Gardening 2023

[GeorgiaPeachie]

Happy new gardening season! Just received my Johnny’s Seeds catalog and am sitting here perusing it. Yes, I have a lot of seeds already…but I can’t resist getting some additional ones. Am thinking about creating a few lists of must have seeds and then buying numerous “sets” for neighbors and friends. First list will be Herbs for Cooking. Second will be Herbs for Medicinal Use. Third list will be Survival Vegetable Garden.

Does anyone have ideas about what they would add to these lists?

 

[Proud Prepper]

Hey, your early! I haven't started yet. I have seeds, but not enough labor. I can't count on all my neighbors yet, some are still clueless. Nearby in another neighborhood there's a big MAG! I'll be working with them.

 

[Proud Prepper]

Add easy grown staple foods like potatoes and various sprouts.

 

[Survivor_316]

Happy new gardening season! Just received my Johnny’s Seeds catalog and am sitting here perusing it. Yes, I have a lot of seeds already…but I can’t resist getting some additional ones. Am thinking about creating a few lists of must have seeds and then buying numerous “sets” for neighbors and friends. First list will be Herbs for Cooking. Second will be Herbs for Medicinal Use. Third list will be Survival Vegetable Garden.

Does anyone have ideas about what they would add to these lists?

Here are my best medicinal herbs. I starred the easier growing ones.

*Artemisia spp. (wormwood-deworming, mugwort-calming)
*Calendula (skin health and ulcers)
*Chamomile (calming)
*Comfrey (external healing and green mulch)
*Echinacea Angustifolia (immune boost. Better in my opinion than E. purpurea. Effects wane after 14 days of any E. spp. use)
St. John's wort (mental health and topical pain relief. Slow to start and germinate but then it takes over!)
Chinese Skullcap, Scutellaria Baicalensis (antiviral)
Astragalus (blood cell production support. Must be cold stratified. Difficult to start sometimes.)
Elecampane (lung support)
*Mullein (lung support)
*Feverfew (migrain headaches- best used daily)
Marshmallow (sore throat. Finnicky grower.)
*Horehound (sore throat)
Self heal (wound healing. Small plants, best sown in open trays)
*Tulsi (cancer support and a lot of uses)
Valerian (sleep induction)
*Thyme (antiviral & antibacterial)
*Lemon Balm (antiviral, good against cold sores and styes)
*Heartsease violet (heart, cancer)
*Stinging nettles (detox+ a LOT of other uses)
*Dandelion root (detox, liver health)
*Turmeric roots (antioxidant, cancer)
Ginseng roots (many uses. So hard to find, so starting your own is such a great idea)

Not sure how many of these grow well in GA, but those are my essentials.

 

[dirtdiva]

January seed starting began I planted onion seeds yesterday and put 2 sweet potatoes in water for May sprouts. Thanksgivng/Christmas indoor cactus is going for a second bloom.

 

[Robinjopo1]

This is the first year with my cold frame, so I decided to do some testing. I planted some broccoli, cabbage and onion seeds and put in coldframe.

It is 45 here and it was warm under the glass. I'm anxious to see how it works.

 

[dirtdiva]

This is the first year with my cold frame, so I decided to do some testing. I planted some broccoli, cabbage and onion seeds and put in coldframe.

It is 45 here and it was warm under the glass. I'm anxious to see how it works.

Robin IMHO the most important thig to remember when using cold frames is to check them often. All it takes is the sun to pop out unexpectedly and they heat up fast. When they do heat up it is imperative to vent them and allow that excess heat to escape before they fry your plants within. My husband used to have a setup on my old ones at the big farm so that when they hit a certain temperature there was a little motor that vented them automatically.

 

[GeorgiaPeachie]

Here are my best medicinal herbs. I starred the easier growing ones.

