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Garden Gate:  Food Planting/Planning Help!  |
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sonshine4u
Chapter Guru
1205 Posts
April
New Prague
MN
USA
1205 Posts |
 Posted - Jan 18 2012 : 11:13:59 AM
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Hi Ladies!
I have been trying to find a chart or something that could clue me in to how much food to plant for my family of 5 to last for a year. Has anyone found such a thing or have some advice?
I am ready to can, dehydrate, ferment and working on how to do cold/root cellar storage. I just need to get a game plan for my garden and how many seeds to order!
~Hugs!
April
Playing in the Sonshine
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Bear5
True Blue Farmgirl
13055 Posts
Louisiana/Texas
USA
13055 Posts |
Posted - Jan 20 2012 : 09:34:08 AM
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April: I wish I could be of help. I would like to know the answer, also. I'm sure one of the farm, farmgirls may see your post soon. But, in the mean time, maybe look back at the older posts. If I were to try to do what you are trying to do, I'd plant; tomato's, okra, onion tops, potato's, carrots, etc... things one can freeze. Good luck.
Marly
"It's only when we truly know and understand that we have a limited time on earth- and that we have no way of knowing when our time is up- that we will begin to live each day to the fullest, as if it was the only one we had." Elisabeth Kurler-Ross |
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Bear5
True Blue Farmgirl
13055 Posts
Louisiana/Texas
USA
13055 Posts |
Posted - Jan 20 2012 : 09:35:33 AM
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Oh! I forgot to mention: the Maryjanes Farmgirl Magazine has lots of advise on things that you are asking; dehydrating, etc...
Marly
"It's only when we truly know and understand that we have a limited time on earth- and that we have no way of knowing when our time is up- that we will begin to live each day to the fullest, as if it was the only one we had." Elisabeth Kurler-Ross |
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Farmer Judy
True Blue Farmgirl
433 Posts
Judy
North Aurora
IL
USA
433 Posts |
Posted - Jan 20 2012 : 11:28:23 AM
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try this link, they have a free 30 days computer planner on their site. you can put your size of garden in and what you want to plant and it should give you some estimates of how much the average you should yield.
http://www.territorialseed.com/
God bless,
Judy
Farmgirl #3666
Born a city girl but a farm girl at heart!
http://farmtimes.blogspot.com/ |
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Farmer Judy
True Blue Farmgirl
433 Posts
Judy
North Aurora
IL
USA
433 Posts |
Posted - Jan 20 2012 : 11:32:05 AM
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also try this book from the library, Quarter-acre farm : how I kept the patio, lost the lawn and fed my family for a year by Spring Warren, she did exactly what you are talking about and what I've been trying to do too.
God bless,
Judy
Farmgirl #3666
Born a city girl but a farm girl at heart!
http://farmtimes.blogspot.com/ |
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sonshine4u
Chapter Guru
1205 Posts
April
New Prague
MN
USA
1205 Posts |
Posted - Jan 20 2012 : 1:02:37 PM
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Thanks Judy! Thanks for your encouragement!
Playing in the Sonshine
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sonshine4u
Chapter Guru
1205 Posts
April
New Prague
MN
USA
1205 Posts |
Posted - Jan 20 2012 : 1:08:34 PM
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Marly- thanks for your encouragement too! I'm gonna chat with some of my CSA buddies and see if they have some sort of formula or chart they use for planning amounts.
Playing in the Sonshine
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22angel
True Blue Farmgirl
498 Posts
Pam
Manitoba
Canada
498 Posts |
Posted - Jan 20 2012 : 4:32:16 PM
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I can't really help you, but I know that my Mom had 2 gardens, one on our property for the "main veg" - peas, carrots, radishes, onions, cucumbers, & then our neighbors garden we shared with him, and we always only planted corn & potatoes in his garden. We also had 4 or 5 rows of raspberry bushes & an apple tree. Most years, our garden did pretty good & we ended up with enough food for the winter. Maybe nearing spring time/early summer, we'd start having to buy some frozen veg & potatoes. I couldn't tell you how big our garden was, but it was a good size. Maybe 20 ft by 60?? I have no idea, and I'm just taking a wild guess. Sorry I'm not much help.
Life isn't about finding yourself. It's about creating yourself.
"When I grow up, I want to be dirt." seen on a box through construction in Wyoming 2010 |
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sonshine4u
Chapter Guru
1205 Posts
April
New Prague
MN
USA
1205 Posts |
Posted - Jan 20 2012 : 4:34:50 PM
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Thanks Pam! I think all help is better than no help! :) sounds like you had a great real food experience growing up!
Playing in the Sonshine
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henlady35904
True Blue Farmgirl
295 Posts
Kim
Gadsden
Alabama
USA
295 Posts |
Posted - Jan 20 2012 : 5:07:37 PM
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April, check out your county extension office. Good luck!
