Thoughts on Farming – Part 2, by Single Farmer

(Continued from Part 1.)

Successful survivalists consider a variety of scenarios including looking at how previous generations survived to glean any wisdom that they can take as compensation for their time. All of us are only here because our ancestors somehow managed to carry themselves genetically forward. For most of human history, it was difficult to get enough calories to barely stay alive and this fact is lost upon most people as they have so many choices today often struggling on what cuisine to eat, and not how to find food.

A common cause of death throughout history has been starvation, due to crop failure. A lot of individuals reading this if asked to name a critical event of the 14th Century would say the “Black Death” — also known as the Bubonic Plague — reducing Europe’s overall population from 1346 to 1353 by about a third with mortality rates of often 80 percent or higher depending on the plague year. Few people know that just a little earlier in the 14th Century there was a large food crisis that is very important to our discussion on farming. Throughout history, people would often go from harvest to harvest and the slightest interruption often meant disaster as crop yields were not large multiples, but were often in low single-digit multipliers in productivity. Often it was two to one or even lower with even higher loss percentages.Continue reading“Thoughts on Farming – Part 2, by Single Farmer”

SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets

Our weekly Snippets column is a collection of short items: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters.

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Mike in Alaska wrote:

“The local climate here is our version of a freezer and refrigerator solution. I took the photo above on my way to work this morning … and it is now dropping even further. We are expecting -45 F this coming weekend. In the summer (June, July, and half of August) we have permafrost and can easily use underground bunkers for food. My basement under my house (really just a 5-1/2 foot deep crawl space, or what we called a “Michigan Basement” growing up, never gets much below or above 45 degrees, even when the temps outside are at -64 below zero. I hope you guys are all good, and I pray every day for you folks.”

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Lily mentioned a useful video that she found for any folks looking for their ticket to living out in the hinterboonies: 10 Boring But Stable Remote Jobs That Pay $30+ Per Hour.

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As a followup to the release of the Homestead feature film, Angel Studios has started early release of a Homestead streaming series.  For now, the series episodes are only available to Angel Studios “Guild” members.

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Reader L. wrote us the following on preparing to isolate rooms, in the event of power failures:

“Buying a couple of king-size flat sheets and some hooks or nails, and poking holes in the top hem on a sheet and hanging it on hooks or nails in the doorway(s) between rooms will do much to keep precious heat in one small room. Or you can hang the sheet on a spring-loaded tension type curtain rod and stick it up in a doorway, assuming you don’t live in an “open-plan” house. For those of you with houseplants or vegetable plant starts, you can keep them survivable in the smallest room in the house (usually the bathroom) with several lit candles, in the bathtub. This will keep them “baseline” warm until the polar vortex subsides.

I found a local business that puts its scrap lumber pieces in a bin out by the street and was able to obtain several totes full, I also found a local rock and gravel supply place that happened to carry $5 BIG bundles of firewood, much cheaper than the mini-mart bundles which are now priced at $9.00 for about 6 pieces of wood. Some of us [older people]  have lost the ability to chop firewood anymore.

I remember seeing very old photos of my grandparent’s farm with dirt heaped up all around the foundation, for insulation, boy those single pane windows in wooden frames must have been fun, with ice melting on the inside and rotting the frame.”

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Continue reading“SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets”

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — January 7, 2025

January 7, 1785: The first balloon flight across the English Channel, by Jean Pierre Blanchard and John Jeffries.

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January 7,1927: Commercial transatlantic telephone service was inaugurated between New York and London.

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Today is the birthday of Senator Rand Paul, born 1963.

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This is also the birthday of Cresson Kearny (born 1914, died December 18, 2003.)

