SURVIVAL GARDENING
We come from a long line of sur-
vivors. We have prospered off and on
for several millennia prior to this
present embodiment of civilization.
Considering the apocalyptic head-
lines frequently seen in the news, it
often seems that instead of help-
ing us survive, civilization is try-
ing to annihilate us.
The food supply in America .;_#
is abundant but would be of J
short duration in any large-scale
emergency. It is unlikely that.
this will change anytime soon,
simply due to the logistical
nightmare of storing enough •
food, rotating the stock to keep it
fresh and then attempting to dis-
tribute it under the typical
strained scenario of a bona fide
emergency.
When any government wants to
subjugate a people, they know from
long experience that food is more
strategic than weapons. This has
already been done in this very coun-
try. If you'll consider the example of
the Buffalo and the Indian, you will
see that I'm right.
The grocery store has only a
couple of days in stock which would
disappear even more quickly than
that in an emergency. Being prepared
is not only important, but truly nec-
essary if you want to survive a
calamity. I would advise everyone to
lay in a stock of canned foods even if
you already have a garden in
progress. The past is the best indica-
tor of the future, and food emergen-
cies are commonplace in the history
of our species.
Gardening, which presidents
Washington and Jefferson consid-
ered to be the noblest of occupations,
is the cheapest, healthiest, and most
dependable way to provide your own
squash and beans fulfill these
by Robert H. Miller
requirements as no others in history.
These possess a synergy when grown
together which results in improved
production in all three and much
less work for the gardener. This
mutual, "greater than the sum of
its parts" sharing is exemplified
by the name "Three sisters". It
works more or less like this:
Corn is very productive but
^ needs fertile soil and something
to keep it from blowing down in
a storm (lodging). Pole beans are
a legume whose roots put nitro-
gen (fertilizer) back into the soil,
but it needs something tall to
* climb on in order for it to produce
-;ii'- abundantly. The corn benefits
greatly from the nitrogen and from
the vines acting as tie-downs to keep
A depiction of the garden described in this article. it standing. The corn stalks provide a
natural trellis for the beans to climb
food on a long-term basis. The num- on, one which you will not need to
ber of useful publications about gar- spend time and effort building.
dening are legion, but you don't see Vining squash planted among these
that much about "survival garden- two shade out weeds with their broad
ing", which is to me the most impor- leaves as well as retaining extra
tant of all such considerations. Due moisture by restricting air flow and
to space limitations, I can here only sunlight which dry the soil out. This
describe the best of low-tech, effi- cuts down on the amount of weeding
cient modes of producing an abun- and watering that you must do. To
dance of vegetables. This system has me this is all very pleasant and "zen"
been used for thousands of years to think about. Gardening does not
basically unchanged over much of need to be as hard as we sometimes
North and South America with imagine it to be.
remarkable success by a diverse col- Preparation of the soil is very
lection of un-matched survival important but not so hard if we coop-
experts. We know them as "Indians". erate with nature instead of trying to
The system is often referred to as the conquer it. All you really need to do
"Three sisters of the Cherokee," is mulch. Mulch can be nearly any
even though it was widely practiced kind of plant material including hay,
by many other tribes. leaves, grass clippings or even paper,
The main considerations in sur- wood chips and sawdust. Just pile it
vival gardening are; productivity, 6-8" deep where you plan to put your
nutrition, store-ability, and ease of garden. Mulch prevents the soil from
cultivation and preparation. Corn, drying out too quickly and loosens
33
 the texture of the soil as well as 0 Covn also be sprinkled at planting time
helping to keep weed seeds from • to "sweeten" the soil, making it
sprouting. easier for plants to absorb the
Gardens should always be nutrients. Don't over-do this either.
located in full sun in the deepest There are of course other won-
soil you have available. derful things you can plant such as
Earthworms will gradually work okra. sweet potatoes, watermelons
the mulch into the soil as they eat and tomatoes. Okra is rather easy
and eliminate which further fertil- to grow on nearly any well-drained
izes it. Earthworms are a garden- and weeded soil. It is highly pro-
er's best friend, unlike most grubs. ductive if you pick it every other
If your soil is compacted or con- day to avoid tough, over-mature
tains a lot of clay it should be bro- pods. You will get a lot of them
ken up with a garden fork before anyway but don't throw them
planting. If mulch remains on the away. Pigs love them and you can
surface when you are ready to plant make a tasty coffee substitute from
simply push a small spot of it the dried seeds by roasting and
somewhat aside and insert the grinding them. If you don't like the
seeds. mucilage in fresh okra, simply
Gardens need not be large to be keep the pod un-opened however
productive. An area about 10' by you cook it, or slice the tender
30' properly planted and cared for ones, roll in cornmeal and deep-fry
will produce a lot of food when until semi-crisp and browned. My
employing the "Three sisters," but mouth is watering.
