Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 37 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams.) Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795, and B.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $300 value.) C.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo, and E.) An M17 medical kit from JRH Enterprises (a $179.95 value).

Second Prize: A.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol. It is a $439 value courtesy of Next Level Training. B.) A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $300, C.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and D.) two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, C.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value.), and D.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 37 ends on November 30th, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

A Grandmother’s Practical Preparedness Plans, by Mrs. M.B.

Those of us who are from the 1930-1940s generation may have a lot of childhood memories from our parents and grandparents that will serve us well as we approach TEOTWAWKI.  As I meditate back on the sketchy memories of childhood, I can recall a number of things that today would be called “survival living” but for us at that time was simply “living.”

In survival times, let us not forget our kids emotional well-being.  In addition to needing extra love and assurance from parents and grandparents, there are many simple ways to help them entertain themselves and break free of the video/television/iPod-in-your-ear addictions.  A simple iron or steel wheel with a metal rod with a flat bend  at end will entertain them for hours as they roll it all over the yard.  In the south, playing “doodle-bug, doogle-bug, won’t you come out”  is a joy when you “doodle” the concave hole and watch the bug back out.  Bags and bags of marbles are great as well as building blocks.  These are some of the ways we entertained ourselves as kids. 

Moving on to the real topic of survival, many of us have a head start in our preparations while others are just now waking up to reality that they are seriously behind the eight-ball, or they think they will “take” what someone else has—not recommended, especially in my state, where carrying concealed weapons is legal.  We know food is critical.  We know defense if critical.  There have been many great articles on this posted by readers and owner of this site.  The thing I’ve had a hard time understanding as a senior citizen is: “I have a bugout bag but where in the heck am I going to bugout to”?  Those in the country are going to get overrun by “bugouters” apparently, and that will be a serious moral and safety problem.  We’re in the country, but if we are forced to “move on”, we’ll be in a world of hurt after initial supplies run out.  We’re too old to camp out in these freezing mountains in winter so we are praying our current home will protected and safe.  Ultimately, God is our hiding place and our covering of protection.

Even if many of us are not in ideal locations (who can know where that is except by the specific guidance of the Lord), we can learn to make do where we are.  Two out of five neighbors are stocking up on food.  The others will come knocking when they are hungry and we will share what we can as we can see skills they have which may be needed and available when they are hungry enough to trade.  We are putting aside extra beans and rice for them as we would rather feed them than fight them, and trust God to stretch our food.  If we had the money, we would probably just pack up and leave the country but financially that is not an option.  

For water, we have a well and can always pull the pipe and pump to drop down a well bucket from a rope if we get desperate.  Fortunately a well driller lives within walking distance.  We installed a 5000 gallon water tank to last a while along with a 1,000 gallon propane tank.  Since the water has a lot of iron in it and needs to be filtered, our Big Berkey does the job, and for our backpack we use Seychelle water bottles.   All these have worked well for us.  We also make our own colloidal silver and use it for almost everything needing purifying including our dogs’ water, washing our fruit and veggies, rinsing our meat and chicken, etc.  While we can, though, we purchase the “silver sol” (comes under several names) and take it internally daily for health maintenance.  I also used it to get rid of an abscessed tooth infection recently instead of taking antibiotics which I don’t tolerate well.  We brush our teeth with it, disinfect our brushes, we spray it in our eyes for infection, we spray it up our nose for sinus infection, etc.  Colloidal Silver or Silver Sol and Olive Leaf Extract capsules are our number one line of defense for practically all illnesses we get from flu to cold to infection to pneumonia, all which we have experienced. 

For over 10 years we have heated with woodstove only.  For backup electricity, we put in an 8 KW backup solar system with two inverters so we can pump water from the 220v pump in the well for about 45 minutes a day in sunshine before it stops.  We did not tie into the grid as we did not want the power company controlling our system.  With a transfer switch, we switch back and forth as needed.  Here in sunny northern Arizona, a solar oven cooks great!  We cook tender, melt in your mouth, roast beef and chicken in it now but will resort to beans and rice later.  If you can’t afford the good ones sold online, you can make a cheap one yourself with a box, aluminum foil, duct tape and glass, or search online for methods suggested.  We did buy a Rocket stove which will cook with twigs but also learned to make a cheap one with a #10 can with bottom cut out.  We have used a #10 can cut to half size and put a wire screen on top wired down for a tortilla cooker. 