Farmgirl Sister #2667 |
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countrymommy85
True Blue Farmgirl
898 Posts
Krystle
MT
USA
898 Posts |
Posted - Jan 21 2012 : 07:54:10 AM
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I did an experiment last summer by writing down what I buy at the store the most then planting what I could of whatever it was. FOr me it was canned tomatoes and tomato products, frozen and canned beans, various frozen veggies (in smaller quantities) and lots of jam and pickles. So what I ended up doing for my previous family of 4 (now 5!) I canned more than what I thought we would go through so I could fine tune it this harvest season. So far I haven't bought ANY tomato products and I canned 21 quarts of tomatoes (but I did get an amazing deal on spaghetti sauce for 25 cents a jar which has helped my tomato consumption some)This coming summer I will do at the minimum another 21 jars of tomatoes. I canned the same amount of pickles but this year I will probably do one more batch so I will have 28 quarts of pickles (my kids LOVE "tickles" so we go through them fast). I made 12 pints of strawberry jelly and thankfully I saved some berries in the freezer for making jam later on (so I don't use up all my jars at once) because I needed to make 2 more batches of strawberry jam! I also froze a bunch of corn on the cob (still on the cob to bake in the oven and grill in the spring) and also some corn taken off the cob and I still have just enough until the next corn harvest although it will be cutting it close. I only got 2 quarts of peas from my garden this past summer so I had to buy some at the store so I will be planting another row of peas this year in my garden. I was severely short on beans this year and I only have 2 quarts of frozen beans left so I need at least another 2 rows of beans for my garden and hopefully a good growing season.
My advice is look at what you buy most at the store, guesstimate the quantity you will need preserved and ask around to see what other families do to preserve and their quantities. I was able to find out approximately how many quarts of tomatoes you could get from one plant but I found it only to be true in the best of growing circumstances so I had to go to a u-pick farm for my tomatoes and pickling cukes as I had nearly not enough!!! I had 12 tomato plants and only got enough for like 3 quarts. It was an awful growing season here for me. Except for squash. Your county extension can probably help you decide what variety to plant for your area as well as a guesstimate for how much each plant or how much a certain length row will produce. It was a lot of guess work and math for me at first but it was worth it because now I know better for this coming year what to plant, how much and how much to put away for the winter :) I wish you the best of luck, preserving is a fabulous adventure and it's so much fun cooking in the winter with stuff that you preserved! No better feeling knowing you can feed your family healthy stuff that you grew or at least preserved yourself!
Mothers are those wonderful people who can get up in the morning before the smell of coffee. ~Author Unknown
http://countryrenaissance.blogspot.com
http://www.etsy.com/shop/SunflowersAndHoney |
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sonshine4u
Chapter Guru
1205 Posts
April
New Prague
MN
USA
1205 Posts |
Posted - Jan 21 2012 : 08:29:10 AM
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Wow Krystal! What an adventure you've been on! I know it's gonna be a lot of trial and error this year. Thanks for your suggestions and your quantities that you aimed for/accomplished last year. This is my first year not having the confines of a suburban lot with only raised beds. It'll be interesting how we all adapt to a much larger gardening experience! I have some new friends coming over tonight that have a good handle on plants and yields here. It'll make for some great conversation!
Playing in the Sonshine
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Bear5
True Blue Farmgirl
13055 Posts
Louisiana/Texas
USA
13055 Posts |
Posted - Jan 21 2012 : 08:45:55 AM
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April, keep us posted on how you are doing and what you are going to do. Sounds interesting to me. Good luck.
Marly
"It's only when we truly know and understand that we have a limited time on earth- and that we have no way of knowing when our time is up- that we will begin to live each day to the fullest, as if it was the only one we had." Elisabeth Kurler-Ross |
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Ursula Norsedottir
Farmgirl in Training
37 Posts
Amanda
Nebraska
37 Posts |
Posted - Jan 21 2012 : 09:50:24 AM
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I have done something very similar to Krystal. For a few years now I have kept an eye on what we have been eating a lot of from the store, and guesstimating from there how much we go through in a year. Broccoli, tomatoes, corn, and potatoes are our biggies. The 5 of us could go through 5 head of broccoli, 3 quarts of corn, 2 quarts of tomato sauce, and 15 lbs of potatoes a month! That is not all we eat, but there is no way I can grow as much as we truly need for a year in our little urban plots. I am hoping to be able to get half of it, to be honest.
Basically I take what we go through in a month, times it by 12, and use that as my estimate. Anyone know how I can get 200lb of taters out of 20 sq feet??
http://theblackbearden.blogspot.com/ |
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sonshine4u
Chapter Guru
1205 Posts
April
New Prague
MN
USA
1205 Posts |
Posted - Jan 21 2012 : 12:19:12 PM
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200 pounds in 20 sq. feet? Sounds like you need to find some more gardening space or join a CSA! :) lol! Thanks for your advice!
Playing in the Sonshine
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Garden Gate: Food Planting/Planning Help! |
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Food Planting/Planning Help!