*Artemisia spp. (wormwood-deworming, mugwort-calming)
*Calendula (skin health and ulcers)
*Chamomile (calming)
*Comfrey (external healing and green mulch)
*Echinacea Angustifolia (immune boost. Better in my opinion than E. purpurea. Effects wane after 14 days of any E. spp. use)
St. John's wort (mental health and topical pain relief. Slow to start and germinate but then it takes over!)
Chinese Skullcap, Scutellaria Baicalensis (antiviral)
Astragalus (blood cell production support. Must be cold stratified. Difficult to start sometimes.)
Elecampane (lung support)
*Mullein (lung support)
*Feverfew (migrain headaches- best used daily)
Marshmallow (sore throat. Finnicky grower.)
*Horehound (sore throat)
Self heal (wound healing. Small plants, best sown in open trays)
*Tulsi (cancer support and a lot of uses)
Valerian (sleep induction)
*Thyme (antiviral & antibacterial)
*Lemon Balm (antiviral, good against cold sores and styes)
*Heartsease violet (heart, cancer)
*Stinging nettles (detox+ a LOT of other uses)
*Dandelion root (detox, liver health)
*Turmeric roots (antioxidant, cancer)
Ginseng roots (many uses. So hard to find, so starting your own is such a great idea)

Not sure how many of these grow well in GA, but those are my essentials.

These are wonderful! Thank you so much for the list!!!

 

[Robinjopo1]

Robin IMHO the most important thig to remember when using cold frames is to check them often. All it takes is the sun to pop out unexpectedly and they heat up fast. When they do heat up it is imperative to vent them and allow that excess heat to escape before they fry your plants within. My husband used to have a setup on my old ones at the big farm so that when they hit a certain temperature there was a little motor that vented them automatically.

Thanks for info.

 

[Robinjopo1]

Here are my best medicinal herbs. I starred the easier growing ones.

*Artemisia spp. (wormwood-deworming, mugwort-calming)
*Calendula (skin health and ulcers)
*Chamomile (calming)
*Comfrey (external healing and green mulch)
*Echinacea Angustifolia (immune boost. Better in my opinion than E. purpurea. Effects wane after 14 days of any E. spp. use)
St. John's wort (mental health and topical pain relief. Slow to start and germinate but then it takes over!)
Chinese Skullcap, Scutellaria Baicalensis (antiviral)
Astragalus (blood cell production support. Must be cold stratified. Difficult to start sometimes.)
Elecampane (lung support)
*Mullein (lung support)
*Feverfew (migrain headaches- best used daily)
Marshmallow (sore throat. Finnicky grower.)
*Horehound (sore throat)
Self heal (wound healing. Small plants, best sown in open trays)
*Tulsi (cancer support and a lot of uses)
Valerian (sleep induction)
*Thyme (antiviral & antibacterial)
*Lemon Balm (antiviral, good against cold sores and styes)
*Heartsease violet (heart, cancer)
*Stinging nettles (detox+ a LOT of other uses)
*Dandelion root (detox, liver health)
*Turmeric roots (antioxidant, cancer)
Ginseng roots (many uses. So hard to find, so starting your own is such a great idea)

Not sure how many of these grow well in GA, but those are my essentials.

I only have 5 of these growing. I really want stinging nettle and am sure I have some in woods. Having trouble finding it. There are look alike plants.

 

[GeorgiaPeachie]

I only have 5 of these growing. I really want stinging nettle and am sure I have some in woods. Having trouble finding it. There are look alike plants.

I find stinging nettle without looking for it! Ugh.

 

[rainingcatzanddogs]

.

Does anyone have ideas about what they would add to these lists?

Natural, indigenous edible plants, ones that might not scream FOOOD! to those not in the know. Think of it as a back up emergency source if a garden gets raided by the golden horde, or meets with some other misfortune; Plan C

 

[rainingcatzanddogs]

My two cents: Like security, food procurement should be layered for any eventuality.

• Put up/stored foods
• Incoming fresh/replacement stores; seed harvesting, gardening, fishing, hunting, livestock
• Intentionally planned Guerilla garden foods/forest farming
• Foraging skills/plant recognition
• Storing of barter items
• Local social contacts (farmer's markets, seed trading, foraging groups, neighbor up the road eTc)

 

[Survivor_316]

I only have 5 of these growing. I really want stinging nettle and am sure I have some in woods. Having trouble finding it. There are look alike plants.

