Thom Hartmann just said something that's absolutely terrifying.

[Jeebo]

He was talking about a couple of months ago when he advised people to keep at least a couple weeks of food in the house. Now, he's saying we should all start growing our own food.

I have a brown thumb. If it comes to that, if my only hope is to grow my own food, I'll be up shit creek. I'll be doomed.

-- Ron

[2naSalit]

1. I have major garden plans for this summer...

You can do it if you try.

[Newest Reality]

2. The problem with that is...

Not many people realize just how much area you need to grow enough food for one person per year, let alone a family. That's not going to happen in a backyard or planter boxes.

You could supplement, but unless you have an acre or more to grow on, (plus the equipment and toil) it's not a viable strategy by any means. Of course, that can be looked up.

[ret5hd]

16. In sunnier climates, about one swimming pool...

For a family of four

8 eggs a day, unlimited tilapia, fruits veggies and herbs:

[StarryNite]

24. What a great idea!

I live in the Phoenix area and so many swimming pools in the desert has been a pet peeve of mine. Most of the time they never even get used but they are such a drain on water.

[Renew Deal]

3. You'll never grow enough

But cans are cheap and available for now.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

4. There will be a lot of community gardens this summer.

You might not have to create your own. The old victory garden is making a comeback.

[Snarkoleptic]

5. Check out CSA's in your area - it's a produce subscription-type thing.

https://www.localharvest.org/csa/

Here are the basics: a farmer offers a certain number of "shares" to the public. Typically the share consists of a box of vegetables, but other farm products may be included. Interested consumers purchase a share (aka a "membership" or a "subscription&quot and in return receive a box (bag, basket) of seasonal produce each week throughout the farming season.

This arrangement creates several rewards for both the farmer and the consumer. In brief:

Advantages for farmers:

Get to spend time marketing the food early in the year, before their 16 hour days in the field begin
Receive payment early in the season, which helps with the farm's cash flow
Have an opportunity to get to know the people who eat the food they grow


Advantages for consumers:

Eat ultra-fresh food, with all the flavor and vitamin benefits
Get exposed to new vegetables and new ways of cooking
Usually get to visit the farm at least once a season
Find that kids typically favor food from "their" farm - even veggies they've never been known to eat
Develop a relationship with the farmer who grows their food and learn more about how food is grown

It's a simple enough idea, but its impact has been profound. Tens of thousands of families have joined CSAs, and in some areas of the country there is more demand than there are CSA farms to fill it. The government does not track CSAs, so there is no official count of how many CSAs there are in the U.S.. LocalHarvest has the most comprehensive directory of CSA farms, with over 4,000 listed in our grassroots database.

[MineralMan]

6. Ha! Subsistence farming is hard, hard work.

Feeding a family with food grown on site is more than a full-time job. People have no idea of what's involved until they try to do it. Few continue beyond the first year. You need a cow, some chickens, a pig or two, and an acre or two of high intensity gardening. You still have to buy flour and many other things you can't grow. Someone has to put up all those veggies and fruits in jars, because they don't grow all year. The animals have to eat, too. Your family has to eat. You have to pay for fuel and electricity somehow, unless you had enough money to install a major solar system.

It's a rare family that can operate a subsistence farm these days. It's even rarer for people who don't do it to understand what is involved in living on a subsistence farm.

[Newest Reality]

18. +1

[Talitha]

25. And get ready to meet a host of new bugs and insects.

Even if you've never seen a Tomato Worm before, grow tomatoes and you'll get scads of them. Same with the Cucumber Beetle, etc. There's a reason they give specific names to specific pests.

[democrank]

8. Turn your "brown thumb" green. You can do it.

Do a little research on container gardening. You don’t even need a plot of land....just a bucket or box or whatever. You can do this....and you might enjoy it.

Sending my best to you.

[appalachiablue]

9. "Democracy Gardens': try some smaller tomatoes, herbs like parsley

and oregano that are easy to grow in containers. Some places have community plots but most people don't have enough land/yard to grow enough food for a family.

[Croney]

10. We live in the city but have a big garden every year.

Tomatoes, cucumbers, corn, eggplants, broccoli, peppers, beans, radishes. Sure, it's great to have fresh veggies in the summer, and I make pickles and fill the freezer with parboiled broccoli etc.

But I'd hate to have to live on only what we grow.

