THE Prepping thread - a new beginning :)

maryb

Just had a quick google and per evidence to a select committee hearing earlier this year, thinking seems to be that in the event of a no deal Brexit, tariffs would actually help domestic producers by enabling them to sell in the domestic market to compensate for lost exports especially dairy and livestock

mardatha

MrsL that wouldn't affect chez Mad Arthur much at all. I gave up eating berries from supermarkets as they don't taste of anything at all, I buy the local Scottish ones in season and they're lovely. Only one of us (not this one) eats cheese, and only Cheddar. We don't drink, esp not wine cos it's disgusting
We are peasants and proud!! lol :rotfl::rotfl:

dND

Thank you Maryb, Ivyleaf and Karmacat, I'll let him know - I made sure I told him he was loved on Monday morning when the news broke. Then, there were only about 1000 Social Media messages needing replies, It's now over 20,000 since the tv and papers started talking about claiming compensation

Still, he's looking on the bright side and working all the overtime he can He'd saved up and just bought a new, large and therefore very expensive games monitor, so he is taking the opportunity to replenish his savings

[Deleted User]

I'm remembering that much of our food production land has been used for other things like housing etc. most of the orchards have been grubbed out because of EU subsidies back in the 80s to grow linseed etc. and an awful lot of small fields that would have led to diversity of produce have had the hedgerows grubbed out and been turned into enormous 'prairie fields' to grow various cereal crops. Our dairy industry is in tatters because of the supermarkets treatment of the farmers and so many of them have given up, the pig industry is smaller because of all the imports from EU countries where the welfare code for rearing is not so vigorously applied, sheep cost a fortune now (which I've never understood as they don't need the input of other livestock) so what the cost of lamb would be without imports is unimaginable, even the cider industry is in decline because many of the cider apple orchards have been allowed to decline and the trees are old or gone altogether for yet another executive housing development. If all the EU workers decide it's not worth being here the East Anglian growing area will have problems harvesting and getting produce to market, the fruit pickers even here not being around will mean shortages as even in this built up area we have fields of glass houses and polytunnels that are used to supply the big supermarkets and all the 'workers' live in caravans and are from eastern Europe. We might be in a right old pickle! Thank heavens we've got the garden, hot houses and allotment to grow some of our own food although if things got extreme how much of the produce would actually make it to our dinner table might be debatable if people were hungry and desperate enough to take the risk of helping themselves. The words 'Perfect Storm' have inserted themselves in my one working little brain cell this morning.....I hope not!

DigForVictory

To restore the cider & perry orchards, take a cuttings team up to Huntingtower Castle in Scotland. A bit of a trip I grant you, but they have an orchard of historic apple & pear tree species.
I have to say I don't think Historic Scotland are managing that effectively - they got lottery money to plant it but not to maintain it & sold the entire crop (100+ trees, laden with fruit) for £70 two years ago. Honestly it is worth 10 times that in genuine historic fruit "eat like a Tudor" etc, cuttings, seeds & so forth & yet the management team just Do Not See the goldmine they are ignoring.

Personally I am a sufficient fan of freedom of movement & labour & trade that I think staying in the Union is worthwhile (but this is not the place for that argument) but if we leave, in the name of all we hold dear, we need to Appreciate our existing environmental assets much more!
(Says she, eyeing keeping pigs & sheep more thoughtfully as a retirement gig. Rotavators R Us, I think... With a niche line in exotic breed fleeces, possibly raised to order with both the reeenactor & restaurant community.)

[Deleted User]

Might we see a resurgence of home rabbit breeding for meat and possibly also the cured pelts and also pigeon keeping for the meat and eggs? rabbits will eat lots of native plants that can be collected easily from waste ground and the countryside verges, pigeons I know eat greens and their dry food would hopefully be available. I know in wartime He Who Knows grandparents kept both and harvested the young squab pigeons for meat and the eggs for baking etc. when rationing meant no fresh hens eggs were easily got. Both could be easily accommodated even in a relatively small garden specially a few rabbits without too big an outlay for housing.

ivyleaf

mardatha wrote: »

Olive Oil, MrsL

Just to warn, olive oil doesn't keep well long-term. It's ok up to about 6 months after the "best before" date, then it tends to go rancid

ivyleaf

Just to add, re olive oil, apparently it keeps best in a dark bottle. But the only olive oil I've been able to find in dark bottles is extra-virgin, lovely for dressings but not for cooking with. I keep mine in a cupboard

[Deleted User]

They have the 'National Apple Collection' at Brogdale near Faversham in Kent where they have literally hundreds of old varieties of apples and pears still growing and every year they have an autumn apple day where you can try them, we also get an apple day in Sussex at West dean College and I know of another one at Hellens House near Ledbury in Herefordshire so the old varieties are still obtainable BUT it takes years to get a slip to the size of tree it needs to be to fruit and give a decent harvest and it would be a lean old time all round until they were that big!

DigForVictory

Sadly all too true, but I'm hoping I've wassailed my two to some effect this year. (Other than courting pneumonia, disconcerting the offspring, & "wasting toast", which I reckon is a win.)

Reading up, if you can get the rootstocks, grafting may be a shrewd path forwards. Still not that fast, but a healthy rootstock is a sneaky cheat...