The Simple Way to Becoming Self-Sufficient in Food

A big topic is self-sufficiency, especially when it comes to growing your own food. In this video I want to show you a simple way to become self-sufficient, but also why self-sufficiency may not actually be worth it for you. There is nothing better though than going into your vegetable garden and harvesting an abundance of delicious homegrown fruits, vegetables and herbs for you to enjoy.

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0:00 Introduction
0:42 What even is self-sufficiency?
2:00 A different approach
3:38 5 Crop intro
3:59 Crop 1
4:35 Crop 2
5:07 Crop 3
5:34 Crop 4
6:21 Crop 5
6:53 The problem with prediction
7:41 How much to grow formula
9:11 Dealing with leafy greens
10:22 The best tip for self-sufficiency

#selfsufficiency #vegetablegardening #permaculture

[tinamcguigan]

I think another aspect that people don't talk about often when thinking about self sufficiency, is community. If your neighbor doesn't have room to grow pumpkins and you do, and you share, often a barter system developes naturally. Sometimes it's produce for services. You don't have to be alone in this.

[ashdav]

Great advice to start small! My mom and siblings have been gardening for multiple years now, and we did when I was a child. But, we are just start this year with our kids and decided to keep them happy and interested, will just be doing two 9 foot raised beds with our favorites, tomatoes, melons, cucumbers, and herbs for eating. Keeping my fingers crossed my kids will enjoy it and we can keep the deer at bay! lol.. :)

[stacyfelton]

Loved the video thank you.
Please can u provide some advice with how to get rid of ant nests, my allotment has a few 🐜

[gotagreengardening]

G, day from a fellow green thumb here in Australia!!! :)

[litomora]

I think self sufficiency with own produce is the most important thing one can do during this time. Not only it can save you some money but the psychological effect itself is helpful and healthy for one self. Seeing new growths (as anyone knows) is a sight to see and surely a natural serotonin inducer👌🏼😊

[cozyhomemakingvibes]

My 6 yo likes watching these and now walks around our family garden with his little monster digital camera making home movies that are basically garden tour/how-to garden videos like this. 😂

[ohio_gardener]

Some great tips and suggestions on personal self-sufficiency. I was raised on a farm in a very large family, and we were totally self-sufficient. We grew and preserved all of our own fruits & vegetables, as well as our own mean & eggs. Grocery stores were not one of the places we frequented. And now, 7 decades later, I am still growing self-sufficiently. We grow too much food for just the two of us, but we provide the extra to neighbors and food pantries. Grocery stores are not one of the places we frequent.

[dirtpatcheaven]

I so agree. If you can't garden AT ALL don't aim for full self sufficiency. Start something small and experiment more every year, see if you even like it.

[bonnieo]

This helped me think about being self-sufficient in a different light. I don’t have to be self-sufficient in every area. It is less overwhelming that way. Thank you for this great video.

[LizZorab]

Fabulous video Huw, I completely agree with you about starting with one or two veg and the part-time element - a perfect description of how to start. Seasonal eating - yes!

[lamperdsfield]

I once decided I needed to grow 36 cabbages to suit my needs for a year, so I set out growing different types for different times of the year. Turns out I definitely do not eat 36 cabbages in a year 🤣. Now I aim for about 10, more realistic 😊

[Lauradicus]

Another focus when choosing your crops is ones that are typically “dirty”, difficult to find in stores grown without chemicals such as strawberries. Also produce which doesn’t ship well.

[dannyhughes]

Don't forget to take into account the number of Garlic heads needed for replanting the following year.

[AndrewNicholsSeattle]

Thank you, my wife and I started homesteading 4 years ago and we've always maintained that we are working towards self-sufficiency and we try not to be upset about our lack of progress. Life happens and as long as we start replacing a few items from the grocery store we get closer and closer every year.

[liabobia]

Here in zone 6, I don't buy any vegetables from the store all year round, with the exception of onions. My best tip is to select for productive varieties, and then select from the best plants to save seed. I've got a variety of winter squash that now allows me to eat one (fifteen pound) squash per month from September to April. Also, learn to preserve food without electricity! Any veggie that's sliceable and firm (zucc, eggplant, etc) can be spritzed with salt and vinegar and sun dried, then packed away.

[Usonian]

Could talk about the greenhouse in the beginning of the video. That looked really cool. I didn't see a video on the channel about it. Thanks

[simbobcrafts]

I have an interview for my dream job as a head gardener of a market garden in a residential care home. I really hope I get it

[ploefff]

Such a good topic and more helpful to new gardeners than one would think. When I started growing things I saved my grocery store receipts so I could make a list of what vegetables I bought. I did this for about 18 months and It really helped me choose what to grow. It might seem a daunting task but it wasn't. Just a quick note when ever I got home from doing the shopping and then forget about it until next time.
The list showed me I eat a lot of frosen peas during the year so this year my plan is to become self-sufficient in peas.
I also eat a lot of peppers but that is not something I have had succes growing so those I'll be getting from the store. This is successful gardening for me.

[KitchenGardenTherapy]

I think there are so many people that don't want to even start because well, they can't be self-sufficient in everything. But to me, if you can be self-reliant in at least one thing, that's already great. Start slow and grow. Thank you for such an informative video.

[dayafeickert]

I’ve missed your videos. By far you are one of my favorite YouTube posters. You’ve made me less afraid to try and let me understand it’s okay to fail to learn growing food