tax burden lowest since 1958

[jillio]

You are right but only because you don't account for all the wasted food thrown out. With home-gardening and family farms there will be little waste.

Riiiight.

 

[somedeafdudefromPNW]

Lets see.
Fresh, home-grown products vs. greasy fast food.
Who lives a better and healther life?
Someone like you could not even imagine what a wonderful crop can be produce in a raise-bed garden smack in the middle of Hometown, USA

I grew up in a household where one would be ASHAMED if they ate from a backyard garden or from the farmer's market, because it meant one is too poor to shop at the supermarket. The irony is... all the hipsters are cashing in on the locavore and or organic movements. I am not saying it's a bad thing, I still buy organic and local; but there's no way I can pull it off with a kid or two under my wings.

 

[Beach girl]

I grew up in a household where one would be ASHAMED if they ate from a backyard garden

Eh. I was literally in college before I knew that nice people actually bought spaghetti sauce from the store in jars or cans. Proper spaghetti sauce was made from the tomatoes and carrots from one's own garden, plus celery, mushrooms, tomato paste (ok if that was store bought, but preferably home-made as well), onions, garlic. At worst one could buy the veggies from the store, but never, ever the pre-made sauce. Yuck.

It was actually a revelation to me when my roommate bought the stuff from the store. NOT the way it should be done, thankyouverymuch.

 

[Banjo]

I had a vegetable garden last year and it turned out great. I'm in the process of doing it again.

 

[Jiro]

 

[saywhatkid]

There's not even enough farmland in British Columbia to support 2 to 3 million people in the Vancouver metro, let alone the population of the ENTIRE province.

And rolling7 wants to be self-sufficient with 300 MILLIONS?

Why not? We can all live on Cheetos and Banquet dinners. All we need are some chemicals...

 

[rolling7]

I had a vegetable garden last year and it turned out great. I'm in the process of doing it again.

I know from experience Canada overall has better vegs than USA
Have a great crop, wish you could share.

 

[TXgolfer]

Well, we're bound to hit the Malthusian plateau sooner or later. Perhaps it's better we face the fact now once the libertarians coup a revolt.

Oh wait... Libertarians almost never get together.

Oh geez this s%#+ again....two threads even. Oh well.... I am just a little more optimistic. And you have given me a great idea. To the Cloud!

 

[jillio]

I had a vegetable garden last year and it turned out great. I'm in the process of doing it again.

There have only been a total of 7 years of my life that I have not had a vegetable and herb garden. I grew up with one, and have had one the majority of my adult life. Last year, I shared several preserving recipes with members. Still and all, even with the freezer and canning, it in no way makes me independent from the economic system. Just saves a bit on the grocery bill and tastes darn good.

 

[deafskeptic]

I would have started my herbs from seeds this year but I had the spend last month in the hosipital and rehad so I couldn't do that. I plan to buy herbs and transplant them this weekend. I'm not nearly as experienced as jillio or my mother but hey, I get tons of fresh basil to throw on my tomatoes and to make pesto with. For some reason, I get sick everytime I use pine nuts so I have to use walnuts instead.

 

[jillio]

I would have started my herbs from seeds this year but I had the spend last month in the hosipital and rehad so I couldn't do that. I plan to buy herbs and transplant them this weekend. I'm not nearly as experienced as jillio or my mother but hey, I get tons of fresh basil to throw on my tomatoes and to make pesto with. For some reason, I get sick everytime I use pine nuts so I have to use walnuts instead.

I love walnut pesto! And basil is one of my favorite herbs. It just has such a refreshing, green flavor.

I planted some cinnamon basil last year. I had never seen it before, but it smelled very much like cinnamon. It tasted like sweet basil with a bit of a bite. I made some herb jelly with it that turned out tasty.

Here is a trick I do with my pesto: I freeze it in ice cube trays. When it is frozen, I take it out and put all the cubes in a freezer bag. One or two is just the right portion for most things.

