I’m finally able to get back to updating the site after six months of frustratingly doing too much travelling and unexpectedly putting in too many hours on my day job. It’s been a frustrating period in many ways, and at times it has felt like this years goals weren’t going to happen, but rather than dwell on that lets do a quick assessment of where we are based on those targets we set ourselves.
Composting: No progress, but this should be a quick one to do now we have more time. We’ll pick this up when we build our raised beds (see below)!
Establish the Vegetable Garden: This has been the most frustrating thing for me. Due to some timing issues concerning the additional land we purchased, and the need to clear some of the existing land, not to mention my lack of availability, we missed the opportunity to do anything other than grow a few things in pots and plant a bed of salad leaves this year. I’m pleased to say however that we are now in a position to be able to construct our raised beds so we’ll be bringing you some updates on that shortly. Our aim is to continually build our level of self sufficiency in fruit and vegetables as quickly as possible, but realistically we don’t expect to see real benefits until 2012. We’ll share the journey in the hope that it might inspire you.
Greenhouse: We’ve identified the size and style of greenhouse we want, and have now identified an appropriate spot on the plot for it. There is some remaining work to clear that area which will take a bit of time and effort, but this is the thing that has our current focus.
Heating & Hot Water: Complete! We replaced our LPG boiler with one that was much more efficient and whilst we’ve not had chance to assess it’s efficiency properly, it can’t be nearly as bad as the aged boiler it replaced. We’ve also selected a wood burner and sized solar panels, so as time and funds permit, we’ll update you on these. The wood burner was always in our plans for 2011, but we’ve struggled to find time to select an appropriate hearth and surround so far, and we were disappointed to find out that our chimney failed it’s test and has to be re-lined. C’est la vie. The boiler was the critical thing though and thankfully that’s been done.
Chickens: Complete! Yes, we purchased the first four pullets back in May and they’ve been laying reliably for a few weeks now. They are currently in temporary housing whilst we complete the plot clearance and move them to a better location, before adding to the flock. It didn’t really feel like we’d made a start on self sufficiency in our new home until they arrived, and it feels great to be enjoying eggs produced by our own hens! I can thoroughly recommend the wonderful Wells Poultry for poultry equipment and supplies. They are well stocked and deliver extremely promptly. We’ll provide more details on the hens in the near future.
Whilst we’ve not had the time to do some of the things we planned, we’re aiming to make the best of the longer days during the summer months to move things forward quite significantly, and we’ll be resuming more regular updates, and hope to bring you equipment reviews, as well as adding richer content to the site.
But what of the rest of the world. At times, I’ve felt that it’s gone compeletely pear shaped in the last six months, but the reality is that the mainstream media have bounced around sensationalising one thing after another, and we’re still heading obliviously into a worse situation than we’ve been in the last couple of years.
Clearly the public sector cutbacks have been emotional in some areas and we’ve seen some of the inevitable strikes. Whilst I think it’s regretful that those people concerned should be impacted in this way, I do believe the cutbacks are absolutely necessary and unfortunately do not go far enough. That said, it does seem like the government are perpetuating the craziness of their predecessors by focusing on the wrong areas. There are many services that they do not need to, and should not be providing that don’t seem to be being touched, and others that I would consider are legitimate public sector services which appear to be being targetted. Central government blame local government and vice versa. They need to get their act together – fast! But we all know they won’t.
Food and other prices have escalated quite substantially, and I think this is something we have to learn to expect and live with. It’s almost scary to think that in 1930 there were around 2billion people on the planet. Roughly 50 years ago there were 3billion, and in the next few days or weeks we will cross the 7billion barrier!
In the midst of phone hacking, war, strikes, governenment scandals and the rise of the cult of pointless celebrity, it’s easy to lose sight of something very very important. Where I’ve spent my own time over the last six months has brought this home to me acutely. The actions we each take day to day and moment to moment make a difference. We can choose to spend our time on unproductive things, or on distracting things, or, we can choose to spend our time building our own personal levels of self sufficiency so that we can weather the various storms and crises that will inevitably come our way. It’s all down to whether we stand up and take responsibility for ourselves and our families.