If in doubt, just rub it.
You are right, though. It does have a lot of look alikes!

 

[Survivor_316]

• Intentionally planned Guerilla garden foods/forest farming)

I'd really like to focus on this more. I think you are wise.

 

[rainingcatzanddogs]

I'd really like to focus on this more. I think you are wise.

My wake up call on that one was many years ago when a prepper I highly respected, mentioned that he had witnessed migration of large numbers of destitute refugees before and it looked almost like a plague of locust had swept through as they moved on.

Every plant commonly known as edible, had been consumed and destroyed including private gardens, crops and woodlands. The only thing that was left in their wake were plants that were either thought poisonous, inedible or mistaken for such.

Again, in a TEOTWAKI event, migrants will learn as they go from others what to eat and what to leave alone.

If you live in the boonies, by the time those once clueless people get to your area, they will be fairly well practiced in both raiding and foraging so, one of your back up plans for food needs to be the art of stealth gardening. It is just common sense.

 

[Robinjopo1]

Any of you every watch youtube "Learn the Land?" His name is Adam. He is super knowledgeable about plants, mushrooms, tinctures, etc.

Don't usually find people as young as he doing this type of work. I'll find one and post to make sure you get the correct guy.

 

[Robinjopo1]

It is Learn Your Land.

 

[Survivor_316]

I like that guy. Thanks for sharing, Robin!

We have a few tucked away plots. I used to watch a guy who had hidden food plots and he was pretty good at it.

 

[tmttactical]

It is Learn Your Land.

I just subscribed to his channel. Thanks for posting RJ.

 

[EastenerWesterner]

With the wife being off the mountain, I might have to eat a salad.

 

[Robinjopo1]

Got a new Burpee catalog yesterday. Gonna check out the prices.

 

[Robinjopo1]

Any of you grow chamomile and make your own tea?

 

[Robinjopo1]

It could just be me, but I see fewer heirloom offerings from Burpee this year.

All I can deduce is that they don't want us saving our seeds and to become totally reliant on them for our yearly planting needs.

 

[Survivor_316]

Any of you grow chamomile and make your own tea?

I do!

 

[Robinjopo1]

I do!

Do you use flowers, leaves, roots ? One or all

 

[Cindyd]

Larry and I went out today and got a lot of seeds and starter plants. I got wide array of new herb seeds, as well as some in starter plants, and yes, I got chomomile (seeds) too! I still have some rosemary, oregano and a little thyme that survived from last year that is starting to come back out by the garden area. My basil, chives, sage and other didn't make it from last year.

We put some seeds out in trays and containers in the greenhouse, put the starter plants in bigger containers in the greenhouse, and a few things straight in the raised garden bed. I have some cabbage, kale and collard greens still hanging on in the raised beds from few months ago, been popping off leaves and giving that to the chickens.

It has been very warm here but have a feeling we are gonna get a few more cold days before spring, not sure about another freeze. I've got big plans for herb garden and especially medicinal herb garden this year. Excited to get it going!

I do have a variety of herlioom veggies seeds also but haven't put those out yet. going to put those in a different area.

 

[Cindyd]

I'm going to also start in the next week growing some microgreens. I think this is a good idea to add if anyone thinks S is gonna HTF or not. They are fast, easy to grow, and can be done from inside or outside. Drawback seems to be you go through a lot of seeds and expensive. Anyone grow them regularly?

 

[Survivor_316]

Do you use flowers, leaves, roots ? One or all

You can use both flowers and leaves but the leaves are pretty bitter. The flowers have a little less of the sesquiterpenes than the leaves, I think. (Those are good for cardiovascular health and reducing cancer growth.) I could be wrong, but I know those are usually bitter.

The flower heads have higher nervine abilities. I don't think I've ever come across the roots being used in my studies, but I'll check into that.

 

[GeorgiaPeachie]

I grow chamomile for tea also. The calming effect helps if you can’t sleep. Only use the flowers.