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Here is my latest newsletter from the website...
Growing Food
May 12, 2008
Dear Friends,
I just can't let another day pass without urging all of you
to make preparations! Preparations for what? Well, let us
look back over the past few months...
The prices of common grocery items have sky rocketed in a
very short amount of time. We have no reason at all to
expect this trend to slow down or turn itself around. That
means that by this fall, we could be facing even more
difficult times. In fact, I believe it is for certain. We
live in a farming community. I see with my own eyes each
day more and more ground being torn up for the planting of
corn...and not corn for food. This corn is being planted
for ethanol. And even if it were being planted for food, I
wouldn't want to eat any of it. It is treated with such
harsh chemicals that I am concerned at this point for my
family's health. My son, Nicholas, had a severe allergic
reaction last week that made him very ill. It occured just
as the farmers were begining to spray the fields with the
first round of chemical fertilizers and herbacides. The
air around our little piece of property had a strange haze
to it that you could see in the distance. They are not
finished yet, either. Each day we see more tractors with
large tanks hitched to them cruising down our back roads.
I pray for the protection of our homegrown crops, too. At
least our garden plants are not directly sprayed with any
chemicals and we make every attempt to grow them naturally
and organically. We do the best we can.
I am pleading with all of you to plant something this year!
Even if it is just a single tomato plant or a green
zuchinni...plant it! I am sure that you are all familiar
with the Victory Gardens of yesteryear. Well, now is the
time to follow in those foot steps. You have nobody to
blame but yourself if you fail at this task. It is not
difficult to plant a small garden. If you don't have a
yard, plant in containers. Many vegetable crops grow great
in containers. Did you know that you can even grow
yourself a crop of potatoes in a garbage can? Get your
hands on some gardening magazines, books, or check out some
web sites with free information. The library is a
wonderful source of free info! You may also check out your
local greenhouses for some advice or even your local
extension office.
I have shared some information with you during the past few
weeks on foraging for free food in your backyard. Take
advantage of it! Your family is depending on you to keep
them healthy and to keep them fed! Get them involved. My
children are well aware of the state of our food supply.
They are in this with me. We work together. I am not
trying to strike up any panic, but I don't think I really
need to, do I? I am sure you have all been reading the
newspapers and watching the evening news reports. This is
real, folks. There will be a major food shortage and it
will hurt Americans the most because we are fat, lazy, and
spoiled. Excuse me, but you all know it is true. None of
us, not even our poor people, know what it is like to live
on rationed rice. I have people tell me that they couldn't
possibly eat bean soup for three nights in a row! We have
been brought up on three meals a day, soft drinks, snack
foods, candy bars, fast food. Friday night pizza parties...
We don't know what it is like to be hungry in this
country. What if it is time to find out? What if you have
to convince your family next winter that bean soup without
the ham bone or chunks of meat is a reasonable meal? And
what if that is on the menu for several days in a row?
Will they throw a fit? What if they must eat oatmeal
instead of boxed cereal for breakfast? What if the stores
run out of milk and butter? That is what is happening
right now in Japan! Japan is not exactly a poor nation,
ladies. This is serious business.
So, what can you do? This is the time to make
preparations! This is not some Y2K scare, either. This is
something that is actually happening all around the world
and the begining rumblings have already begun here in
America. You have a body that works fairly well, do you?
Well, then get outside and dig up a little plot of dirt.
No dirt to dig? Find some old containers. Be creative!
Can you fill it with some soil and nail some drainage holes
into the sides and bottom of it? Then use it to plant some
lettuce in! Stack some rocks or some cinder blocks into a
matchbox sized garden...just do it! Get yourself some
garden seeds or buy some transplants that are already
started for you. What else can you do? Here are my
suggestions...
#1. Grow food (have I made that clear, yet?)
#2. Stock up on dried beans, brown rice, and other grains.
#3. Get yourself a dairy animal or locate a small farmer
who sells on shares.
#4. Get a few laying hens (they don't need much room at
all!)
#5. Purchase a food dehydrator
#6. Spend some time visiting local u-pick farms this
summer and can jellies, jams, as well as dehydrate your
berries and fruits.
#7. Start weaning your family off of big meals and learn
how to cook simple foods.
#8. Buy yourself a grain mill or share one with a
neighbor.
#9. Learn how to enjoy drinking plain water (filtered!).
This is also the time to stock up on herbs for medicinal
purposes. Lets share ideas and resources! Leave your tips
on the message board, along with gardening links and other
sites that offer helpful information. Lets be like the
ants! God gives us lots of wisdom in His word, doesn't He?
Look for it. He tells us not to worry, also. He will
provide for our needs. But, I do believe that He expects
us to work and to not be lazy. If we are doing our part,
He will be faithful to do what He has promised, as well.
Blessings,
Jennifer Ferris
www.fromfieldsandgardens.com
www.farmsteadorganics.etsy.com
Jennifer@fromfieldsandgardens.com 
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