Happy New Year! I hope you all had a great Christmas. If like me you had too much to each and drink, then I’m sure you’ve made a new years resolution to lose some weight, or get fitter.
I like to set myself goals each year, and break them down into monthly to do lists so that I stay focused on my goals. When it comes to Self Sufficiency, I’ve set myself a number of goals this year. Having recently moved, we have a blank canvas when it comes to being Self Sufficient, so whilst we are well equipped, and have some skills, we have a LOT of work to do! It could easily seem overwhelming, hence the reason I set annual goals and break it down into monthly activities. I try to be realistic about what I can achieve in a month, alongside all my other commitments. Unfortunately, sometimes despite all best efforts “stuff happens” and you have to reprioritise. That’s life! The point is to have a plan and to execute it so that you get to the end of the year in a better situation than you were at the beginning. For our purposes, this means being a little bit more Self Sufficient each year.
I thought I’d share with you some of the goals we have for 2011:
Composting: I said, we were starting from scratch and we really are! We intend to get back to composting as quickly as we can, as it’s frankly scary how much waste we generate that could be reused in this way!
Establish the Vegetable Garden: This is the “must do” one for me! There is no existing vegetable garden at this house, in fact it’s pretty much all grass, which is good in some ways as it will hopefully make it an easier site to prepare. We’re planning to build raised beds and start off our garden this year as I’m really missing home grown produce right now! From experience I know not to be too ambitious and try to do it all in the first year, but I know I will get carried away with it!
Greenhouse: This is another thing I’m really missing at the moment, and as we do the garden, we will be adding a greenhouse this year, so that we can be as productive as possible. I’ve been toying with the idea of building one rather than buying a ready-made one, but I need to look into this further.
Heating & Hot Water: Realistically, this is a seriously high priority one. Our heating and hot water comes from an LPG fired boiler which looks like it’s older than I am (I’m sure it’s not really, but it’s clearly well past it’s sell by date). With the soaring cost of LPG (and oil, and most other fuels), we’re currently investigating what to do here, with a view to making some changes in the spring (I’d do it sooner, but given the recent spell of arctic-like weather, I don’t want to tempt fate too much!). I can see solar thermal and a Woodburner in our near future.
Chickens: We’d like to get Chickens onto the plot as soon as we can, which is one of the nicer goals that requires less “heavy lifting” on my part.
So these are some of the goals we’ve set ourselves this year, and they should make for some great opportunities to write, photograph and film for the website. As we go through the year, we’d like to add richer content to the site, and include more “How to…” articles, and share our experiences for the benefit of others. I hope you find those interesting. If anyone has any suggestions for things they’d like to see, we’re all ears.
On the subject of setting and achieving goals, I read something recently that reminded me of a piece of advice I was once given. “There are only so many hours in a week, a month, a year, or a lifetime. You can’t buy them, save them, or give them to someone else. Use them wisely”. Here’s to a happy a productive 2011!
Hi All,
Just a quick post to wish you a very Merry Christmas, and thank you all for reading our articles in this our first year!
It’s been a sporadic process in getting Self Sufficiency World up and running, and then beginning to create useful content, but I can promise that 2011 will bring a wealth of both informative and entertaining articles, and we have plans to publish in other media to make it easier to consume.
Food for thought:
In the UK over the last couple of weeks we’ve experienced Snow and Ice the likes of which I’ve not seen before in my lifetime, although I appreciate many of our older readers may well have. I’m also sure our readers in other countries (we have quite a few now) , are somewhat bemused at the impact this much snow and ice has on our country. As I wrote this, I heard on the radio that the number of cases of Flu is significantly higher than even last year with Swine Flu being most prevalent. Over 400 people are currently in the Intensive Care wards of our hospitals, hopefully on their way back to full health. Our economy is far from out of the woods, and I strongly suspect we have more roller coaster rides in that area in our collective futures.