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Today’s feature article is a guest post by one of my consulting clients. It is not eligible for the writing contest judging. – JWR

We are seeking entries for Round 116 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $935,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic. Round 116 ends on January 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

 

Thoughts on Farming – Part 1, by Single Farmer

I want to tell you about an amazing group of people. They make sure that you not only stay alive, are well-nourished, and that you have your choice of a delicious variety of food that Kings and Queens of yesteryear could not dream of, all at relatively low prices. Contrary to what you’ve been told, prices are still fairly low by historical standards and food quality is high. I know that you or someone you know has recently been to the grocery store and you think the prices are high, but wait until you hear about the state of the farm economy and I will give you some practical thoughts that may help your family in the future. In this article series, I am going to take you on a journey through history until the present where you probably interacted with the products from a family farm, probably three or more times per day.

The full depth of an article covering family farms could cover many volumes. So I will not be able to take you down every interesting road showing you every interesting detour, but I do hope to provide you a comprehensive overview of how a seed planted in the previous year harvested midway the following year could become a component in your breakfast, lunch, afternoon snack, or dinner — keeping you alive and healthy. I will introduce you to a farm family that survived the Great Depression including one of their stories of thrift, through using something most people today would discard.  There are so many lessons to be learned in these struggles during previous tough times.

Continue reading“Thoughts on Farming – Part 1, by Single Farmer”

SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. We also mention companies located in the American Redoubt region that are of interest to preppers and survivalists. Today, a retrospective on the recently-ended Yellowstone television series, and its fictionalized view of Montana. (See the Montana section.)

Idaho

Reuters: Biden officials issue permit for Perpetua’s Idaho antimony and gold mine.

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Reader Michael D. sent us this: Coeur d’Alene to consider emergency plan. Michael’s Comments:

“This is a very scary article about arresting people who refuse to comply with the state Governor’s orders to evacuate for one of many reasons from wildfire to pandemic and whatever else they figure is an ’emergency’. It looks like Kootenai County has already added this to their plan and now the city is looking to do the same.”

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ACLU files emergency motion against new public defense system.

Continue reading“SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt”

Preparedness Notes for Monday — January 6, 2025

On January  6, 1893, the Great Northern Railway connected Seattle with the east coast for the first time.  Passenger service began in June, 1893.

Four railroads were merged into the Burlington Northern Railroad Company in March, 1970:

  • Great Northern Railway
  • Northern Pacific Railway
  • Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad
  • Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railway

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In response to those who have written to ask:  Yes, there will indeed be a new waterproof USB stick archive that includes all of the 2005 to 2024 of SurvivalBlog posts. There will be 11 more bonus books added to the already huge list. We’ll probably start taking pre-orders soon, and we should be able to mail out orders on or before February 5th.  Thanks for your patience. – JWR

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We are seeking entries for Round 116 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $935,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic. Round 116 ends on January 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

A Quest and a Gift, by Single Farmer

Editor’s Introductory Note: I’ve had a consulting client for more than two years, who I’ve learned to trust. He lives on a family farm. Please note that he is looking for a young woman who would like to be married and have children. She does not need any experience in agriculture. – JWR

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I’ll begin this piece with a preview of something included in a six-part article that will be posted in SurvivalBlog, starting tomorrow:

Go back just a few generations, and there were no “food stamp” coupons or cards allowing you the benefit of the cornucopia of modern life potentially at your fingertips just by virtue of living in the post-industrial welfare United States of America. This is so historically abnormal, but tragic because it often can lead people down so many bad roads. Eating without working for able-bodied adults is contradiction of the Biblical wisdom in 2 Thessalonians 3:10 in which we are warned: “For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.”

The early colonists at Jamestown actually experimented with a form of “socialism” where everything was held in a common storehouse as that is how their company charter was originally organized. Because the colonists at Jamestown under this system could not individually benefit from their own labors, they often did very little and this contributed to the near collapse.

