my food and growing diary

grannytwice

Will follow this thread with interest, trying to grow more this year also, which will help a bit , great that you can barter so much,I do swop a bit with relatives and try to collect wild brambles etc to make jam and jellies in season for the store cupboard , this is a bit of a lean time in the garden, have still some leeks which are fine buts thats about all, look forward to getting some inspiration , good luck with your challenge

Skintmama

Good luck Nikki!

I think you will be inspiring me to make better use of my resources......I used to keep chickens but did not replace them after they died. The shed is still there though so maybe I will get going again!

Also, it has never occurred to me to start tomatoes off this early.....again I don't grow as much as I used to (veg I mean.......obviously I stopped growing long ago!) so I needed some inspiration:D

bay-tree-cottage

Good Luck Nikki, I will be following your thread with interest. I grew a few vegetables in the garden last year (would love an allotment), going to order the wood for raised beds tomorrow as I am going to try square foot gardening this year. I'm toying with the idea of having chickens but need to research a bit more first as I know there is a fox about and don't really know that much about chickens (any advice or suggestions welcome). Love the fact you count your 5 a day which is something i never check when menu planning. I recently read the kath kelly book (lived on £1 a day) but was really disappointed so I am really looking forward to your challenge. x

aplaceinthesun

Good luck from me too Nikki, will really enjoy reading this thread.

Caterina

Best of luck from me too, Nikki, I am looking forward to following your thread. It sounds like you are in an ideal situation for your challenge!

I have been on an allotment list for what seems to be forever, but eventually I shall get one too (hopefully) and then I might be able to have a couple of chickens in my back garden (at the moment it is impossible because we use it for veg).

Living the Good Life!

nikki20022008

bay tree regarding chickens I live in the country and there is a fox about he's known as Charlie round here but we hace a large chicken shed and a run outside and as long as these arfe both secure we dont seem to have a problem. I let the chickens out at 7 in the morning and lock them down when it starts getting dark. They are great because they eat just about anything and when we got them the farmer next door told us they will only eat the stuff thats good for them they dont eat anything that will make them sick, they seem to love cooked pasta and rice but now I'm trying to be much more frugal don't think they will get much of that lol But they do eat all my veg and fruit scapes and the benefit is I use all their straw and poo for my allotment so free fertiliser I love them. I'm getting another 6 soon as the farmer next door wants to breed mine with his cokeral and going to give me them free so with hopefully 84 eggs a week I'll need to find new places to barter lol

[Deleted User]

Well done Nicci, I think you are doing brilliantly.My late ma -in-law brought her three boys up during the Depression on what they virtually grew in her garden She was widowed at 28 and returned to the Isle of Wight from London.All her family lived there, and times were tough as no one had very much money (1936-7) With her late husbands life insurance she bought two tiny cottages that had been knocked into one.They had no inside water or loo and the only heating was a very small fireplace.But she lived there for the next 56 years and brought her boys up with a few chickens and a couple of pigs she managed to scrounge from her Dad as a present.She had two thirds of an acre and every bit of it was cultivated ,basically if it grew, she grew it.Three to four long huge lines of runner beans she grew for the local vegatable man, and that paid her house rates .She had around 10 bob a week to feed and clothe her three little boys who were very small when they moved there.As the boys grew they went sea fishing and my brother in law Raymond managed to get hold of a .22 rifle that was falling apart and fixed it ,and him and my late husband would go rabbiting .Everything they caught they ate.There were no freezers or fridges and very few luxuries but she was a very proud lady who would take charity from no one .They kept a goat for a while and she made cheese and they used the milk to drink.
I had nothing but the utmost admiration for her as she could make a dinner out of almost anything.Her lads never went hungry and they learned the value of hard work.Living frugally is an art form at times and one that we all have at one time had to do.I know I have, and once you do it for awhile it becomes almost second nature.Not only are you doing your best for your family you are teaching them lifelong lessons.Good for you dear I wish you well

Nancy888

Well done for starting a new thread Nikki - I also put a comment on your home page - pleased that the previous stuff didn't put you off MSE.

I've subscribed to your thread and will be watching with interest.

I grew some bits and bobs last year - nothing on the scale you have but I was quite proud of what I achieved - will be trying some more this year.

Good luck in all of this....

valk_scot

Watching with interest also....I have an allotment and grow one heck of a lot, also barter, but I don't really keep track of it.

Can I make one suggestion for this thread though? I can't be the only one who finds "£0.2785714" a bit difficult to relate to, rather than you just writing 28p. I know if you're trying to be accurate in your own records you can't just round up or down willy-nilly but for ease of communication here, it would be better.

carrieon

Hi Baytree just to echo Nikki. I have chickens and we have a lot of foxes around us. They will be perfectly safe (the chicks that is) as long as they have a secure run. I did use to let the chicks roam the garden, free. That is until the D...N foxes got three of them. Now i just keep them in the run and lock them up at night. Learnt my lesson the hard way. They are delightful to keep though and very easy. Good Luck.