How Selfsufficientish were you in 2014

[Green Aura]

Being either heavily pregnant or with a newborn doesn't really lend itself to growing stuff....

But you've produced your very own little Puddleduckling - congratulations!

Lovely

And congrats from me too (Puddleduckling - love that).

[sleepyowl]

Due to my dad's brain tumour & the travelling to & from hospitals during mid to late summer, the beginning of the year started well but rapidly down hill. saying that I still have some purple sprouting broccoli still & some parsnips & made most of my Xmas presents by upcycling, preserving & baking

[Flo]

Life gets in the way sometimes sleepyowl doesn't it?

[glyn.c]

it was our first year and we did not get started sowing anything at all until the glass was in the green house on the 26th march but from may we started harvesting the first of the salad and then onto the veg , from the end of may too and including xmas we were ss in veg and salad " was to late to get any main brassicas started as i was unsure of what space would be available in the beds as they all needed topping up after the summer " and there was also a surplus that we traded for some fresh fish to stock the freezer up with, the new chooks started laying the end of may and we are still ss in eggs and as a bonus they have paid for their own food as well, we still have plenty of green tom chutney and various pickles left a a few frozen peppers and broad and runner beans.we have been ss in free scavenged fire wood since moving here in december 13 ,we still have a few leeks, swede,kohlrabi and kale to go at but its looking a bit bleak now ,got to say im itching to get sowing again and fancy trying some meat birds this year, not sure whether it will be Turkey's or chickens though yet !

[Marc]

Not bad, about the same as usual. Probably supply about 70% of my own veg and eggs. Still had potatoes left from 2013 when I started digging earlies. Used quite a bit of rainwater last year, and will have even more this year if I get the collection and storage sorted (the roof is now big enough to supply all my water needs!)

[Pumkinpie]

Feeling lazy today.
Want parsnips for dinner but can't be bothered to go and dig them up.
Must make the effot although the coop is calling.
Home grown frosted parsnips . Yummy.
I think I will see if the sun comes out!

[ina]

Ha - I still had parsnips grown by a friend - part of her very welcome Christmas present! I don't eat a lot of them, so it's not really worth growing, but she usually has a few spares... :) Her neep was excellent, too.

[Flo]

Years back one of the Hamilton twins asked if we could be totally self sufficient by providing everything we needed in the way of food for ourselves even if it was only living out of our store cupboard for say a month. I think it did raise an interesting conversation even though no-one was totally self sufficient. I think someone managed to live out of the freezer and the store cupboard for a month. Possibly with the exception of milk and butter.

Does anyone remember?

[Odsox]

We are pretty much self sufficient in vegetables and eggs, and now and again chicken meat. So there are many times when our dinners are almost totally self sufficient. I say "almost" because everything that goes into my typical chicken casserole is home produced, including the water for the stock, with one glaring exception ... salt,
Now, as we live about 200 yards from the sea it would be easy enough to evaporate some sea water, but I've never done it.

Maybe one day .....

[Green Aura]

http://www.selfsufficientish.com/forum/ ... e+cupboard

There you are Flo.

[ina]

Does anyone remember?

Yes, I do!

[Flo]

I put my hand up to making my own crumble topping nowadays instead of using the packet.

[sleepyowl]

I started out well with my veggies plot, but when my dad starting having seizures & then finding out he had a brain tumour, it took a bit of a back seat, though I did make most of my Christmas presents

[Millymollymandy]

Quite well even though I thought I had/intended to cut back, cos after 10 years it starts to get a bit too much, and I have other interests now. Still have loads of fruit in the freezer but life gets in the way sometimes as others have said, and as I have tons of jam uneaten there's not much point making more! Got 4 bowls of ripe physalis taking up space in my kitchen.....

[diggernotdreamer]

Physalis make a nice liqueur, steeped in vodka and sugar, it make something with an interesting pineapple flavour................ I am not an alcoholic or anything, but if I eat too many, I get raging indigestion