Every time the grocery store has the 1 pound bags of frozen vegetables on sale, I buy 12 or 13 bags at a time and dehydrate them in my large 9-tray dehydrator and vacuum seal the dried veggies in quart and half gallon canning jars.  Once they are dry, no worries about spoiling.  I vacuum seal everything I can get my hands on in way of dried food products.  I used to do a lot in the vacuum seal bags, but they do not hold up over time and mice and bugs can eat through them, so now I do it all in jars.  A good vacuum sealer, with the extra tube and extra lids for regular and wide mouth jar sealing, is one of the best investments you can make.
As far as a garden, all the years of chemtrail spraying we have endured here seems to have ruined the soil, trees and plants. The severe drought in Arizona seemed to start about the time they started spraying as we would watch them cover the skies which would divert the rain clouds.  Whenever we would hear a weather report to expect rain in a day or so, we knew we would get sprayed and just like clockwork, they sprayed, and no rain.   Even with building up the soil, things just don’t grow as well as they should.  The earthworms seem to be gone.  Long term food survival is still a formidable challenge in my mind.  I am purchasing seeds to sprout for live enzymes.  There’s not enough natural plant life to support any chickens or other food animals. We would love to relocate to an area with good soil & water, and Christian neighbors and preppers but have not found that place yet.

I’ve learned how to take a bath without bathing, a lesson from my grandmother who never had an indoor bathroom.  Wet a washcloth, spray with colloidal silver or nano silver and a little perfume and wash down with it and you will feel as clean and fresh as a shower.  You use hardly any water that way.  Even though we are on a private well, we practice water conservation in many ways.  One way we have done for years is to draw the hot water into gallon jugs until it begins to run hot to use, then we give that to the dogs for their water.  That amounts to two gallons of water saved each time we wash dishes or take a shower. 
I make frequent trips to the thrift stores to look for fill in supplies.   Made a major find this week when I found boxes of medical supplies like 4×4 drain sponges, abdominal pads, drainage bags with tubes, tracheostomy drain sponges, box of 50 surgical masks, surgical gloves – all for a song!  Could not believe my find.  My sister is a trained paramedic so figured she would know how to use the medical stuff.  Also found a few camouflage small military pouches that attach to a back pack.  Previously I have purchased from that thrift store woodland camouflage shirts, pants, canteens with covers, backpacks, etc.  I have found that thrift stores for pets located in upscale areas net better stuff

The local swap meet yields all kinds of neat survival items from military 3-part sleeping bags (found 2 sets), to ALICE packs with frames,  to knives to cast iron cookware.  Online stores have yielded me good prices on gas masks and canisters.  You just have to look.

All this and I am a 68 year old grandma!  If I can do it, anyone can.  Now our challenge is to go through everything, sort and inventory.  For strength we will rely on our strapping 6’3” tall 18 year old grandson who has always lived with us.  So far we have put him through a two year Heavy Equipment Operator class to learn how to operate all kinds of heavy equipment.  We had him join the Civil Air Patrol to learn skills there like desert survival training and search and rescue.  Those skills will be valuable later on when the SHTF.    I’m also thinking about putting him in a karate class.  Invest in your kids and grandkids in this way.  It will pay off. 

With all that said and done, do we feel prepared?  No, as there is always more to learn and do physically, but even with the best preparations, the unknown is always lurking, waiting like a lion to pounce on the unwary, unsuspecting ones.  We do not have any underground bunker or cave.  The ground is so rocky that is not an option.  Theft is so bad in this rural area, you cannot leave anything unattended, especially in remote areas. 
Having everything in one place goes against all wisdom in prepping.  But having done all, we stand.

So I end with this:  “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.  I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in Him will I trust. Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence.  He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust: His truth shall be they shield and buckler.  Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.  A thousand shall fall at thy side and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.  Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.  Because thou has made the Lord, which is my refuge, even  the most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh they dwelling.  For He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.”  Psalm 91:1-11.

Letter Re: Sorting Canadian Pennies

Mr. Rawles,
I had a moment of inspiration today and after looking up melt value of Canadian coins on Coinflation and giving thought to your article about storing U.S. nickels.  I decided to try an experiment sorting Canadian coins, specifically nickels and pennies. 

Note that these melt values are when Copper spot price is listed at $3.246/lbs – a two year low in October 2011.  Personally, with the currency printing going around world wide, I think it’s reasonable to assume these prices are going to skyrocket in the near future.

