Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Welcome => New Across The Site => Topic started by: John on June 16, 2020, 20:06
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One of the effects of this pandemic that is sweeping the world is to disrupt our food production and distribution systems. I’m not talking about the silly panics over loo paper that we saw when this started. That was purely panic buying. What I’m a little concerned about is a deeper problem.
Coping with Pandemic Effects on Food Supply (https://www.allotment-garden.org/garden-diary/6937/pandemic-food-supply/)
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I had always felt a little reassured by the fact that I grew some of my own food on the allotment, until it became difficult to get some seeds - at which point I realised the vulnerability of that particular supply chain. I'd assumed that that would remain available come what may. Perhaps worth thinking about whether to grow some open seed crops rather than F1 hybrids that you can't reliably save seed from.
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Home seed saving was the norm until relatively recently but some seeds are difficult to save - brassicas are very prone to crossing for example. Having said that, others are remarkably easy like tomatoes, legumes and so forth.
In the 1940s certainly it was standard for growers to divide their potatoes on harvest into ware, seed and chats. The chats would feed the pigs or chickens. This was a huge benefit of potatoes - far easier to grow, harvest and store than grains plus they didn't need processing beyond cooking to become food. Very under rated vegetable, the humble spud!
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Spuds are endlessly useful and very nutritious. Having a crop stored in the shed always makes me feel better about life :)
I always have a bag or three of whole pulses ready to either cook or sprout as veg as well. Cheap stuff like green lentils and mung beans which are easily available as foodstuffs, not expensive seed company packets.
You can generate a huge amount of fresh veg with just a spoonful or so of soaked beans and a jam jar with a bit of butter muslin or other fine cloth attached over the top with a rubber band. Soak and rinse twice a day and that is about it :)
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I've always been nervous of dried pulses as there is often conflicting advice about how long to soak, boil, etc. And I'm nowhere near organised enough to prepare several days ahead! But I take my hat off to you for being organised enough :D
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The Bean Book by Rose Elliot - you can't go wrong :)
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Our local GC has had the same problems as the major chains, and one supplier has just stopped, so they're struggling more than somewhat...
We were up there the other day for some of those 'French' style outside pot hangers, which you can pop anywhere and grow just about anything, and finished up buying what they called 'Brian's Thing'... It turned out to be a 'Lophospermum', but we're delighted because we have a home for it!
But, the main problem they have, is the supply of compost, peat etc, which has been seriously disrupted! The normal piles of the bags are just not there! That has been a problem for the suppliers as well!
Hopefully, 'late blight' futures accepted, we will live on tomatoes and courgettes and beans, and even Mrs Growster may begin to like courgettes again (we grew too many one year, and she just got fed up with them)...
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I've always been nervous of dried pulses as there is often conflicting advice about how long to soak, boil, etc. And I'm nowhere near organised enough to prepare several days ahead! But I take my hat off to you for being organised enough :D
Organised :lol: Nah, it's easy. If I remember I put them to soak the night before. If not, I boil for ten minutes, leave to sit and cool in the water for a few hours, then cook with fresh water. It is best to have a ten minute boil for all whole beans, then simmer until tender. That will depend on factors like how long they have sat in your cupboard. I tend to do a whole bag, then freeze portions, rather than faff about every time. Takes seconds to turn on the tap and then the hob :)
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The Bean Book by Rose Elliot - you can't go wrong :)
Found a second hand copy on line for a few pounds - ordered :D
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News, you’ve beat me to it I was going to take a look & do that lol
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It's been our Bean Bible for many years - one of the 'go to' books on the shelf.
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I've got one of hers with wartime recipes in it - probably still in a box at Stig's :lol: