The bulk of information about food survival focuses on buying freeze-dried and dehydrated foods. While it is possible to live through short-term environmental or social disruptions eating these foods, most people are not prepared to outlast long-term economic disasters. System-wide disasters might occur if the dollar hyperinflates and becomes worthless due to large government debt, or if oil and gas become scarce or too expensive to buy. In these scenarios, buying or obtaining pre-processed food will become impossible.
Foraging and living off the earth as a survivalist will only go so far and are not viable long-term survival strategies for most people. A more permanent, ongoing food solution is necessary.
Grow Food Supplies for Independence and Security
Only people who grow their own food have true food independence and security when the proverbial excrement interfaces with the rotating blades. That doesn’t necessarily mean growing traditional crops in an open field—in fact, it probably doesn’t. Traditional farms and gardens large enough to support a family require significant inputs of fossil fuel (gasoline and/or diesel) and chemical fertilizers to be productive, things that can’t be counted on if the economy collapses.
Taking the long view, the best way to have food independence and security is to grow a sustainable, self-renewing, low input food forest garden—a miniature ecosystem of food-bearing or food-enabling plants, bushes, and trees that basically takes care of itself and produces food for years to come with minimal labor. Food forest gardens don’t require fertilizers because they fertilize themselves; they don’t require tilling and planting each year because they use perennial plants; and with a little care they will become even more productive over time.
What Can Be Grown in a Food Forest Garden?
In a forest garden, food is grown on multiple layers. The canopy layer of large trees produces nuts, the understory layer of small trees and bushes produce fruit and berries, the ground or “herb” layer produces everything from leafy greens and herbs to mushrooms, and the underground layer produces root vegetables. These are interplanted in specific ways with one another and with supporting plants that provide nitrogen, attract bees for pollination, and provide habitats for creatures that eat pests.
Keep in mind that a food forest garden is not all-or-nothing and doesn’t have to be huge to have a huge impact—it can be grown anywhere there is lawn on urban and suburban lots, though of course the more land, the more food that can be produced.
Other Food Survival Strategies
Barter food. One of the other benefits to growing an abundant source of food is that the excess can be bartered for other needed items or services. Excess pecans or cranberries, for example, can be exchanged for cooking fuel or use of a neighbor’s tool.
Save seeds. Even though it’s possible to eat almost entirely from a perennial forest garden, most people will still want to keep a plot of old standards like carrots and tomatoes. Gardeners who choose this route should select heirloom seeds from companies like Seed Savers Exchange instead of hybridized seed, and take the time to learn the proper techniques for saving seeds. Some crops like cabbage and beets don’t produce seeds until the second year, for example, and others require a period of cold to be fertile.
Raise poultry. For protein, try raising chickens. Even major metropolitan areas have ordinances allowing chickens, although there are usually restrictions on having roosters. Chickens are not that difficult to raise and provide excellent fertilizer for the garden.
Create mutual support networks. Survival is about more than food and it doesn’t happen in a vacuum. The romantic notion that people ought to be able to survive on their own without help doesn’t hold up in the real world—in times of collapse everyone will need to depend to one degree or another on friends and neighbors for mutual help and support.
Beyond Canned Goods
When the worst happens, by all means take advantage of the canned goods and dried foods in the pantry. But in the meantime, begin planting that forest garden for true food security.
For information on forest gardening see any of the permaculture web sites, or dive in whole-heartedly and read EdibleForest Gardens by Dave Jacke.
Terry Johnson - Terry Johnson's writing focuses on her passions: forest gardening, urban homesteading, and strategies to cope with economic collapse and ...
