Becoming self-sufficient
During this year I am going to try to become more and more self-sufficient, I have thought about this for a while now and I think it is time to take the first step. You can read my plans below but I want to talk about the why part first. Why would one want to be self-sufficient? and what is it exactly? Offcourse Wikipedia provides and answer to the second question: Self-sufficiency. As for the first, I think there are many different reasons.
- The approaching end of the world
- Trying to be good for mother nature
- It is a way of life
For me, I just think it is interesting to see what is possible for a person living in the middle of the city with a small garden.
Plans
Now I am not going to do anything drastic, I am going to take small steps at a time and try to figure out what works an what does not. The first step is to rearrange my garden. I will start with a few square meter for growing vegetables, which I will expand if things work out well. I was also thinking about getting a fishing license, but I will have to look into that.
I will keep you posted on the progress, and as soon as the comment system is up we can exchange ideas and what not.
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Comments (3)
Wessel Rossing
2011-08-01 14:22:34
Hi @Joseph Billing, that is quite a coincidence indeed! I hope Tina Time-lapse is helping you get the information you need.
As for my own goals in self-sufficiency, they are coming along quite well. Together with my neighbour I removed the fence seperating our gardens and now we have a larger garden together with a 5 square meter vegetable garden in it. Some of the plants are performing really good, others are having a hard time with the soil.
Together with a friend I also created a Square Foot Garden with 12 compartments. Which is filled completely with good soil and the vegetables are thriving in it. Together with that friend I am developing an Android application which helps the user maintaining a Square Foot garden.
I am almost graduated and I will pick up blogging again when I am done. Thank you for your interest!
Joseph Billing
2011-08-14 01:10:11
Great to hear that you are still working at it, and finding some success!
Just days after I posted here, my partner and I (both in our mid-twenties) tried to buy a 28 acre /11.3 hectare block of land! It was our first taste of the property market, and thrilling. Unfortunately it didn't work out so for now we must content ourselves with the back yard.
Our Spring is coming up fast and we are more resolved than ever to put in time and effort in the garden (I have a hard time motivating myself most days). We only moved here a year ago and the area we are allowed for vegetables (we are renting) was all tough grass. I guess it is about 15x25 feet. So far roughly half of it is now vegetable beds. We hope to prepare the whole area for vegetables when my brother visits in a few weeks. We also plan to get some chickens and build them a portable coop (chicken tractor).
We are lucky to have several fruit trees in our yard which produce well. They include apple, pear, lemon and plum. We also have kiwi fruit, currently ripe on the vine. We have purchased a pressure canner and a dehydrator for surplus and are getting great results from both. We also buy cheap meat and can it, no preservatives and it should keep at room temperature for a year+. It is also tender and delicious!
I'll try Tina Time-Lapse in the garden when we have a sunny day. I am. trying to find a good tripod to hold my Xperia X10, preferably the 'all-tetrain' kind with flexible legs. If you have any suggestions, I would appreciate your input. I captured the sunrise with your app the other day, I'll try to share it in the appropriate section.
Finally, if you can find it and have the time, I strongly recommend a Brittish TV series called The Good Life. Perhaps you know of it already. It is a good comedy about a husband and wife trying to become self-sufficient in the suburbs.
Joseph Billing
2011-07-30 17:20:53
Hi Wessel, I came to your blog to trouble-shoot Tina Time-Lapse and found the info I was looking for. I was interested in the app primarily to track the sun as it moves across my yard (several large trees cast shade patterns which vary throughout the year). This app should help me to place my vegetables where they will benefit from ideal sunlight each day.
It is quite a coincidence that you also happen to have an interest in self-sufficiency, as you are helping me work towards my self-sufficiency goal with your unrelated camera app!
I'm interested to know how you are progressing with your own goals, if you have any updates please do post them, or let me know at joseph.billing@gmail.com. I am still just testing the self-sufficiency waters myself, but hope to make it the core of my lifestyle some day. It will be great to hear from you!