I went to a Canadian bank and bought several roles of nickels and pennies with the intent of using a magnet to filter out fully debased steel coins from the coins with high nickel and copper content.

First off – all Canadian nickels are magnetic and the experiment does not work with them.

However with pennies, I’ve found that using a magnet and several pieces of Tupperware, from one 50 cent roll I can filter out around one third of the full-debased steel Canadian pennies dating after 2000 whose melt value is insignificant. 

One third of the pennies that remain are dated after penny debasement occured from 1997 onwards when the mint introduced copper-washed zinc pennies.  Mixed in as well are a few 1982 and later American pennies.  The approximate melt value of either being $0.004 to $0.005 per penny.

Approximately one third of the remaining pennies are American or Canadian pennies whose melt value fluctuates from $0.0177 to $0.023.  These are either pre-1982 American pennies or pre-1997 Canadian pennies.

Given the ability to filter out a substantial amount of the steel pennies with a magnet (that can be rerolled and deposited at a bank), would you please offer your opinion on if you think sorting and storing Canadian pennies is a viable means to store up copper as an inflation hedge, in a similiar way to storing American nickels for thier nickel [and copper] content?

I will also note that there is serious talk in the Canadian government to fully abolish the penny so the opportunity for doing so may not be around for very long.

Thank you, – Ni in Canada

JWR Replies: That does make some sense, although keep in mind that with pennies the weight and bulk per dollar invested will be substantially higher than with nickels. And I can assure you that even nickels are very heavy and bulky! But if you have time on your hands and lots of vault space, then go for it.

Letter Re: Farmer’s Markets in the American Redoubt?

Dear James-
I just recently found your blog through a story on The Daily Crux by Stansberry and Associates. I am very impressed by the amount and quality of the info. I now feel less alone! The people that I have tried to talk to here don’t have a clue-they either say that if something bad happens they know we will take care of(feed) them or they say that they have guns and will take what they need. I only know of two other preppers and they are many miles away. We run a greenhouse business and vegetable farm in northern Wisconsin. We also raise chickens ,turkeys and pigs.We freeze,can and dehydrate and keep stocking up  but doubt we can defend it. The economy is slowly going to put us under. Our balloon is due and no one makes commercial loans here anymore. Sales are declining and people keep expecting more for less. While this is a rural area, the majority of residents work for state or local government.
 
We desperately want to move to the mountains but funds will be tight. If by some miracle we can sell out we might have $150,000 but if we lose this place we might only have $30,000. Far too little to buy a place with live water and a few acres for veggies, fruit and animals. Are there like minded people who want to live off grid, be self sufficient and are conservative that would like to buy a larger piece of property to share. Maybe a mini community of people that could rely on each other. We like northwest Montana, the panhandle of Idaho, and northeastern Washington. I am looking for someplace quiet but need to be within driving distance of farmers markets to sell produce, eggs and meat. If you have any thoughts or ideas please let me know.
 
Thank You, – M.J.

JWR Replies: There are lots of towns in the American Redoubt that have active farmer’s markets from Spring through Fall each year. I have found directories of Farmer’s Markets posted on the web for Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming. Needless to say, the presence of farmer’s markets is a good indicator for towns with arable soil and some self-sufficient folks and hence a locale with some retreat potential. (Although be advised that there are lots of larger cities that host farmer’s markets wherein the “local” farmers often drive 75+ miles, to attend!) Furthermore, in a post-collapse America, it will likely be the local farmer’s markets that will be the genesis of a revived economy–whether it is via barter or with some new currency.

Economics and Investing:

Ian Gordon: Hedging With Gold Against Imminent Economic Collapse

State may expedite Florida foreclosures

B.B. sent a link to the latest Jim Rogers CNBC Interview.

Also from B.B.: Gold is not in a Bubble: It’s on its way to $10,000 an ounce

Yet another from B.B.: Foreigners Dump $74 Billion In Treasurys In 6 Consecutive Weeks: Biggest Sequential Outflow In History

Items from The Economatrix:

Stocks Rise On Gain In Retail Sales; Google Jumps

California Revenues Down By $705M

The Depression:  If Only Things Were That Good

Retail Sales Rose Strongly In September On Autos

 

Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader C.D.V. found a handy search tool where you can look up your local school and see what toxic chemicals the children are exposed to. It goes on to list what chemicals and what businesses/industries are responsible. This is just one more tool to use when research retreat locales. It also provide further support for my states designated in The American Redoubt.