That all seems a bit dire, but I write this not to scare, but to illustrate the sheer number of challenges facing us, and to demonstrate how we all need to be a little bit more Self Sufficient and self reliant, and to also show how we need to look out for one another in times of need. At this time of year, we have much to be thankful for. There are many not as well off, and there are many facing Christmas without loved ones they have lost this year, for whatever reason, so lets be thankful for what we have, and for the people around us. I’m encouraged and optimistic about the people around me when I hear how they have helped someone out, or looked in on those who are more vulnerable during the recent weather challenges. To those people, you set a fine example for the rest of us.
We’ll be back in the new year, and in the meantime, as I said, we have much to be thankful and optimistic about. We wish you the very best of Christmases, and a safe and Happy New Year!
Best wishes
So you’ve got your garden up and running, and you’ve got produce to sustain you. Perhaps you give some away to friends and neighbours, but even the most organised gardeners suffer from the “glut” and end up with a surplus.
What do you do? You preserve it for future use.
You may choose to make preserves like jams, pickles, or chutneys, or you may decide to dehydrate. A lot of you will elect to freeze, and that can be a very convenient way of storing produce of all sorts.
So what do you do when you have a power cut?
A recent power loss in our new rural home, got me thinking about this. Fortunately, for us our shiny new freezer didn’t contain much. Given I haven’t even had a chance to think about the garden (Dream, yes. Think seriously, and plan, no), and given the power cut wasn’t that long, it wasn’t a big deal.
But what if it had been?
What if the freezer was full, and what if due to whatever reason (overhead power lines down, strikes, for example) the power was out for longer.
We have two freezers. An upright one which is part of a fridge/freezer and a chest freezer. I know from experience, that if I open the upright one, the cold air “falls” right out of the freezer, causing the motor to kick in if the door is open too long. The chest freezer on the other hand stays colder for longer.
So, lesson number one: Chest Freezers are better in event of a power cut.
Researching this, I found that even without power, provided your freezer is reasonably well stocked (ie not too much air space between items), and provided you don’t open it frequently or for long periods, the food should stay reasonably OK for days.
Lesson number two: Don’t keep opening, or leave your freezer open for protracted periods.
What could I do beyond that? I started thinking about what else ran on electricity, and it became clear that a lack of electricity would be a real pain. Sure we have at least three other methods of cooking, but lighting would be a pain, and we wouldn’t be able to run our computers, even though the phone line was still likely to work (a telephone handset that doesn’t require a separate power plug, but merely plugs into the phone jack, draws it’s power from the phone network).
Sure we could invest in alternate power using solar, and that would be a great solution provided we had our own battery backup bank to store and recharge the power. A simple grid tied solution wouldn’t cut it, because if the grid went down, there would be no place to store any power we generate. We plan to do this in time, but it’s a big cost and in the interim, what would our options be?
I concluded that a sensible solution for everyone in this situation would be a small generator. Even once we had solar electricity up and running, a generator would be a great adjunct to deal with specific large loads (power tools for example).
So I started investigating and realised that specifying a generator is similar to considering solar power in some ways:
1. How big a generator do I need?
In my situation, I merely wanted to run a fridge/freezer, and a freezer, but I started thinking about the other appliances I might need. A TV wouldn’t be too big a problem, lighting should be ok, as would a battery charger. I could even run a laptop and broadband router. A kettle was a bit of a stretch at close to 2000watts, and I didn’t even contemplate the 1000watt microwave in the corner of the kitchen!
I concluded, that based on the items I was likely to run at any given time (beware that most appliances have a “peak load” when you first switch them on, and then settle into a lower “running load”, so don’t try to turn everything on at once, or run too many appliances simultaneously), and allowing for a 25% “just in case cushion”, I could get by with a 4Kw generator.
It’s worth checking how much electricity your power tools draw if you’re thinking of running those off a generator. Boy was I surprised!
This puts my “ideal” requirement in the £1-2,000 cost range, but if I wanted to run less equipment simultaneously (you don’t need to power the freezer constantly, a few hours a day is fine), then I could get a smaller generator for less than £1000. As I’m considering this as one part of a future power solution, then the lower option makes more sense for the longer term.
