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09-24-2008, 11:09 PM | #1 |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: South Coastal British Columbia
Posts: 183
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Store What You Can Grow
Greetings:
There are two plants everyone might consider getting a hold of in bulk which pretty much grow everywhere, can deal with drought and are far more nutritious than rice. Quinoa http://www.thedailyplate.com/nutriti...organic-quinoa http://www.myfit.ca/mealplans/nutrie...y.asp?id=20035 And... Amaranth Leaves... http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts/v...roducts/2304/2 Seeds... http://www.elook.org/nutrition/grains/6575.html Both have edible and very tasty leaves as well as superior quality seeds. They are both simple to grow and quite lovely. My quinoa is drying right now and it is in shades of gold and red and blue! Another plant you might consider, since it is tough as nails, has edible leaves as well as a brilliant nutritional complex is 'goji' or 'Chinese Wolfberry'. Lycium Chinense or Lycium barbarum (I can't tell the difference between the two myself...) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolfberry They are fast growing, hardy from USDA Gardening Zones 2 to 10 and are really expensive at the health food stores. Go to a local health food and buy a small packet and you'll get more seeds than you can fathom. Simply swell them in water, mush the berry through a strainer, and viola. Hundreds of goji seeds ready for planting. As an after thought...Russian kale can NOT be beat as it will thrive under snow even! http://rawveg.info/kale.html These are all really simple plants for a new gardener..... |
09-24-2008, 11:21 PM | #2 |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: So. Cal. U.S.
Posts: 4,205
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Re: Store What You Can Grow
And just about everything you grow you can can, as in canning, peppers,beans,tomatos,cucumbers, whatever, it'll last a long,long time in canning jars!.
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09-25-2008, 01:39 PM | #3 |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Illinois
Posts: 60
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Re: Store What You Can Grow
quinoa is an excellent grain!!
i introduced it to my family about two years ago. contains whole protein and does not need a mate like beans and rice. better nutritional conent and more versatile in my opinion eat it hot like rice cold like pasta stuffed in cabbage rolls good stuff that quinoa |
09-26-2008, 06:55 AM | #4 |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: South-East UK
Posts: 31
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Re: Store What You Can Grow
I would Suggest you Enchourage Diversity in whats grow thinking on an International Level ie. grow what crops Naturally grow in your Reigion.
I live in Europe So I only ever grow European Crops. It just Makes Sence to me. I'm sure their must be a Canadian Version of Kale or Similer Hardy Crop. I love Kale myself Totally Agree with you about it. |
09-26-2008, 07:18 AM | #5 | |
Avalon Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: South Coastal British Columbia
Posts: 183
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Re: Store What You Can Grow
Quote:
The 'problem' with growing what supposedly comes from near you is that it doesn't. Just as the humble potato came from the Andes, took over the European continent and then the world (not much in China though...they tend to balk at the solanacea) wheat is from the near East, as is rye etc. Quinoa and amaranth are going to rage the global market as they blend perfectly with hemp. The notion of 'what grows where you are' is becoming massive. Not in a limiting factor, but in an explosive outpouring of new seeds for old lands. The notion of restriction is being spouted by the same old busy-bodies as per usual like the whole bunk "INVASIVE SPECIES" gibberish. What do we know of anything beyond humanity that 'invades' anywhere...oy vey. A plant's timeline is very different from our own. http://www.jlhudsonseeds.net/WhiteList.htm Quinoa, amaranth and hemp are the three most useful (green-grain) annuals to have in a Permaculture with bamboo and comfrey coming in at a tie in the perennial group. This is WORLD wide. All of them have a strain (or a cultivar) that will grow neigh near anywhere. If it CAN grow there, grow it there because it will be most useful. The more we switch our reliance to foods that are feisty, nutritious and adaptable the better off we are. I would never suggest this for a mass planting and trial at a running farm. I am saying that if you or anyone has an operational space to put these plants in....do it and do it yesterday. One of the hardest things I have found about being a Permaculture desigener is getting people to try new foods. But having the seeds of new foods about especially if they are better seeds is paramount right now. As for kale.................my G-d I love that plant......and to all the kohls, Godbless. Three cheers for chard as well, and that 'southern thing-a-ma-jig' collards..... |
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