   o o o

Michael Z. Williamson (SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large) sent links to a couple of video clips on creative uses for CONEX containers: Concrete reinforced CONEX “wine cellar” and Prefab CONEX cabins.

   o o o

I just heard that Camping Survival (one of our loyal advertisers) is offering 25% off on all CELOX coagulants.

   o o o

File under Helpless Sheeple Department: Couple lost in Massachusetts corn maze causes media bonanza.

   o o o

Reader J.B.G. sent a link to a piece on Louisiana’s controversial ban on private cash transactions: Government Takes Private Property Without Due Process

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he [it is] that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.” – Deuteronomy 31:6 (KJV)

Notes from JWR:

A reader alerted me that the first two hours of my three-hour interview late Wednesday/early Thursday morning on “Coast To Coast AM” with George Noory are now available on YouTube. (There are four sequential clips available.)

—

Today we present another entry for Round 37 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams.) Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795, and B.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $300 value.) C.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $275 value), D.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo, and E.) An M17 medical kit from JRH Enterprises (a $179.95 value).

Second Prize: A.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol. It is a $439 value courtesy of Next Level Training. B.) A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $300, C.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and D.) two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, C.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value.), and D.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 37 ends on November 30th, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Letter Re: A Predator-Resistant Chicken Coop Design

After reading the article about protecting your chickens, I would like to comment on my solution.  After experiencing my early failed attempt at chicken raising because the possums would chase the night dumb chickens back and forth against the chicken wire enclosure and extrude them through the chicken wire eating as they pulled, I built chicken coop number two. 
 
First I built it off the ground with a slightly sloping plywood floor covered by galvanized sheet metal ship lapped to protect the floor. When pressure washing, the water flows to the outside.  At the low end I raised the wood stud base plate up 3/4″ (on pointed wood spacers below each wall stud) to allow the water to drain into a gutter on the outside.  I put removable tapered wood pieces in the gap to keep the snakes out. A lip on the spacer allows removal with a flat shovel.  I then paneled the walls up 4 feet.  The next four feet is hardware cloth on three sides so the animals cannot reach through.  I have an aluminum roof of surplus house trailer porch panels.  Inside I have nesting boxes, a roost, and a closet on the back side for gathering eggs in a closed in room through hinged and latched access doors.  This closet is great for my incubator and I could use it for baby chicks but I currently put them in a garden area with the hen.  Out of 30 chickens, I only have two that will set.
 
I built a closed in chute into the closed in garden area, which includes a wire roof.  The chickens have access to five different garden areas that can be individually separated.  From the adjacent garden area,  I built a small opening with a slide door two feet off the ground.  On the outside of the opening is a horizontal metal grate (I used stainless) suspended on electric fence isolators. Plastic tie wraps worked great.  I put a thin stainless plate on the ground below the grate.  This is not necessary but guarantees a charge.  I installed a 12 volt fence charger to the grate and to a ground rod with an additional wire to the bottom plate.  I use 12 volt because of future power issues.  A small solar panel keeps it charged and solar fence chargers are available.
 
The chickens being two legged jump up on the grate without being shocked.  The four legged animals reach up and get a shock as they are grounded.  I later had to add plastic sheets around the door opening as I had a baby possum get through.  The only problem I had is a big chicken walking under the grate and touching the grate underside while grounded.  A fence under the grate around the grate posts would fix that.  The fence would have to be grounded.  I used this method for months and could leave for days at a time or not worry about coming home after dark.  Since I go to work before daylight, they could leave as needed.
 
Since I now have geese, ducks and prior turkeys which are all stupid, I have quit using the device.  I put them up at night now.
 
I am building coop three in the deep woods.  I am using stainless for the floor as the galvanize is starting to rust due to the acidic chicken manure.  I am going to experiment and see if the chickens can live with out me feeding them. I may not check them for days at a time.  The design is the same but with my hot water collectors on the roof.  I have noticed the chickens are not eating chicken feed if they are free range.  I also feed them wild bird seed which they devour.  I note the wild game is not eating the corn and sunflower seeds we are putting out including my chickens. Perhaps it is because chicken feed is now made with GMO grain. 
 
I put up a fake owl over the garden and I have not lost a chicken to chicken hawks since even though they range a 100 yards away.  Before, I lost at least one per week.
 
