Gardening To-Do-List for January and February

January (yes, it's a little late):

• Make a garden plan. Plan the garden to include various vitamin groups, and space. And patience!
• If you've had a garden before, consider planting a few new varieties along with the old favorites. Especially concentrate on heirloom seeds so you can save seeds in the Fall for next year's garden.
• Plan the amount of each vegetable to be planted, including enough to can and freeze. Rule of thumb is to allow about 1/10 acre of garden space for each member of the family. If you don't have that much space, just do what you can.
• Buy enough quality (heirloom) seed for two or three plantings to lengthen the season of production. Especially carrots, radishes, and lettuce.
• Take soil samples if you have not already done so, and take them to your county extension office for analysis.
• Apply manure or compost and plow it under if you did not do this in the fall.
• Apply lime, sulfur and fertilizer according to the soil-test results and vegetable requirements. Buy 100 pounds of fertilizer for each 1/10 acre to be planted (if manure is not available, buy at least half again more). Use 5-10-10 or 6-12-12 analysis, depending on soil test and vegetable requirements.
• Get plant beds or seed boxes ready for growing plants such as tomato, pepper and eggplant. Have beds ready for planting in February.
• Check on your compost pile and make sure it is ready for use in the spring.
• Get copies of gardening publications for your area.

February:

• Start seeds (using jiffy pellets, peat pots, etc.). Peppers and eggplants will take eight weeks to grow from seed to transplant size, while tomatoes will take six weeks. When the seedlings form their third set of true leaves, transplant them to individual containers. Best to transplant directly to peat pots so when you put them into the ground or raised beds, there will be very little root disturbance.
• Prepare land for planting. Make sure you've put together raised beds (with wood, old plastic kiddie pools, etc.. It's especially good for Winter and early Spring plantings to be in raised beds because the soil will warm up faster, and have better drainage.
• If nematodes were a problem last year, make plans to plant another crop less susceptible to nematodes in the infected area. Actually, rotating crops is something you absolutely need to do!
• Make early plantings of your choice from the following: carrots, collards, lettuce, mustard, English peas, Irish potatoes, radishes, spinach and turnips. If you have a protected area, or cold frame, these can go directly into the ground.
• Use "starter" fertilizer solution around transplanted crops such as cabbage.
• Replenish the mulch on strawberries. Remember, Winter isn't over yet.
• Start peat pots, etc. for herbs, to be ready for planting in April. Make a list of the ones that are best to buy rather than seed, such as French tarragon and rosemary.

What is a BYG-Garden?

Does anyone remember what a Victory Garden used to be? From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victory_garden: Victory gardens, also called war gardens or food gardens for defense, were vegetable, fruit and herb gardens planted at private residences in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Australia[1] during World War I and World War II to reduce the pressure on the public food supply brought on by the war effort. In addition to indirectly aiding the war effort these gardens were also considered a civil "morale booster" — in that gardeners could feel empowered by their contribution of labor and rewarded by the produce grown. Making victory gardens became a part of daily life on the home front.

These days, the PBS show "Victory Garden" website says: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/victorygarden/show/index.html - With so many Americans aspiring to care for the environment and create their own outdoor living spaces, The Victory Garden's unique fusion of garden design, earth-to-table cooking, and eco-conscious how-to tips is of greater interest today than ever before in its more than 30-year history. I've tried watching the show and it very rarely discusses edible plants. Can I just say.... why doesn't it actually tell us more about how to best garden in our yards like what a Victory Garden is supposed to be?

We don't need Victory Gardens - like this "war" is what's really the only thing affecting the prices of our food. Nope. So, since part of the reason of this blog is to help people be more self-sufficient and independent, we decided to re-name the Victory Garden to the BYG-Garden (Back-Yard Grocery Garden). We're working to figure out how to provide all of our needs on just an acre or two.... from toiletries to veggies to protein to medicines to ... well, your suggestions would go a long way.

To have a Backyard Grocery, you don't really need a backyard. You can do a little in just a corner of your living room. That will definitely help. Or a friend's yard. Or community garden.

Come join the fun! We're working on our BYG - are you?

Recipe: Ham-Shrimp Jambalaya Bake

This is another recipe designed to use your stored foods.

