Expanding on what I have said before...

I'm sure all of you Americans are aware of the effects this brutally cold weather has been having on the annual citrus crop down in "sunny" Florida...the growers are literally having to turn their fruit into juice *now* because that is all it is good for, once the fruit has been frozen...Despite their best efforts, large portions of this year's citrus crop are going to be ruined for general consumption. I will be stocking up on Friday. We don't drink juice or use lemon juice very often (yes, I use the bottled--I simply cannot be running to the store every time I need a couple teaspoons of lemon juice!), but when I need it, I need it. And at this point, it shouldn't cost much to put a couple of good sized bottles onto the pantry shelf, and a couple dozen cans of frozen concentrate into the freezer...

But having started there, what about those things that we take for granted, in our stores...avocados, tomatoes off season, lettuce and other greens...or even in season, there are many many produce items that can be grown nearly anywhere, and yet, we buy them at the store...?

Now is the time of year, to be getting your garden together. It's actually beginning to get late, to get some seeds, or order some plants, especially if you want to get some open-pollinated, heirloom varieties, because people are seeing them for the natural gift that they are...non-hybridized, no GMO tinkering...not to mention, the ability to keep the seed, and grow the same exact plants next year. Seriously. You cannot do that with hybrids or GMO seed. Simply won't happen.

There are many people who believe that because they are in an apartment, there is nothing that can be done, and they will just have to settle for buying their produce in the markets. But that is not necessarily the case. A sunny balcony or window-ledge, will provide some space for containers you can use to grow vegetables in. Admittedly, not root crops, likely, because the depth will be lacking. But you can grow some nice container tomatoes, even run some beans up a trellis. Garlic and onions, while root veggies, don't require the amount of depth that carrots and potatoes do, and add immeasurably to the taste of your food (especially if you are eating from the pantry). Small pepper plants (both spicy and bells), and of course, greens of all types, are also a good bet for your average container gardener...

But why? Why grow your own? I mean, can't you just run to the store?

Well, there are several reasons why we personally try to grow as much of our own food as possible...
One, it is cheaper, in many respects, than hopping into the car and running to the store when I need a head of lettuce, cukes, and tomatoes, for a salad of an evening. Have you looked at the prices on the vegetables these days? Let me assure you, things are not going to get cheaper, or of better quality, in the coming months...not with the price of gas soaring again..remember, those costs *will* get handed on to you, the consumer...besides--what if they don't have any at the store? With the problems in large agricultural areas of California, crop failures across not just the US, but all over the world, a steady supply of "any" agricultural commodity is not a 'given', not anymore...

Secondly, we know what goes onto, into, and around our food. We can amend the soil with compost, we can apply the right amounts of mulch at just the right times, and keep an eye out for pests, rather than spraying indiscriminately, whether the plants need it or not, just because "this is when we always spray the back 40". I know the conditions that the produce was harvested in, and so I *know* that no migrant worker, carrying goodness knows what diseases, took a call of nature just up the field from my future head of lettuce...you can wash it all you want, but the knowledge that someone very likely voided near your food? And didn't wash their hands before going back to work...yeahhhh...Makes *me* want to go to the store and pick the veggies off the produce displays...yepppers...

Thirdly, this is a way to involve our children intimately in the growing and production of their food. My children will know what a tomato plant looks like. They have their own little patches of earth, where they can grow what they want. Or at least *try* :-) . My oldest three have already been around at butchering time, and quite enjoyed 'dissecting' (very carefully, and under strict adult supervision) the still warm heart of one of our pigs. They also know that our animals and are our 'charges'...that we are, as human beings, the stewards of the blessings God has given us, and that we ought to treat those gifts with respect, and thank God for the opportunity to live on them, grow our food, and raise our animals ourselves. We take our job as "stewards" very seriously, and try to take the best care of our animals and land, we can...We thank Him, as well, that our animals have lived good lives, in fresh air, sunshine, and being the most of whatever animal they are, under His watchful eye, and our loving care. And while my children are somewhat saddened, when the animals meet their Creator, they are also always thrilled, when we eat something we have grown, or raised, ourselves. "Is this *our* pork? Is this *OUR* chicken?"...not to mention, the discussions we have had, the first time we had a meal with potatoes, onions, carrots, and pork all grown and raised here on our land. Thanks be to God we have been able to do so while our children are still young and small. There is no doubt that my children will grow up knowing that ground beef comes from those cows in the pasture, when their day comes to be butchered.

There are many reasons *for* growing our own food. No one is saying, "go out and buy 15 acres and immediately plant it to food...and expect to live off of it right off the bat". Nope, that's not going to work out very well for you. Start out, with some small space. Especially if one is in a subdivision, where there is a HOA, you may be restricted on what you can and cannot do (personally, I find HOA rather silly and power-hungry, but hey, I moved to the country to get away from that mindset)...

