Shooting

It is assumed by many outside the UK that firearms ownership is not possible. Not so. There are a number of organisations that promote responsible shooting and it is a pastime with a lot of support from a diverse demographic. Clearly if you are going to be self sufficient, you may want to take up [...]

RESOURCE: The Survival Podcast

I’m going to make today’s article an unashamed advert for a gentleman for whom I have immense respect. Stick with me on this, I’m about to challenge your preconceptions.

The Survival Podcast is an on demand talk radio show hosted by Jack Spirko. Jack comes from Dallas Fort Worth, Texas so if you’re reading this in [...]

Making Compost

Compost is the “fuel” of the garden. It is used for potting plants, as mulch, for feeding the soil and conditioning.  Ideally it should be a black, rich, crumbly, sweet smelling substance.

It is made of waste from the garden and kitchen. For example, grass clippings, hedge trimmings, waste from harvested veg, vegetable trimmings, tea bags, [...]

UK Budget 2010

Whilst being more self sufficient means that you are, to an extent, slightly insulated from some of the bad events, no one can fail to be concerned about the economic situation and the “wheezing” recovery the UK is currently making. With that, I thought it would be good to have a [...]

Square Foot Gardening

If you don’t have a lot of space, or time but want to grow your own vegetables, there is a way!

Square Foot Gardening is a term coined by a gentleman named Mel Bartholomew who designed a way of growing that is incredibly efficient. It uses the raised bed principle, sub dividing the bed into individual [...]

Food Storage - Part 1

In a previous article on Food Self Sufficiency we talked about the concept of a “deep larder”. I like to think of it as your own private grocery store that has 24×7 access. In an ideal world it would contain food you have produced and preserved yourself, however as we’ve said previously, total self sufficiency [...]

Duck!

No! Duck…

OK. So, old jokes aren’t always the best. Moving on…

I have to confess I am no duck expert, but I’ve always found them to be intriguing birds. Ducks have evolved to be well suited to the climate here in the UK so they are relatively easy to look after, and trouble-free.

They need a nice [...]

Spuds!

Have you tried the potatoes from your local supermarket? If you haven’t tried a home grown spud for a while you may not have noticed:

How bland they taste

How quickly they go “off”

How they sprout so soon (despite being sprayed by chemicals to discourage sprouting)

March is the month when the potato year gets started. New potatoes [...]

What a tangled web we weave...

It’s that time of year again when banks and financial institutions bombard you with advertising about ISAs – protect your money from the taxman! The ISA allowances change this year so you can protect a little more.

I wrote recently about taxation. Lets take a look at it from another viewpoint. I want you to imagine:

You [...]

SPACE – The Final Frontier?

A lot of people now grow some portion of their own food, and an even larger community would like to start growing their own fruit and vegetables. This second group is equally as diverse as those out there practicing their skills of horticulture, but there is something holding them back.

For some it might be knowledge. [...]