Heck, by the time you get to be my age, you will be as experienced as I am!

 

[deafskeptic]

I love walnut pesto! And basil is one of my favorite herbs. It just has such a refreshing, green flavor.

I planted some cinnamon basil last year. I had never seen it before, but it smelled very much like cinnamon. It tasted like sweet basil with a bit of a bite. I made some herb jelly with it that turned out tasty.

Heck, by the time you get to be my age, you will be as experienced as I am!

I hope the green house near me has Thai basil as I like to do Thai cooking. I'll buy more basil than I did the last time.

 

[jillio]

I hope the green house near me has Thai basil as I like to do Thai cooking. I'll buy more basil than I did the last time.

I don't have any Thai basil...it is hard to find around here. But I do grow Thai chili peppers and dry them. Thai cuisine is one of my favorites. They combine flavors in such unexpected but delicious ways.

 

[deafskeptic]

I don't have any Thai basil...it is hard to find around here. But I do grow Thai chili peppers and dry them. Thai cuisine is one of my favorites. They combine flavors in such unexpected but delicious ways.

Oh yeah. I can't eat it often because I'm on a sodium restricted diet so I have to cut way down on sodium on the day I eat Thai food. I have Thai fish sauce that I got at the international food store. I don't think there's such a thing as low sodium fish sauce.

 

[KristinaB]

Our garden died due to the extreme dry conditions and the fact that we are under mandatory water restrictions. I am hoping to get a new garden in for next year in a better spot and to have gutters on the house to collect any rainwater we get. That should help some.

 

[Beach girl]

You can buy rain barrels from various places to put under the gutters and collect all that wonderful free water. Well worth doing.

 

[KristinaB]

You can buy rain barrels from various places to put under the gutters and collect all that wonderful free water. Well worth doing.

Right, it's just that we don't get much rain anymore. Palm Beach County is at it's driest level in 80 years.

 

[Beach girl]

Eventually it will revert back to the mean, almost certainly.

 

[Daredevel7]

There have only been a total of 7 years of my life that I have not had a vegetable and herb garden. I grew up with one, and have had one the majority of my adult life. Last year, I shared several preserving recipes with members. Still and all, even with the freezer and canning, it in no way makes me independent from the economic system. Just saves a bit on the grocery bill and tastes darn good.

I have to agree but I would like to add a bit more with this. My older friend told me about the food habits of her grandparents (think back in 30s to 50s). Her grandparents lived in rural Alabama and had lots of farmland (due to inheritance), but they were still very poor. They relied mostly on growing fruits and veggies from their farmland and hunting. They even ate squirrel on biscuits (So THAT'S where the stereotype came from...). They also did some fishing. Grocery shopping was a luxury for them, so they did it once in a blue moon for things they can't produce for themselves. So, yes it IS possible to rely on having your own garden but 1) you need a lot of land to sustain 2) you need to rely on other things (hunting and fishing) to get a proper balance of nutrition. 3) you will have to rely on a limited variety of food. (Meaning... you most likely won't be able to create Lamb Tikka Masala with a side of caviar.)

 

[jillio]

I have to agree but I would like to add a bit more with this. My older friend told me about the food habits of her grandparents (think back in 30s to 50s). Her grandparents lived in rural Alabama and had lots of farmland (due to inheritance), but they were still very poor. They relied mostly on growing fruits and veggies from their farmland and hunting. They even ate squirrel on biscuits (So THAT'S where the stereotype came from...). They also did some fishing. Grocery shopping was a luxury for them, so they did it once in a blue moon for things they can't produce for themselves. So, yes it IS possible to rely on having your own garden but 1) you need a lot of land to sustain 2) you need to rely on other things (hunting and fishing) to get a proper balance of nutrition. 3) you will have to rely on a limited variety of food. (Meaning... you most likely won't be able to create Lamb Tikka Masala with a side of caviar.)

Agreed. It can be done. It just can't be done with a quarter acre!