What you're doing is commendable, but you also need to be realistic: no, people in *urban* backyards never ever grew even half of their own food. I'd have to do a lot of researching and calculating to come up with some kind of degree-day-weighted yield of calories-per-acre, but based on my impressions from living in a subsistence economy…
What you're doing is commendable, but you also need to be realistic: no, people in *urban* backyards never ever grew even half of their own food. I'd have to do a lot of researching and calculating to come up with some kind of degree-day-weighted yield of calories-per-acre, but based on my impressions from living in a subsistence economy people had easily 20x or more the land area (and that in an area with lots of rainfall and a very long growing season.)
Yup. That’s why most home gardeners grow tomatoes and peppers instead of wheat. “Grow your own fruits and veggies; purchase your calories.” It’s not gonna replace the grocery store supply chain anytime soon, but it’s a good start, and something is better than nothing. If we’re prepping for COVID 2.0 or the zombie apocalypse, the goal is “survive,” not “maintain current standard of living.”
For what it’s worth: potatoes, sweet potatoes, and sunchokes (all tuber crops) are relatively easy to grow in most parts of the US, and have very high yield for calories/acre.
What you're doing is commendable, but you also need to be realistic: no, people in *urban* backyards never ever grew even half of their own food. I'd have to do a lot of researching and calculating to come up with some kind of degree-day-weighted yield of calories-per-acre, but based on my impressions from living in a subsistence economy people had easily 20x or more the land area (and that in an area with lots of rainfall and a very long growing season.)
Yup. That’s why most home gardeners grow tomatoes and peppers instead of wheat. “Grow your own fruits and veggies; purchase your calories.” It’s not gonna replace the grocery store supply chain anytime soon, but it’s a good start, and something is better than nothing. If we’re prepping for COVID 2.0 or the zombie apocalypse, the goal is “survive,” not “maintain current standard of living.”
For what it’s worth: potatoes, sweet potatoes, and sunchokes (all tuber crops) are relatively easy to grow in most parts of the US, and have very high yield for calories/acre.