One of the leading colonists, Ralph Hamor, wrote in his 1615 book “A True Discourse of the Present State of Virginia” reflecting back on his time at Jamestown: “When our people were fed out of the common store and labored jointly in the manuring of the ground and planting corn, glad was that man that could slip from his labor, nay the most honest of them in a general business, would take so much faithful and true pains in a week as now he will do in a day.” Food shortages and leadership challenges led to disastrous results with an 80 percent death rate during the Winter of 1609-10. The colonists made it through the “Starving Time” although in diminished numbers. From that point forward, their numbers never dipped that low again and they became successful

The treasurer of the Virginia Company of London Sir Edwin Sandys highlighted an important fact in 1620: “The plantation can never flourish till families be planted and the respect of wives and children fix the people on the soil.” The first permanent English settlement in this country at Jamestown only flourished after it had discovered a few inescapable facts both through a lot of trial and error. People need to have a reasonable expectation that they will individually profit from their labor as Captain John Smith was instrumental in changing how the colonists worked and were compensated. Civilizations and their smaller outposts of colonies only succeed when they grow and flourish through feeding themselves and eventual population growth.

The best way to grow and multiply a population is through natural reproduction instead of importing people which generally does not lead to a cohesive social structure. (Jamestown was originally settled with all men and the population through the 1610s was always very imbalanced sometimes 7:1 men to women).

To change this, the Virginia Company started a program to import young ladies to Jamestown who would become some of the first mothers of America. For the price of 120 pounds of “good leaf tobacco” (back then tobacco was tradeable for gold as a commodity–since the colonists could not find gold they used their labor as suggested by colonist John Rolfe to grow tobacco which was an easily exportable cash crop commodity to England), a single Jamestown colonist man could pay the passage and dowry for a young woman to be his bride. The reason for this fee was because the men who were in charge of the colony only wanted these young women to marry industrious men who owned land for the colony to have its best opportunity. (in case you are wondering what this would be equivalent to today it would be about $5,000.)
Continue reading“A Quest and a Gift, by Single Farmer”

Recipe of the Week: Chicken À L’Orange

The following recipe for Slow-Cooked Chicken À L’Orange is from SurvivalBlog reader Ellen H.. This recipe requires a slow cooker.  It is typically served on a bed of rice, that is cooked separately.

Ingredients

Ingredients for the chicken:

  • 1/4 cup cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Ingredients for the orange sauce:

  • 1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest (from 1 orange)
  • 3/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (from 2 oranges)
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 3 tablespoons honey
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 tablespoon low-sodium tamari or soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced (or less, to suit your taste)
  • 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil  (Asian-style)
  • 1/2 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes  (or less, to suit your taste)

Ingredients for the bed of rice:

  • 2 cups (dry measure) of White Basmati rice
  • 4 cups water
  • Salt (to taste)
DIRECTIONS

  1. Prep the chicken: Mix the cornstarch, salt, and pepper together in a gallon-sized zipock bag. Add the chicken pieces, seal the bag, and shake it until the chicken is well-coated.

  2. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering, about 3 minutes. Add the chicken in batches, making sure not to crowd the pan, and cook about 2 minutes per side. The chicken might not brown, but the cornstarch coating will become crispy and dry. The chicken will not be completely cooked at this point, but that is fine. Transfer the chicken to a 4-quart slow cooker and repeat with any remaining chicken.

  3. Make the sauce: Place all the ingredients in a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Pour over the chicken.

  4. Cover and cook until the chicken reaches 165°F . Depending on the slow cooker used, that usually equates to 1-1/2 to 2 hours on the “Low” setting or 45 minutes to 1 hour on the “High” setting.

  5. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken to a bowl. Pour the sauce into a large skillet and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook until the sauce is reduced by half and thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 7 minutes. Add the chicken to the sauce and toss to combine.

SERVING

To serve, spoon the prepared chicken over the bed of cooked rice, sprinkle with sesame seeds (optional) and scallions (optional), and serve with orange slices (optional).