One thing that several of my friends have done, is to incorporate their food plants in with their bedding plants. By planting, say, a tomato, surrounded with a beautiful basil, and perhaps some carrots, you not only get some lovely plants to 'fill in', but they are useful, and those three are great "companion plants" for one another. Especially if you get determinate, bush varities, you won't have to worry about trellising and twine and all that stuff. It might be sneaky, but it gets the job done, right? Put herbs into your window boxes, your porch planters, and watch them grow (whatever you do, do *not* put mint in the ground. Any of the mints will spread by rootlet and take over...ask me how I know!). You can use some herbs as ground covers, in lightly trafficked areas, or as border plants in a flower bed. Be sneaky and be creative...I'm sure you all know what I mean...

There are many wonderful seed catalogs out there. Some of my favorites are the Seed Saver's catalog, Jungs, Burpees, and Johnny's. But make sure to read carefully about what seeds or plants you are getting. It can be very easy to over-guesstimate how many seeds you will need, and then you end up feeling like you need to plant all those seeds...and in two months time, your planted area is completely overwhelmed...buying ready-to-go plants is also a good idea especially for things like herbs, and small container plants like cherry tomatoes and peppers. Make sure to check the way that the plant grows. Does it need trellising support, or does it need to ramble? Is it a bush variety, or is it one of those that needs to spread out and leaf out allll over the place? Keep your space allowance in mind, and really think.

Seed catalogs are terribly seductive. Oh my, yes. I can easily spend an entire day just browsing through my stack of seed catalogs, drooling over things I have no hope of growing here. Between the soil/light requirements, zones of growth, and amount of work required for many of them, I'm just out of luck. Not to mention the flower portions which don't really add anything to the diet but do make one's spirits bloom a bit. Try and make sure that any seeds you do buy, especially the herbals, have a pretty look to them and aren't supposed to be too leggy. In hard times, sometimes, a pretty plant is all we need to perk our spirits up a bit...I would recommend some sunflowers, of varying heights and colors, if one wants to plant something edible and pretty at the same time.

Once you have your garden going, there are many methods of preserving the harvest, from freezing (very easy, but if you don't have a spare chest or upright freezer at hand, well, you may not want to do that-and if the power goes out? Well, you'd better like vegetable soup!) to canning (somewhat space and labor intensive, but there's no worries about food deterioration/loss if the power goes out, *and* you can reuse the jars and rings year after year) to dehydrating (a good way to go as far as storage goes, since things tend to dry smaller and lighter, but they may not look as appetizing as your other options, and if you want it done quickly, the dehydrators can be expensive to build or buy)...Herbs are easiest dried, of course, if you aren't going to use them fresh. Some veggies store better fresh, some don't do well frozen--it is really a matter of learning what you eat, and what is the best method for preserving that particular fruit or veggie. There are many good books on the market about this, but after the Ball Blue Book (canning), I really like "Preserving the Harvest" and "Stocking Up". Those are mainstays on the library shelves and you *should* be able to check them out right now, and think about what you will want to eat, what you would like to plant, and then do a bit of research as far as the best means for preservation.

Personally, I opt for canning 99.9% of my produce. And even some meats. It is all in the method used, and the recipes, as well. I make our jams (blackberry, strawberry, and peach strawberry/strawberry peach), and peach butter. This year I also made salsa, vegetable soup, more salsa, ketchup, more salsa, tons of pickle relish (I think it was 26 quarts?--and that is in addition to all of the pickles--dills, mostly--I had left from last year's harvest), more salsa (say, are you seeing a pattern here? ;-) ), pickled banana peppers, pickled jalapeno peppers...And it really didn't take that much time, it was just being busy the days that I *did* can. I also put a great many blackberries and jalapenos into the freezer, for later use, since I don't need that many pints of pickled jalapenos, and I would like to try my hand at blackberry brandy. I did make some homemade cherry brandy this fall, but as I've yet to taste it, well, we'll see which of our friends are going to be our handy-dandy guinea pigs.

Many things that we believe are far too difficult to preserve, or to make ourselves, are, in actuality, quite simple and easy. Take the cherry brandy. Cleaned fruit. Sugar. Yep. That's pretty much *it*, folks. A dark, coolish place, where it isn't going to be shaken, stirred, poked, and whatnot...a decent covering, and there you go. Cherry brandy. Yum. I'll have to try it over pound cake one of these days...

I believe that in large part, the main reason behind the majority's unwillingness to consider growing their own food, or even a part of it, is simply the thought that they have better things to do. Now, I'm all for relaxation. I certainly enjoy a good book in front of the fire on a cold evening...a nice leisurely evening with friends on the front porch, after a wonderful bbq dinner from the grill...but those things do not, should not, preclude the labors of our hands and bodies.