[lame54]

11. How does one grow frozen pizzas?

[EndlessWire]

27. LOL! n/t

[tritsofme]

29. Perhaps they can be 3D printed?

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

12. Hartmann tends to overheat a bit.

You will not be able to grow all the vegetables you will need in a normal-sized residential garden. You can supplement your diet, though, with a few tomato plants, some lettuce, herbs, and a few root vegetables like carrots and beets, depending on how much space you have and how much sun your yard gets (you need full sun for most vegetables). Check out community gardens in your area, which will save you some work (and vegetable gardening is a lot of work).

[sarcasmo]

13. Victory Gardens supplied 40% of our fresh veggies during World War 2 .

[cwydro]

14. I grow my own veggies.

My feathered ladies keep me in eggs, so I’m good for awhile.

There’re a lot of good gardeners on DU. I bet they can help you turn that brown thumb green.

Both lettuce and tomatoes can be grown in containers.

[RhodeIslandOne]

15. Meh

I feel Thom is not very different from a lot of other radio hosts and they'll be some sponsor of this idea soon. This goes over well with the demographic who listens to him.

[totodeinhere]

17. Maybe you could read up on gardening and change your brown thumb to green.

n/t

[WestLosAngelesGal]

19. I live in the desert and water is expensive

It would cost me more to grow food than to buy it. In theory.

[AJT]

20. I'd be doomed. Plants actually kill themselves when I'm

in charge. They "leaf" notes.

[Sneederbunk]

21. What are you doing with your thumb?

[not_the_one]

28. It is best that some things remain a mystery...

[Fullduplexxx]

22. Thomm is always prediction doom

[MissB]

23. You might have to change what you eat a bit. You can store food

I can still find 25-lb bags of beans, oats, peas and rice in my local grocery store. You can store those things for a couple of years or longer. Pasta is still available from amazon pantry, and I’ve seen it in some stores recently too. Might be a bit late to grab some canned meats if that’s your thing, but I did see plenty on the store shelves last time I was in the store.

I store a lot of dry goods in jars, using a food saver jar attachment to “seal” them. Now, I do a lot of canning and therefore have way too many jars. I’ve done this for years so I never run out of jars.

I think jars will be one of those items that you’ll see a run on on the next few weeks as people think about starting to can. I see jars on Facebook marketplace all the time, so now is a good time to get them if you want them.

Anyway, I’m still pulling jars of dry pasta out of my basement store room that I sealed up in 2017. Perfectly fine and as tasty as if I’d bought it last week.

I’m about done with stocking up - still have some pasta on order from amazon that should be here next week. After that, it’s all about ordering fresh food to pick up once in awhile. Not only am I out of space, but I need to save some empty jars for summer canning. I probably have over a years supply of food. Not Mormon either.

And as others have said, some pots and potting soil will go a long way. I have a half acre of lots of forest and some open area. I plant food all over my yard, keeping some stuff behind the deer fence and some out in the open, depending on the deer populations’ current tastes. Most folks don’t know what cardoon looks like. It just looks like an architectural plant amongst the perennial beds.l and yet it’s a really yummy veggie.

I have a planter out front that the neighbors gave me years ago. While I’m waiting to harvest my green onions maturing in the back yard, I stick the root plus 1/2” of onion bottom in the potting soil each time I use one. Those regrow easily. I seed different containers of carrots, beets and radishes in my sunny spots along my front walkway wall. Stagger planting- keep part of the container empty and wait a week or two to pop more seeds in. If you live in an area where it doesn’t get immediately hot in the spring, you can plant spring peas (pole variety works well for me as they take little space). I plant peas every week in the spring to extend the supply.

I’ve started tomatoes and peppers from seed for years. My current count of tomato plants (which I up-potted into gallon containers yesterday) is 28. I also have about 28 hot pepper plants growing (moved into quart containers yesterday). Not everyone can start from seed, but let me tell you that there is no way I have enough room for half of those tomato and pepper plants in my yard! I just don’t have enough sunny space to grow them, and I’d be over flooded with roma and cherry tomatoes. Each spring I grow too many and give extras to friends, coworkers and family. If you ask for some, you might find that someone you know is growing and has extra to give out.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

26. I can't grow a garden

I live in a godamn apartment .

[wiggs]

30. If you don't have room, or don't know how, a good way to get started is to share work

on a neighbor's garden. Perhaps a neighbor has space, or an existing garden, and needs help to start and maintain edibles...you provide some help, and go home with some produce. Everybody wins. Several cities have meetup type social media connection sites, but best way is to know your neighbors and offer. Safely, of course.