I bought three of your latest books and sent two to my daughters.  I have just started reading last night.  So far it is a little slow compared to your first book which I could not put down and which caused me to spend since 2007 prepping day and night.  I built a container house complete with living areas all on solar including refrigeration.  Since I now realize I cannot defend the house, I realize that was a mistake and therefore I am working on plan C which is more remote.  My live in nurse girlfriend is getting tired of not going anywhere on weekends.  The video I saw recently of biker types raiding retreats got my attention.  If events transpire as expected, I have you to thank for my being prepared. – Jim T.

Letter Re: A Reader Reviews the Movie Phase 7

CPT Rawles,
Some thoughts on a little foreign film I first heard about on SurvivalBlog, titled Phase 7.
 
Short Background: It is a foreign film in Spanish (with subtitles) set in a city in Argentina. A disease pandemic spreads across the globe and the residents of a small apartment building are quarantined inside. Mayhem ensues throughout the movie.
 
First, this movie isn’t made by Hollywood – So see it. It most certainly has some conspiracy aspects to it, but it doesn’t get to deep into the weeds (i.e. G. H. W Bush’s NWO speech.) The movie has a prepper, and though he comes across as a little unstable towards the end of the movie, his preparedness lifestyle and un-trusting view of government is more than just vindicated. It turns out he was right all along. It is rare for a movie to portray such a character in such a positive light, but then again, I said this is not a Hollywood movie. Unlike the movie Contagion , the “normal” people are the ones to fear and avoid, the government isn’t here to help, and the guy who prepares, is the guy who is in the best position to help.
 
My favorite part of this movie is the portrayal of the main character and his wife. They are oblivious to the world around them as the outbreak begins to unfold, and even after they learn of the outbreak, he is only moderately concerned about their situation. It’s not until the end of the movie, with a lot of help from his prepper neighbor, that he begins to take charge of his and his family’s future.

So many people in my life came to mind as I watched this. Just about everyone has the mentality that the current situation in the world is merely a phase and good times are just around the bend. Even if they are, which they are not in my opinion, we should be leading lives of preparedness – not excess, lives of education – not vegetation, anyway. “A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself, but the simple pass on and are punished.” Proverbs 22:3.
 
Just some thoughts. I have plenty more, along with some criticisms. Please see it. I found it on Netflix.
 
Stay alert and think for yourself, folks. – CPT H.

Letter Re: Land of Plenty–Establishing or Reclaiming an Orchard

Mr. Rawles,
 I very much enjoyed the recent article on orchards. Fruit and nut bearing trees are definitely low maintenance. I am now benefiting from my forebearers’ efforts to establish fruit and nut bearing trees and bushes. One thing that they always did if they could: They would always plant a few trees every year. It’s a habit. It doesn’t cost a lot at a time to plant one or two trees a year, and it’s a lot less work to maintain. If one dies, at whatever growing stage, you replant it. It’s always good to have a great variety of fruit and nut trees. We have lots of varieties of pecan trees, and a couple of walnut trees. Several varieties of peach trees, early, mid-season and late. Several kinds of pear and apple trees as well. And a few other kinds of fruit, both wild and cultivated. There is very seldom a perfect year, when all of them product a bumper crop, but which one produces changes from year to year. We always have fruit, but not always the same kind. Some years, there’s lot of blackberries but no dew berries. Some years, we have both, but no apples, some years, no pecans. Some years, the garden doesn’t do well, but the trees do.
 
There are apple, pear, and pecan trees on this place that are at least 50 years old. Several of the pecan trees would only grow when there was 13-13-13 buried underneath. I learned an easier way to make them productive: Create a compost bin around them and fill it with leaves, grass, etc. Manure is also useful, but be careful to let it cool down before you add it to the compost bin, as it will kill the tree otherwise. This is called a slow compost. You don’t have to turn it, though if you have chickens, they will turn it for you. Once you get the compost bin built, the only maintenance is to rake the grass or leaves and add them to the compost bin. I have compost bins made of roofing tin, old fencing, stacked up rocks, bricks, etc. I have gotten several pecan trees to produce this way, with no other fertilizer. The compost bin also keeps trees alive and producing in times of drought, such as this year. I don’t know anything about compost bins around a tree with a fan root, such as an oak. I haven’t tried it, but I am told that it will kill it, because it can’t breathe. I recommend it only for trees with tap roots that go straight down. All fruit and nut trees have a tap root, as do pine trees.
 