2. What will I run the generator on?
These days, it’s not merely a Petrol v Diesel decision. You can also buy natural gas generators, and most Petrol generators can indeed be converted.
Diesel is noisier, so if you’ve got neighbours close by that may not be the greatest solution. That said there are some silenced versions on the market which are less noisy.
Petrol is a dangerous substance to store due to being highly flammable, and there are laws in the UK that dictate how much you can store. On this basis, you have to think about whether you can drive to a filling station to keep your diesel fuelled (ironically, filling stations need electrical power to pump your fuel, but many will have backup power).
Diesel is most economical financially.
3. What other things do I need to consider?
Should I get the generator hardwired into the building with a changeover switch so that if I lose grid power it’s easy to get power back? If you decide to do this, please ensure you find a proper expert and following all the relevant safety and building regulations. Remember electricity can kill.
Where do I site the generator? Somewhere well vented and where fumes will not build up.
How do I move it around if I need to? Some are able to have wheels added but care should still be taken when moving them.
I hope sharing this experience and thought process prompts some thought. Until the next time.
After a relatively straightforward house move, the trials of rural UK broadband took a while to overcome, followed by some unplanned time spent fixing a variety of computer issues. Happily, everything is now resolved, and after a longer than planned break, we are back.
While we’ve been gone we’ve seen a government spending review and it was slightly disturbing to see everyone getting excited about specific cuts before they were even known or announced! In the final analysis, the cuts do not seem as bad as expected, although everyone will have their perspectives on this. We’ll have to see how things play out over the coming years. This got me reflecting on the last few years, and where we are now. The previous UK Government’s mantra was “Spend, spend, spend”. They spent to the point of overspending themselves, and then encouraged you and I to do the same to prop up the economy when it dived off a cliff and they had no reserves to turn too. It strikes me that this is the mindset of the shopaholic who deliberately fails to look at their credit card bill or bank statement. All change come the election, and we now have a coalition Goverment that will tell his this is the age of “Austerity”. They’ve made some spending cuts, and increased some taxes. I call that a start. They could, and over the next few years SHOULD go much further with the spending cuts as the economy improves. Remember when they say “cut”, they mean they will spend LESS of YOUR hard earned money.
In France we see widespread protests over the raising of the retirement age. In Britain, this has happened with barely a voice raised.
As I thought about this over a number of weeks, I came to see this as a wake up call. This isn’t the age of austerity. It’s the age of PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY. This is at the core of everything we do to be more self reliant, and to increase our level of Self Sufficiency.
You don’t have to wait until you reach an age that someone else dictates before you retire. If you want to work beyond that date, you are free to do so, and if you want to retire before that date you are equally free to do so. The decision is yours, and yours alone! But to have the opportunity to make that decision yourself you have to take responsibility for your life NOW. It’s easy to blame someone else for our circumstances, “The Government have done this <insert scenario as applicable>”, “THEY have done this..”, “Have you heard what THEY have done now?” (incidentally, who is this “THEY” that people frequently talk about?). We all fall into that trap at times.
The first step on the road to Self Sufficiency is to take personal responsibility. That starts by recognising that however you ended up in your current situation, whatever “THEY” you may blame. YOU are the person who is responsibile for you, and YOU are the only person that can step up and make the changes necessary to get the life you want.
If this all sounds a bit “preachy”, and not what you’d expect from a site focused on Self Sufficiency, then think carefully about what Self Sufficiency really means, and that will help you find the answers you’re looking for. PLEASE think long and hard about specific actions you can take to take more control of your situation, and your life, so you can have more of what you want, and less of what peopel tell you you should have.