probably not enough if it is to be Sweet potatoes are one of the
the sole source of food for more Vat to scale single best crops you can grow. It
than one person. I doubt that many is a marvel of nutrition, flavor,
Diagram of planting pattern viewed from above.
of us are strict vegetarians anyway. Repeat this pattern to expand garden to any productivity, store-ability and ease of
The planting schedule goes desired size. cultivation. The entire plant is edible,
something like this. Keep in mind leaves as salad or cooked greens,
that everything I say here is an possibly productive by the time sum- stems and roots as a cooked veg-
approximation, you do not need a mer's heat and drought become a etable and tubers as nearly anything
tape measure! factor. either raw. baked, boiled or fried,
Plant the corn about 1" deep in Corn is a heavy-feeder with including dessert casseroles and pies.
"hills" about 20" across with 12" short, shallow roots and will benefit If I could grow only one plant for
between hills, hoping for perhaps 2 greatly from the light application of survival, this one would be it. I did
or 3 seedlings in each. Do this only aged chicken manure. Do not be too get some damage from deer, so you
after all chance of frost is past. Never generous here, as it is easy to stunt or might try planting inside a boundary
tamp the soil firmly over the seeds, kill the corn with too much fertilizer. of okra. I would expect it to shade
just cover them with loose, moist You can always add a little more the ground like squash, possibly
soil. When these are up eight or nine later if needed. Too much fertilizer advantageous in combination with
inches plant a bean seed about 1" will cause the plant to shade yellow. okra or corn if you don't like squash.
deep at 6-8" spacings around the If you have easy access to small To propagate it. simply put a
perimeter of each hill. When these fish, you can plant one or two in the sweet potato in a shallow basin of
have been up for about a week, plant hill when you plant the corn. In the water and place it in a warm, lighted
the vining squash (or pumpkins) fall there is sometimes a mass-death place. This should be done in late
around the hills about 1" deep and 6" of crickets or grass-hoppers, which winter or early spring. It will eventu-
away from the beans and 24" from may be gathered and used in the ally produce sprouts which are called
each other (see illustration). They same way. Use nature's bounty "slips". When they are 4-6" long,
should be well grown-out, leafy and whenever you can. Wood ashes can gently break them off where they
34
join the potato. Plant these in moist
soil, burying the stem end at least 2"
deep, preferably deeper, and water
them well for the first couple of
weeks. They tend to produce better
in soft, loose soil maturing in about
90 days. They will store easily until
spring at which time they will proba-
bly sprout on their own, providing
you with more slips.
White potatoes are very produc-
tive also and may be used, but only
the tubers are edible and they do not
contain as much carotin. Sweet pota-
toes are not in the same family with
white potatoes.
Melons are a source of sugar,
healthy water, fiber and potassium.
With fermentation it becomes a
refreshing, tasty wine (and if
exposed to air for a while, useful,
healthy vinegar). Plant after frost in a
well weeded and drained area or a
burnt-off spot in full sun. Melons are
nature's "gatorade" and can keep
you healthy (and alive if you're
sweating a lot). If kept indoors, they
will store well into the winter.
Tomatoes are tasty, full of vita-
min C, potassium and fiber, good
either raw, cooked, dried or in
sauces. They can be very productive
in full sun but are subject to damage
from deer, so plant in a protected
area or close to the house.
For cooler seasons of the year, I
would recommend turnips, beets and
cabbage-type crops, as they are
nutritious and store well. Fava beans
can provide wind breaks and a good
protein source. They will even take a
light freeze, unlike nearly all other
beans, but like most beans, they will
put nitrogen fertilizer back into the
soil.
Do not forget perennials, such as
fruit trees and berry vines which are
suited to your area. Cactus is an
excellent choice for warmer, drier
climates. Often you can find pads in
ethnic food stores which are nearly
thornless. Simply plant the pad in
moist soil stem-end 2-3" deep. The
young tender pads are excellent,
nutritious food and also have medic-
inal and other uses too numerous to
deal with here. Many varieties pro-
duce delicious "pears" or tunas. All
known species of flat padded cactus
are non-toxic. Spiny species of
"prickly pear" can make a very
effective living fence around areas
you wish to protect, providing both
food and boundaries. Perennials such
as cactus can be very productive,
requiring little input of effort or time
and I really like that.
