Posted: 1/28/2008 1:54:31 PM EDT
| I was considering stockpiling grain/vegetable/Northern Fruit seeds. I have 20 acres to plant on in SHTF, nothing of use is on it now. What are the ideal seeds? What is the best way to store them for a long time? Type of container, desiccant, temp., etc. I would want to feed 7-10 people minimum. - Locale: NE Ohio |
| Plant things like fruit trees, berries etc now. It can take years for a fruit tree to start producing and they are difficult to grow from seed. 7-10 people is a lot of seed to plant and store. Do you have the equipment to prep and till the land? Some easy ones are corn beans and pumpkins. They also store easily. Maybe put an asparagus bed in. For the amount of seed you will need probably stor in a sealed 5 gal bucket with a desiccant in it. |
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Was just going to say that if you plan on fruit trees by seed then you are out of luck. The smart thing is to plant the trees you want now. Maybe some walnut trees if they will grow in your area. You need to look at your 20 acres and plan for raising grains for food and animal feed. Need some land for hay. Need a pond. or 2. A super sized veggie garden. A root cellar. Some: Chickens = meat and eggs, ducks = meat and eggs, feathers equal pillows. and goats = meat ,cheese and milk. sheep for meat and wool. |
| yea, i forget to mention we have some fruit trees already scattered, but could use more -they arent the most reliable tree to plant and expect to return seasonally. -at least with what we were doing. I guess I should also ask if fertilizer is required for the yields expected - I wouldnt know how/ necessarily want to store this. right now we have 2 horses, and grow a hefty surplus of hay. |
I can't personally suggest them, because I have no experience with them; but there are wool goats as well. |
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I think before you start storing large quantities of seeds, you need to figure out what grows well in your area. Some plants are going to produce a lot better with a lot less effort, and it would be better to focus on those. The best way to find out is to grow small amounts of each. Don't assume that you can just start cultivating acres of food crops with little real world experience just because you have a few cans of seed. I would lean towards putting a decent amount towards hay, a decent amount of corn (it seems a lot easier to harvest than wheat, but I have never personally grown wheat), and an acre or so for a family vegetable garden with whatever grows well and you like. |
Well my knowledge of them is limited to some people eat them,some milk to drink and make cheese. Kind of a multi use animal. |