Letter Re: Some Gardening Comments from a Northern Gardener

As a gardener of over 30 years, I garden for the most produce from my limited garden spaces. I can tomatoes, salsa, beans, relishes, corn, applesauce, pickles, etc. At this point in time I have no illusions that I could feed our family of four on our gardens. I’ve been growing what we like to eat versus what will give us the best nutrition and can sustain us year round. The SurvivalBlog site has been a wonderful wealth of information and the books they recommend have enhanced my gardening knowledge in ways that lead to being self-sustaining. I’ve used the list of books on the web site to check them out at the library, skim or read thru them, and then purchase what I feel I need to keep on hand. Many garden books will cover similar materials. Here is a list of my newest favorites:

The Plant Propagator’s Bible by Miranda Smith (ISBN 1-59486-448-9). Did you know you can work with hybrids to either develop them or breed back from them to develop an open-pollinated cultivar? It takes time and effort but I’m glad it is possible. I personally prefer certain hybrids because they yield much better and survive much better. Maybe keeping seed from both your favorite hybrids and some non-hybrids is a better plan. Many hybrids cost much less.

This book also shows many types of propagation techniques and which methods work best for specific plants. It has inspired me to try grafting some Japanese plums onto existing native wild plum stock!

Root Cellaring by Mike and Nancy Bubel (ISBN 978-0-88266-703-4) our basement is to warm to keep vegetables in good condition all the way to spring. I will have a better basement root cellar by this fall and this book has various options that can work. Last year, we stored apples in our shop in two ways, inside a refrigerator and in a big cart surrounded by big Styrofoam blocks and covered with blankets and a tarp. We had some intermittent heat when we used the shop for repairs. The fridge failed because the apples froze at -30 degrees outside. We spent two weeks making applesauce with the others the end of January. They didn’t freeze and they didn’t spoil. We give thanks for the ideas in this book!

The The Winter Harvest Handbook by Eliot Coleman. I live in a gardening Zone 4 and never even thought about growing anything in the winter. The Coleman’s book shows how they grow year round in a Zone 5 with unheated greenhouses and/or cold frames. I am really excited about this opportunity as we have a small greenhouse. Some of the varieties grown are new to me, but we will be trying them.

The Farmer’s Wife Guide To Growing A Great Garden And Eating From It, Too!by Barbara Doyen (ISBN 0-87131-974-8) She gives good information on growing, storing, freezing, and cooking for 30 vegetables. There are over 200 recipes included. I hate growing something and then not finding a way to use it or share it with others.

For pure inspiration, This Organic Life: Confessions of a Suburban Homesteader by Joan Dye Gussow. (ISBN 1-931498-24-5). Joan and her husband lived self-sustaining and they share their story, recipes, and tips that will save you countless hours of back-braking work. It also showed me that I need to prepare in other ways than just in growing my own food. A garden failure should always be in the back of our minds.

Everyone should have the book Seed to Seed: Seed Saving and Growing Techniques for Vegetable Gardeners by Suzanne Ashworth, as suggested by SurvivalBlog, to learn to grow, find and collect seed. Label and date all seed collected! Even if you can’t read it right now; have it for reference.

Our gardens feed us well from July to October. Our fresh garden surplus stores until about January. The garden canned and dried goods last until about June or July. We have four in our family and a pint of applesauce works for a side dish for one meal. I guess my point is that providing a majority of your food from your garden is very hard work and takes planning. The Root Cellaring book tells you when to plant certain vegetables so they will store longer-you don’t just plant everything over Memorial Day weekend. I know how to produce massive amounts of food; for a short period of time. Keeping it and using it efficiently, not so much! (Hint: a compost pile helps gardeners deal with the guilt of growing something and having it go to waste!). I’ve always given lots away and will continue to do that. I am changing what I grow, from just favorite food to more storable food. This also means cooking new produce and in new ways that my family will enjoy. One resource for storing and cooking is Jackie Clay. She is a writer for Backwoods Home magazine and her article archive has some wonderful canning tips. Everything of hers that I’ve read is very practical; safety minded, and useful; especially her cookbook/canning book.

The field guides about wild edible plants are another reference that have been mentioned in previous articles and should be on everyone’s bookshelves. Even if you live in a very barren environment, there are plants you can eat—but you need to know how to identify plants and what is safe to eat. If nothing else, pick out 5-10 plants in the guide that grow in your area and become very familiar with them. If you have children, give them a summer assignment to identify these plants until they are proficient at finding them. With your supervision, make meals or meal additions with these plants and serve them several times a week. You’ll save on groceries and be giving everyone life skills. (Be sure any collected plants are from good locations as ditch banks, edges of fields and roadsides are often sprayed with herbicides. And of course get permission if it’s not your property!)

I suggest as you read and research, do not overlook experienced gardeners and farmers, and your own grandparents. Ask them what they ate in the 1930s. It may surprise you! Start growing now, when inputs are readily available and tools can help. Better to start now, even if you fail; and learn to improve.

Seed viability is important to know. It doesn’t always follow what the seed catalogs say.

Maybe they want to sell more seed! An example: I had an old pack of Jalapeno Pepper seeds that had a few left in it. It was from 1995. I planted them and ½ of them grew. Some seed will not keep even until the next year. This gives me hope as God will provide for us and if we start out with good seed, we can expect a harvest. He will multiply it and we can bless those around us. Thank you Jim for your web site and knowledge, it is all good seed. – Jack G.