With regard to insect pests, just
keep an eye out to catch infestations
as early as possible. Squash bugs can
controlled by hand-picking both the
bugs and their eggs on the underside
of leaves. Tomato horn-worms are
large and easily located by their
droppings on the ground. Large
locusts on the corn can be shot with
a B-B gun and fed to the chickens.
Concentrations of aphids can be gen-
tly rubbed into oblivion on the plant
stems they infest. Aphids are the ser-
vants of ants. Pour boiling water on
nearby ant colonies as a pre-emptive
strike.
Everything I mention here can
be eaten raw, which is an important
factor in a survival situation. Corn,
however, needs a simple treatment
when it is to be consumed by
humans. Failing to do this will not
hurt you at all in the short run but can
become a nutritional factor if you
depend heavily on it. Corn is very
rich in niacin but it is unavailable to
the human digestive tract unless a
small amount of wood ashes are
added to the water that it is to be
cooked in. Native Americans knew
this trick very well, but when corn
became a staple in Africa, this tradi-
tion was not known or practiced
35
there. The population began falling
ill to Beri-Beri, which is caused by a
niacin deficiency. Putting a pinch or
two of wood ashes or a bit of lye in
the water beforehand will prevent
this and give corn much more com-
plete nutrition
It is also possible to make dex-
trine glue from corn by separating
the fine white flour or starch from
the outer hard shell. Grinding and
then straining through a cloth is one
possible way. Then heat the dry flour
until it darkens somewhat. If done
correctly, the resulting powder can
be mixed with water to form a
syrupy paste that will firmly glue
paper, wood or leather. I used barrels
of dextrine glue while I was a taxi-
dermist but have never made it
directly from corn starch as
described above. I just read about it
recently and have not tried it yet, so
some experimenting may be neces-
sary.
With regard to specific varieties
to plant I encourage you to plant,
only open-pollinated or heirloom
varieties. Avoid hybrids like the
plague, as they will not grow true
from seeds that you save for the next
planting. This makes you dependent
on seed companies which might
become defunct in a long-term crisis.
It will also save you the considerable
cost of buying seeds every year.
There is an incredible variety of per-
fectly wonderful, old-time favorite
vegetables that will take care of your
needs. There are many good seed
suppliers to be found in advertise-
ments in gardening magazines, but I
have found Baker Creek Heirloom
Seed Co. to be first rate in variety,
prices and helpfulness. For a beauti-
ful, free, descriptive, full-color cata-
log, call 1-417-924-8917 or write:
Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Co.,
2278 Baker Creek Rd., Mansfield,
MO 65704.
 As a controversial afterthought,
allow me to say that a garden also
attracts birds and animals that can act
as a dual-crop. I would encourage
everyone to follow game regulations,
but in many places it is legal to shoot
critters that are causing damage to
crops. It would be a shame to waste
them after they are harvested. In a
true survival situation, game laws
might not be much of a consideration
anyway.
Along this same line of thought,
I would encourage everyone to
become familiar with any wild
species of plants in your region that
are edible. Indians also foraged in
addition to their gardens, which gave
them an excellent "plan B". The
greater the variety of items in your
diet, the better your nutrition will be.
Adding a few fruit trees appropriate to do! Ha!
for your climate is also an excellent All of the vegetables mentioned
idea. here can be easily preserved by dry-
I wrote this article in hopes of ing, canning or pickling. Melons and
encouraging my Backwoods sweet potatoes as well as some win-
Brothers to eat better and cheaper for ter squash will store a long time just
the present and to be prepared for by protecting them indoors.
future uncertainties. Sharing seeds It may not be as glamorous as
and trading vegetables with neigh- hunting, but it sure is satisfying to
bors will foster friendships that can watch something you planted grow
be very important in normal times or and produce such an abundance of
a crisis. It is just impossible to give delicious, nutritious food. It is also
any more than a brief overview of nice to come home to a full plate
what is possible in an article of this even if hunting or fishing didn't go
length. But don't be intimidated by so well. For survival purposes it is
what you don't know, and just plant important to start now, or maybe
the seeds. Seeds have been planting even yesterday! You can't expect an
themselves since the beginning and abundant crop until after you have
have survived, so just think of how planted, so get with it amigo! Who
well they'll do with some help. Just knows? You might even survive the
put them in the soil; they know what next "Crash". Good luck!

Making Small Hinges

Small hinges for various purposes can
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