I owe you all an apology for being absent for a few weeks. Well, I’m back (briefly, to check in), but regular publishing will resume in early September. In the meantime, there are a few things that demand further thought…
Anyone who has been consuming mainstream media in whatever form over the last few weeks, cannot have failed to hear about the forthcoming food inflation, and security concerns. The story goes that various natural disasters (fires in Russia for example) have caused a large reduction in crop yields, resulting in higher prices, and some governments declaring that they will not export. As the population continues to grow, incidents such as this will have an ever bigger impact. The short message: expect more of this. You are not helpless however, so don’t be disheartened. Take action now to store additional food, and implement plants to increase your own future production.
Also in the news, speculation and political posturing on the forthcoming UK Government spending cuts. You may have been able to work out my views on this from a couple of previous posts, but if not, here goes. I believe Government is fundamentally incompetent, and our political process is not in the best interests of the people who pay for it (That would be taxpayers like you and I). The present system, which has evolved over many years through fiddling by various flavours of political party is overly complex, sometimes punishes the wrong people, rewards the wrong people, and is open to abuse. I am in favour of individuals taking more responsibility for their own lives, and Government getting the hell out and focusing on the things that Government are best placed to deal with.
The last Labour government are not solely to blame but they did an immense amount to create an invasive “big Government” that we neither need, nor can afford. I won’t claim to be a big supporter of the Conservatives or Liberal Democrats either, but I have to hand it to David Cameron and Nick Clegg. So far they have me cautiously impressed. The proof of the pudding however is in the eating, and they have a long way to go to kill off the unnecessary wastage (take a look at the number of quangos that have grown up over the last ten years, to say nothing of public sector pensions, and in some senior civil servants cases unjustified ludicrously high salaries), and I’m sure many measures will be unpopular. Just remember however. Our country is in serious debt and due to the quantitative easing that has taken place, your money and savings are now worth significantly less than they were a couple of years ago – That’s inflation. It’s not prices going up. It’s your money going down in value. Will the current Government do a good job? The jury is out on that one. Time will tell.
Finally, a quick update. I mentioned back in July that we’d found our ideal home, and in addition to a holiday, that is what most of August has been about. After finalising the purchase, there has been some work to do before we can move in, but (finally) moving day looms large, and we’re excited about the extra opportunities for self sufficiency that the new property offers. It also gives us more room to demonstrate some of the techniques we talk about here at Self Sufficiency World, so look out for more “How to…” articles, reviews, and recipes.
In light of the recent tragedy in Cumbria, the UK’s influential parliamentary Home Affairs Committee has announced that it will conduct an inquiry into Firearms Control. The Committee has called for written evidence from interested parties. Anyone can make a submission and the British Association for Shooting and Conservation (BASC) is encouraging all those who participate in shooting sports to do so.
Whilst the various shooting organisations, including the BASC will be making submissions, it is important that individuals participating and supporting the shooting sports do likewise.
All submissions should be original and should be submitted before 27 August 2010. Submissions should contain your name, telephone number and address, and can be made by email to homeaffcom@parliament.uk either as a Microsoft Word or rich text document. It is suggested that you include details of the type of shooting you participate in, the reason it is important to you, and how long you have participated.
At SelfSufficiencyWorld we firmly believe that the recent events in Cumbria, like previous tragic events in Dunblane, Hungerford and elsewhere, are some of the most horrific and shocking tragedies that can impact on our society. We do not however believe that firearms are the cause of such devastating events. A firearm is a tool. Like a screwdriver, a hammer, or a golf club it has a purpose, and it can be used to productive ends, or, like a screwdriver, a hammer or a golf club, it can be misused, sometimes in horrific ways.
Facts show there is no relationship between gun crime and responsible firearms ownership. Indeed it is widely recognised by both the Police and the Home office that the shooting community is extremely law abiding. At SelfSufficiencyWorld we fully support responsible shooting sports and urge those of you who are respectful law abiding shooters, who I am sure also condemn the misuse of firearms, to make a submission.
Despite what some of the mainstream media would have you believe, shooting is an important part of rural Britain, and as we have highlighted previously, it is an Olympic sport which Britain excels at. This is despite the law ludicrously requiring some pistol disciplines to train abroad. It is also important to the British economy, and the rural environment as a whole. As responsible shooters we all have a duty to protect the sport, and also to continue to make it the safe sport that it is today.