Too many of us (self included) would much rather have a life of ease, and relative leisure. The thought of getting out and shoveling tons of used stable bedding onto a garden plot, leaves much to be desired. It is certainly not high on most people's "Things I Want to Do Before I Die" bucket lists. However, it is good exercise. It is honest work. And once a rhythm gets going, it becomes a sort of prayer to the good Lord, who created us all, and told us that we would be forced to work, and to grow our food by the sweat of our brow...the relative silence, of the thud of the shovel into a pile of composted manure, straw, and "such", provides time for meditating on the mysteries of life. Christ was raised by his foster father, a carpenter...did He, Our Lord, ever shovel a garden for His mother? How can I, even as I am shoveling some really nasty stuff, direct my thoughts to God, and His will? Perhaps by concentrating on the fact that the very nastiness that I am shoveling out there, is the very thing that will make my flowers grow bigger and bloom brighter, my tomatoes reach for the sky and put out a gazillion blossoms and fruit...realizing that it is sometimes the ugliness coming before, that causes the beauty of the end result, to shine so brightly in our mind...how many of us, have seen what seemed to be a horrible situation, turn around and become an example of how great God is, and how He can work in our lives?

Admittedly, it is easy to see the drudgery, and not see the potential goodness that comes from such labor. We have been conditioned, as a culture, as a people, to refrain from such things at nearly whatever cost we can manage, and only to resort to manual labor if we cannot possibly pay someone else. There are hold outs, of course. Many of us, cannot afford to pay someone to come and do all of our gardening, our painting, our cleaning for us, and so we do it ourselves, neglecting a very great opportunity to submerge ourselves in the "mindlessly mundane" work...

Yesterday, after I finally took down the Christmas tree, and the Christmas decorations, I rearranged a bit more of the spaces in the family room. Not needing that space for the tree anymore, I moved a rocking chair (a very nice, heavy, substantial oak one) to where the tree had been, and over it, I hung a picture. A rather large piece, with a quote from 1 Corinthians underneath the print of a woman, working at picking fruit from a tree...

"Therefore, my beloved brothers, be firm, steadfast, always fully devoted to the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. ", 1 Corinthians 15:58

What a better thing to meditate on, when one is performing such drudgery, knowing that our work...even the mundane, daily tasks, is not in vain (I realize that St Paul was in fact writing to the Corinthians, to scold them, to chastise them, to exhort them to remain true to the Gospel of Our Lord...but for the purposes of this blog post, I'll admit to cherry picking scripture! And even better, this one is hanging in my family room... :-) ).

We are, for the most part, Christians, reading this blog...some Catholic, some protestant. What better work is there, than seeing to the well-being of your family? And if you are single, or have no family to provide the bounty of your garden with, well then, surely, there is someone else, who can benefit. Those disabled, on limited incomes, and the elderly, who cannot garden on their own, and yet, cannot afford to buy themselves such things, either--would they not benefit greatly from your efforts? Not just in a financial sense...but in the intangible--better nutrition, of course, also in the building of ties within the community. Someone thinking of them, gathering some freshly grown, warm from the sun, vegetables and fruits for them? I wonder how often that happens? We talk the talk, but do we walk the walk?

The sharing of our bounty, whether it is fresh, or preserved, is an important part of our Christian faith. And even the sharing of our poverty (the widow's mite) is of great value...(see the stories of Stone Soup, for an idea of what I mean here).

I realize that I have wandered a bit, from my intended discussion on food growing and preservation. I apologize for that...Please, do check out the books and such that I have mentioned. Other good general gardening books, for those inclined, are "Lasagna Gardening" "Square Foot Gardening", "Carrots love Tomatoes" and "Roses love Garlic"...there is much that can be done, even on a standard suburban plot, not burdened by HOA rules, to make you a bit more self-sufficient...

I do hope that you got "something" from this post. I'm sorry if I rambled too far off course for some of you. Remember, I'm a beginning blogger, and I still like to talk about myself--hey, it's not like I'm looking to make a living off of it!

Hopefully, I will be able to get another post up tomorrow, about another preparedness issue--fuel, light, and heat...if not, I am now apologizing in advance! It has been a couple of very busy days around here (like I said, yesterday was dismantling the Christmas decorations, and El Husbando was home with a torqued-up back. Massively ugly pain. :-( ). Today, I finally got my table linens pulled out, the drawers cleaned out and reorganized, and I even got the end table table-cloth changed, and the cabinet by the back door cleaned out a bit more...Yay for the home team!! Considering that was on top of schoolwork, regular housechores, and everything else that goes on around here, I don't feel too bad!

I do hope that you have had a productive day. And if not productive, well...I hope it wasn't BAD. And if it was bad, well, it wasn't too horrible--you are still alive to read this, right? God has granted you another day (sometimes, we may wonder WHY, but hey, who am I to question HIM? LOL)!
For now, my friends, think about your yards, your balconies, what can *you* do, to make yourself even a smidgen better prepared? Do you have a wonderfully sunny backyard, and have been trying to decide what to do with it, besides grass? Consider a non-traditional vegetable garden, design it like a flower bed, and instead of delphiniums, foxgloves, pinks, roses, and daylilies, try green beans, tomatoes, carrots, lettuces/greens, onions, and herbs. Think outside the box.