It’s fun to play around with different configurations of how to make mulch and compost work for you. I have what I call a peach bed, out in front of the house along the driveway. I have room for 4 peach trees in it. The last one will hopefully go in the ground this next year. Since it’s visible, I used decorative rocks stacked up to create a shallow compost bin. I keep it mulched with leaves, grass, manure and the top layer in pine straw, since it looks the best. In this peach bed, I keep multiplying onions and garlic growing year round. The onions seems to be especially useful to the peach tree since their growing season (here in the south) coincides very closely with the peach tree’s wintering growing season which is when it is especially vulnerable to the pests.
 
Onions, garlic, leeks, and chives are all very useful in companion planting with most plants. Similar summer growing companion planting helps are horseradish, hot peppers and various herbs. People say that it is impossible to do organic gardening here in the South with all the bugs and weeds we have down. It IS possible, I just want to set the record straight; it is difficult, but possible. 90% of the bugs in existence are beneficial bugs that help to control the bad bugs and promote plant growth. You just have to think of them as your friends and learn how to help them and welcome them, so they will help you.
 
One of the most beneficial insects to fruit growers is the honey bee. You can’t have productive fruit trees, brambles and bushes without honey bees. And speaking of liquid gold to barter, I know of no product even in times of plenty in higher demand than honey; I can’t imagine what the demand will be in times of want.
 
Because of my food allergies, I am unable to eat any store-bought pectin, so I take the green apples and cook them down, including peels and seeds but minus the blossom end. I take the green apple sauce (AKA pectin) when it comes through the sauce maker, and make my jelly. I’ve made hot jalepeno jelly, apple jelly, and strawberry jelly in this way. Awesome! – Miss Lou

Letter Re: An Army Veteran’s Thoughts on Camouflage

Sir,
In regards to the article: An Army Veteran’s Thoughts on Camouflage.  I have a few comments and recommendations:

There are many different types of materials that a ghillie suit can be made from and burlap being a very good and cheap and easily accessible one, a couple bundles of natural color jute and some color dyes (mixed with some burlap) can make one very nice ghillie suit.  There are many places that these materials can be purchased from.  Ghilliesuits.com (which I have ordered my Jute from) is just one.  Do a quick search for “ghillie suit kits or jute ghillie suite material” and have fun selecting from the masses of web sites.  Why not just search for ghillie suit kits?  Why pay someone hundreds of dollars to build you one that you may not like and/or it may not match your area.  Building your very own ghillie suit is a great accomplishment that you will have for years to come.  Same thing goes for buying natural color materials.  If you live in a desert area, well, natural color will be you main base color.
Jute vs. Synthetic materials?

  • Jute is a natural material.  It will lay in a more natural look in the woods, weeds or brush.  Jute when wet gets heavy because it is a natural fiber.  It will hold the water from rain, dew, pond or creek/river.  One good/bad thing about Jute is that it will retain scents of your environment.  Every time that you use you Jute suit you should hang it out to dry or place it in a sealed bag (so that it will not gather the scents of an indoor environment).
  • Synthetic is a man made fabric made of two parts.  It is a nylon, polyester or Acrylic base material.  It is lightweight and it will repel water (to an extent).  It is somewhat of an insect repellent because of its manufactured smell.  It is a flimsy material and doesn’t lay in a natural form that you would find in the outdoors.  Synthetic materials break down much faster that natural materials from sunlight, water and just being out in the weather and become very brittle.

When building your Ghillie suit there are a few things to keep in mind:

  • Your environment (Dry or Wet).
  • What is your surroundings (Desert, Woods or Brush)?
  • How long are you going to be wearing the suit?
  • What is the weather going to be like?

If you live in a dry/desert area then you are going to want to make your suit accordingly.  You will want it to be lightweight but you might have to use more material to get it to blend in better.  You can make it so that your back is a bug netting material (heat rises).  This will let your body naturally release body heat and it will let you get the most out of every breeze.  If you live in a wetter environment you would not want a netted back.  Being wet in a wet ghillie suit is no fun at all. With that in mind, I am not a fan of coveralls for the base of a ghillie suit.  Coveralls are a full body suit that in it’s self is not really a lightweight garment.  If you were in a “hide site” why would you wear a garment that conceals your legs?  If you were on a long patrol in the weeds, why would you cover your legs?  There is no need carrying extra weight on your body than you have too.  You are going to be burning enough calories on daily activities let alone walking patrols with a full ghillie suit on that might get wet or cause you to sweat more than you need too.