We firmly believe that the current laws have already gone too far in restricting legal and responsible firearms ownership, but we are also eager to ensure that the public at large feels, and remains safe with regard to gun crime.
We fully support the BASC and further detailed information can be found on their website: http://www.basc.org.uk/
We urge you to make a factual submission, and we equally urge the inquiry to fully understand the weight of the responsibility that rests with them.
It will soon be the time of year when blackberries are ripe for picking. I love blackberries, but I’ve never tried making Blackberry Jam, so this year I decided to give it a go. Raspberry and Strawberry jams are my favourites, but you can preserve pretty much all fruit and vegetables by turning them into preserves such as jam or chutney.
Here’s a simple (you won’t believe how simple!) jam making method:
1.Preparation
You need to ensure your fruit is in good condition and is not over ripe. It needs to be young, firm, and without any damage or bruising. If you intend to use fruit for jam making, do it as soon after picking as possible. Wash the fruit and cut larger fruit into uniform smaller pieces.
2. Weigh your fruit
I suggest you have a minimum of 500g and a maximum of 2kg. Less, and it’s not worth making, more and it will be harder to get it to set.
3. Make sure you have an equal amount of sugar
So, if you have 1kg of fruit, make sure you have 1kg of sugar.
4. You can use Pectin (optional)
Pectin will be available from local shop and it helps your jam to set. That said, fruit contains pectin so it’s not really necessary in most cases. If you do use it, follow the quantities on the packet, and add it when you add the sugar.
5. Heat your ingredients
Take a large pan and gently heat the fruit and sugar, stirring continuously. You’re looking for the sugar to dissolve. Eventually you will achieve a smooth consistency. Keep stirring, you’re looking for it to congeal, which is the first sign it is close to being ready.
6. Testing it’s ready
Scoop out a small amount of the mixture using a teaspoon and put it to on a cold plate(chill it in the fridge first). It should thicken, and develop a skin which wrinkles after a minute or so. If it does, it’s ready. If it doesn’t, keep the mixture on the heat and retest until you can pass the test.
7. Storing
Once the jam is ready, spoon it into clean sterilised jars*, which should be hot when you do this. Tap the jars to get rid of any air bubbles and seal them immediately. If you are using metal lids, pop a waxed paper disk (ie grease proof paper) on top of the jam before securing the lid. Store in a cool dark place and it should keep for a year.
*Just like making wine and beer, you need to sterilise your equipment and your storage jars, to protect your finished jam and ensure it stores well.
1. Your own fruit and vegetables taste better than shop bought produce.
They really do! Maybe it’s because they are fresher, but I find my own produce has a much “stronger” taste than the plastic wrapped produce from the shop, or even that sold at farmers markets.
2. Your home produced food has not been sprayed with chemicals.
You know where your food has come from and you know how it’s been treated during it’s growth.
3. Your garden can be the ultimate convenience store.
Nipping out to the garden to pull some carrots or cut some herbs is a lot quicker, a lot less hassle, and a lot more enjoyable than negotiating the car park and checkout queues at your local supermarket!
4. Freshness.
Your food is not suffocated in plastic and left in a crate or on a shelf for days.
5. Your Health.
Fresher food = more vitamins and nutrients = a healthier you! Tending your own garden is a physical activity. It keeps you active and fit.
6. Independence.
Become independent of the various interdependent “systems” that produce, process, store, ship and sell food. If they fail or falter you won’t notice!
7. Entertainment.
This is the comedy spot! Your produce is not required to “conform to the norm” as supermarket food is. You can use every last funny shaped carrot (after having a good giggle of course!)
8. Well being.
Working in the garden brings you closer to nature and gives you a sense of achievement. This to me is the real “soul food”.
9. Zero food miles.
Whichever way you look at it, avoiding shipping food around the world is a good thing!
10. Be Sociable/Build relationships.
Share what’s spare. Make or cement a friendship by giving some surplus produce.
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