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Do you have a well-tested recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? In this weekly recipe column, we place emphasis on recipes that use long-term storage foods, recipes for wild game, dutch oven recipes, slow cooker recipes, and any recipes that use home garden produce. If you have any favorite recipes, then please send them via e-mail. Thanks!

SurvivalBlog Graphic of the Week

Today’s graphic: What Antarctica Looks Like Without Ice. (Graphic courtesy of Reddit. Posted by “vladgrinch.”)

The thumbnail below is click-expandable.

 

 

 

 

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Please send your graphics or graphics links to JWR. (Either via e-mail or via our Contact form.) Any graphics that you send must either be your own creation or uncopyrighted.

Preparedness Notes for Sunday — January 5, 2025

The Battle of Nancy was fought on January 5, 1477.  The Swiss Confederacy led by René II decisively defeated the Duchy of Burgundy’s army. 7,000 of the Burgundian invaders were killed, including the Duke of Burgundy, Charles The Bold. (Pictured.)

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January 5th is the birthday of the late John Pugsley (born 1934, died April 8, 2011), libertarian and economics author. Pugsley was well known in preparedness circles as the author of The Alpha Strategy. (The book is out of print, but a PDF is available for free download.)

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This is also the birthday of General Courtney Hodges (1887 – January 16, 1966.) Kicked out of West Point for low math scores, he enlisted as a private but soon became a maverick officer and went on to a distinguished career.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 116 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A Peak Refuel “Wasatch Pack” variety of 60 servings of premium freeze-dried breakfasts and dinners in individual meal pouches — a whopping 21,970 calories, all made and packaged in the USA — courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  4. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses. Their course catalog now includes their latest Survival Gunsmithing course.
  5. HSM Ammunition in Montana is providing a $250 gift certificate. The certificate can be used for any of their products.

Second Prize:

  1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  2. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  3. A Laptop EMP Shield and a Smartphone Faraday Bag (a combined value of $200), courtesy of MobileSecSolutions.com.
  4. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
  5. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of gun purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. A Berkey Light water filter, courtesy of USA Berkey Filters (a $305 value),
  2. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  3. A $200 credit from Military Surplus LLC that can be applied to purchase and/or shipping costs for any of their in-stock merchandise, including full mil-spec ammo cans, Rothco clothing and field gear, backpacks, optics, compact solar panels, first aid kits, and more.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

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More than $935,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic. Round 116 ends on January 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Fortifying Your Garden Soil, by Hollyberry

Perhaps the biggest boost you can give your garden is great soil. The seed/plant needs all the help it can get to grow and fruit. Soil will over time lose its nutrients and minerals so it is important to keep adding to it all year round. You can spend a lot of money on bags of fertilizer, worm castings and bone meal or you can get resourceful and do it cheaper or for free.

The ideal PH for garden soil is 6.0 to 6.5. You can send in soil samples to various labs or the county cooperative extensions and receive info on what you should be adding for ideal soil. I personally have never done this, nor has anyone I know done this. I suppose if I was a commercial farmer this would be something I might look into trying this but I have been gardening long before soil analyzation was an option so I just wing it! The big three nutrients for good dirt are known by the acronym NPK, that stands for nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium. There are other nutrients but these are the most essential. If you purchase bagged soil or fertilizer make sure the bag is marked 10, 10, 10. Always read the label as to the ratio of the NPK as it can vary. This means equal parts of nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium.Continue reading“Fortifying Your Garden Soil, by Hollyberry”

JWR’s Meme Of The Week:

The latest meme created by JWR:

Meme Text:

Hey There, My Fellow Preppers:
When It Comes to Long-Term Food Storage…

Just a Few Purchases Can Shift Your Prepping From Banal To Anal

Notes From JWR: Do you have a meme idea? Just e-mail me the concept, and I’ll try to assemble it. And if it is posted then I’ll give you credit. Thanks!

Permission to repost memes that I’ve created is granted, provided that credit to SurvivalBlog.com is included.