Tactical Concealment has, what I think is a nice alternative for use of a ghillie suit for a patrol.  The Cobra is lightweight and allows you easy access to your mag pouches (if they are in front of you).  They make one with and without a hood.  This is not a very hard article of clothing to make with the hood or without.  This could be made of bug netting to make it very lightweight.  I am not a big fan of bug netting for clothing because of its lack of strength.  It tares very easy when in a bind.  You can get some sort of netting material (I would make sue that it has no smaller than ½ inch squares).  You can use 550 paracord for your edging.  Sew the netting to the 550 cord and sew a couple of Fastex buckles, in the front, to each side and you are ready to start tying on your ghillie material.  If you choose to make one with the hood, I would not use the drawstring!

The materials for your front side, I would not use materials like felt.  Felt is a thick material that can just add a lot of weight if/when it gets wet.  If your in a desert area,
maybe.  Reason I say maybe is because if you are crawling around the felt will wear out pretty fast.  If you go with a thin batting material (for cushion) covered by a Cordura material it will keep the batting material drier because the Cordura material can repel water.

We personally have ghillie suits made of BDU-style coat and trouser, Cobra like cape style coverings and blankets.  It is much cheaper to buy the materials and make them yourself.  Use your ghillie material sparingly.  To much cover can also look out of place and you can always fill in the bare areas with natural vegetation!  No camouflage in the world can beat natural covering.

The poster of the article had it right but I will make things a little more clear on covering your face.  One thing you should remember about covering your face is that you want to make your face “flat” but not appear flat.  What I mean buy that is that your face will cast natural shadows that you want to remove.  Your eye sockets are naturally lower than your forehead and cheeks and your eyes are white.  You would not want to make your eye sockets black!  You want to make them appear that they are on the same level.  Same thing goes for your nose but in the opposite.  You would want to make your nose darker and your eye sockets lighter but not with just blobs.  Make it random to match the area your in.  Use a mix of blobs and [curved] lines.  Think of the different camouflage patterns out there and how they look.  Be sure to match your face to your own camouflage. – R.H.

Economics and Investing:

Chuck McAlvany: The Atomic Bomb that is About to Explode at the Federal Reserve

Days of Reckoning Are Here: Accumulate Precious Metals and Hard Assets

Zero Hedge: It Begins: Harrisburg Files For Bankruptcy Protection

G.G. flagged this: Banks turn to demolition of foreclosed properties to ease housing-market pressures

Items from The Economatrix:

Buckle Up:  America Is Getting Very Angry And The Protests Are Going To Become Much More Frightening

Millions Could Lose Unemployment Benefits In 2012

Wall Street Sees “No Exit” From Woes

Roubini:  Double-dip Recession A Foregone Conclusion

Odds ‘n Sods:

F.J. spotted this: 50 Simple Tools Used to Rebuild Haiti. (Those lists have applicability in rebuilding here in the U.S. of A., in the aftermath of major disaster.)

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Michael Z. Williamson (SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large) suggested this booklet: The Flowerpot Crucible Furnace–Build a furnace from a flowerpot and melt metal! Warning: All the usual safety provisos on high temperatures and molten metals apply! Do not experiment with this technique without all the proper safety clothing and gear, including a fire extinguisher. Also, be advised that a terra cotta crucible that is waterlogged or that has an unseen crack or void could shatter unexpectedly! Also note that while it is currently illegal in the U.S. to melt pennies or nickels, that law will likely change in the next few years, soon after the composition of the coins are “modernized” (read: debased.) So here is yet another good reason to stockpile pennies and nickels…

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Bob G. recommended this web page: Making Your Own Penicillin at Home

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Fernando Aguirre (aka “FerFAL”) had some observations on a recent farm attack in Argentina. (Thanks to Brian W. for the link.)

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Reader R.W. wrote to note that Glenn Beck just focused on prepping in his show on Wednesday: What can you do to prepare? He mentioned Texas as a relocation destination. You would have thought that he would have mentioned Utah or the Inland Northwest.

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“In all ages, men who neither feared God nor regarded man have combined together and formed confederacies, to carry on the works of darkness. And herein they have shown themselves wise in their generation, for by this means they more effectually promoted the kingdom of their father the devil, than othwise they could have done.” – John Wesley, Jan. 30, 1763, commenting on Psalm 94:16 (“Who will rise up for me against the evildoers? [or] who will stand up for me against the workers of iniquity?”)