Have you ever considered giving up on being SS?...Spoke too soon???

[sunsaver]

BB wrote "lasagna beds" . I second that motion. Newspaper and hay in the fall, plants mulched with more hay or pine straw in the spring. Loosen the soil with a digging fork. No tilling required. Being ss is more about the journey and learning, and not so much about being completely alone. You'll always need a friend or two, or neighbor to barter with. My vision for self sufficiency is a realization of the Hippy movement of the late 1960s. The emphasis is on love and living in harmony with nature, rather than fighting, polluting, killing, or choke holding mother nature into submission. That's all good in the MMA octagon, but it's not what our leaders should be doing.

 

[savingdogs]

I used the lasagna beds idea for the first time, in just one section of the garden. That is the area doing best now! Next year I plan to expand that idea, it worked really great and was super easy.

 

[k15n1]

There are days when I feel frustrated, but it's more because of my lack of time, not anything else....

Same here.

 

[rhoda_bruce]

I can't give up. I'm not a trusting enough person to not tend to some of my own needs.
Given the info as I understand it, I would suggest you start with very basic, easy to grow vegs and fruits and take what you have into serious consideration; determining what your strengths and weaknesses are and problem solving what you are able, depending on what you find. You might want to enroll the help of an old-timer who will walk your yard with you and give you advice and brutal honesty.
I would go with greenbeans, squash, pumpkin, greens, beets, cucumbers, peanuts to start with. Introduce other things a little at a time. I read about Lasagna gardening. I have done similar projects and they worked out well for me, although I didn't call it that. Mulching makes things that would ordinarily be hard, much easier and more productive. The trick is to get your hands on enough material.
If you have enough time to study, go frequently to your local library and slowly become an expert on a few SS topics. We can't really all do it all. You have to pick your battles and come up with a plan and execute it.
Its good if you can have a lot of one thing and your brother, nextdoor has something completely different, etc.
You might want to subscribe to a few magazines that interest you, such as Hobby Farms, Mother Earth News, Organic Gardening, MaryJane's Farm.
If your garden needs help, start over with a better plan, but that doesn't stop you from cooking from scratch more often, setting up a clothes line, making your own laundry detergent, learning how to harvest from the wild and making your house more organized; like having a garage sale or making a massive clearing to simplify your life.
Don't bite off more than you can chew. You might want to try a little gorilla garden. It would be something small and might be easy for you to tend.

 

[Farmfresh]

Sorry, little hijack.

Farmfresh

Wooden eggs are best and not too expensive

. Where do you get your wooden eggs? I have plastic Easter eggs that I use, successfully, but would really like to get some wooden ones.

eggcartons.com

 

[Beekissed]

making your house more organized; like having a garage sale or making a massive clearing to simplify your life.

JUST did this and you have NO idea how freeing this is!!!! I can't get over how easy everything feels now. I am amazed as just how little I need to live comfortably...very few clothes, basic cookware, few linens and a lot of open floor, cabinet, drawer and wall space!

 

[ORChick]

Sorry, little hijack.

Farmfresh

Wooden eggs are best and not too expensive

. Where do you get your wooden eggs? I have plastic Easter eggs that I use, successfully, but would really like to get some wooden ones.

eggcartons.com

Thanks!

 

[rhoda_bruce]

No, Ya'll. Get ya'll wooden eggs from an online craft store; not from a poultry supply place. It will cost way less.

 

[Leta]

No, I'll never give up.

I am in the U.S. Born and raised here. Something in the cultural installation process happened backward with me. I want the opposite of what everyone else has. I want a tiny house, with few possessions, I want the freedom to live on as little money as possible. Poverty level, that's my goal.

I played the game briefly in my early 20s. I cannot describe how bored I am with chasing money. So I have designer clothes, a nicer car, a new gadget... and? Then what? Who cares? I am not interested in people who are concerned with the "status" of others.

So to move away from SS... that isn't just a change in lifestyle, that's a change in who I am at my core. And I like my core, TYVM.

 

[Farmfresh]

No, Ya'll. Get ya'll wooden eggs from an online craft store; not from a poultry supply place. It will cost way less.

OK so I looked and found this spot as well. Wood Eggs.

Thanks Rhonda!