’d like to try pumpkin flour, but do not want to make it fresh, it
can be hard to find. Try local health food stores, and Asian and Chinese
groceries.
Ingredients:
There’s just one ingredient..........one or more pumpkins.
Preparation Directions:
1. Select one or more fresh, ripe pumpkins. Sugar pie variety makes a good,
slightly sweet flour.
2. Cut open the pumpkin, remove and discard seeds and strings.
3. Remove the skin from the pumpkin. Use a sharp knife for hard skins. A potato
peeler may work on soft shelled varieties.
4. Slice pumpkin into thin slices and set out to dry. A food dehydrator is
helpful.
5. Allow pumpkin to completely dry.
6. Place slices into a food processor and grind into a flour-like texture.
7. Place pumpkin flour into an airtight container, and store in a cool, dry
place.
Using Pumpkin Flour:
Pumpkin Flour can be used in any recipe that calls for flour. Most recipes
suggest substituting pumpkin flour for up to 1/4 of the amount of regular flour.
Submitted by: Darlene
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