Ingredients:
2 cups rice
1 cup dried ham
1 small can small shrimp
1 10.5-ounce condensed "pepper pot" soup
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
5 cups water
1 cup dried tomato chunks
½ cup dried onion dices
¼ cup dried garlic granules
¼ cup dried bell pepper pieces
1 tablespoon cajun seasoning (season to taste)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix all ingredients. Put into greased/sprayed baking dish and bake uncovered for one hour. Serve with hot sauce, if desired.

Copyright (c) 2009 New View Group, LLC

Inventory Check - Cooking Oil

Coming up with an alternative for pan-spray and cooking oil is hard. So...

First, we're stocking up. We buy about 2 gallons of olive oil and 2 gallons of vegetable oil per month from Sam's. Good deal, and the oils that we use the most. We also get almond and other "flavored" oils when we see them on sale. Almond oil is great for making a bland cookie fantastic.

Second, we stock up on pan spray whenever we see it discounted. Of course, this doesn't have the staying power than oil does, but still.

Third, we're hoping that by the time TSHTF, we'll have our mini-cows and goats producing butter, and that we'll have nuts from our soon-to-be-planted almond trees to make our own oil from almonds and also sunflowers. We have also heard of miniature olive trees that actually produces edible olives. Wonder if we would have enough room for enough trees to make growing them worth it?

Anyway... check your stock. Do you have enough to last a while?

Recipes that have Dried vs Fresh, and Healthy vs Fattening

Someone recently asked why most of our recipes use dried onions and other preserved ingredients instead of fresh. Fresh onions, etc. are available right now.

Thought I'd post our thoughts about it.

The goal of this blog is to provide as many recipes as possible that people can make using their stored foods. Of course, if you have fresh fruits, vegetables, herbs, onions, etc. from your garden, please use them! So much better for you. But we're creating recipes to have on hand when you're stuck inside for a long period of time and don't have access to fresh produce or meat.

Usually, when we say 1/2 cup dried onion dices, once rehydrated, that 1/2 cup will equal about 1 cup of fresh onion dices.

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Another person commented that some of our recipes aren't exactly healthy or diet conscious. Absolutely true. This isn't a diet blog, although some recipes ARE healthy.

Think about this: You're confined to your home by mandated curfew while the asian bird flu rages in your town or country. Will you really be counting calories and fat grams, concerned that you aren't eating a fresh green salad every day, or will you be eating what's easiest to prepare and most comforting? I really think if such a thing were to happen, people would not emerge three or six months later fatter than they went in. If you are concerned... how about... planning to walk in place for 3 sessions of 15 minutes a day as part of your entertainment while confined?!

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Hope this clears up a couple of things.

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Added Feb 8 2008 at 7:00 p.m.: We do eat pretty healthy here at home. We eat a lot of "snack meals" - dried fruits and veggies, cans of no-sugar-added fruits, raw veggies from our garden when we can, rice cakes and rice crackers, dry roasted soybeans, raw cashews, salads, rice, potatoes, homemade gluten-free bread, and more. We just figure most people would get bored hearing about our "snack meals". Vikki

Recipe: Italian Pasta Bake #1

This is another recipe designed to use your stored foods.

Ingredients:
3 cups pasta (egg noodles or elbow macaroni)
1.5 cups dried ground beef
1 26.5-ounce can spaghetti sauce
4 cups water
½ cup dried onion dices
½ cup dried mushroom pieces
½ cup dried bell pepper pieces
¼ cup dried spinach flakes
¼ cup dried garlic granules

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix all ingredients. Put into greased/sprayed baking dish and bake uncovered for one hour. If desired, sprinkle with green can parmesan cheese and heat another 10 minutes or until browned.

Copyright (c) 2009 New View Group, LLC

Recipe: Turkey Asparagus Bake

This is another recipe designed to use your stored foods.

Ingredients:
2 cups dried potato slices
1 1/2 cups dried turkey dices
1 10.75-ounce can cream of potato soup
4 cups of water
1 cup dried asparagus pieces
1/2 cup dried carrot dices
Season to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix all ingredients. Put into greased/sprayed baking dish and bake uncovered for one hour. If desired, for the last 10 minutes, sprinkle on green can parmesan cheese and brown.

Copyright (c) 2009 New View Group, LLC