Prepping for Brexit thread

tori.k

We have the same issue here, lots of temporary seasonal work, The universal credit if they ever sort it out properly is supposed to make taking on short term contracts a viable option for those unemployed.
The whole system needs re-working with the weather changes as spring is coming later which is having a massive knock-on effect with migrant workers availability to move with the harvest.

[Deleted User]

We've got our name down for a new allotment plot in the town we're moving to and we'll maximise on what we can grow next year. It will make such a difference if there are shortages to have our own home grown produce available both to eat and to preserve to go into store for the winter. We are moving to a much smaller garden in the new house but we've already got plans to put in thornless blackberries and loganberries on the back fence and to put a decent sized greenhouse on part of the side plot too. I think part of our preparations will be to be as self sufficient in food as we can and to make sure we use all of the crops we grow and waste as little as is possible. Having jams and pickles in store is good as they don't rely on electricity to keep and I'm going to invest in some new 'kilner' jars and bottle fruit for the same reason, it will keep on a shelf with no electricity needed.

humptydumptybits

MrsLurcherwalker wrote: »

We've got our name down for a new allotment plot in the town we're moving to and we'll maximise on what we can grow next year. It will make such a difference if there are shortages to have our own home grown produce available both to eat and to preserve to go into store for the winter. We are moving to a much smaller garden in the new house but we've already got plans to put in thornless blackberries and loganberries on the back fence and to put a decent sized greenhouse on part of the side plot too. I think part of our preparations will be to be as self sufficient in food as we can and to make sure we use all of the crops we grow and waste as little as is possible. Having jams and pickles in store is good as they don't rely on electricity to keep and I'm going to invest in some new 'kilner' jars and bottle fruit for the same reason, it will keep on a shelf with no electricity needed.

If there are serious shortages do you think your crops would be safe? I've never had an allotment so I don't know what the security arrangements are like but if people are hungry would there be a temptation to go in one night and your crop disappears?

[Deleted User]

Possibly there will be desperate folk taking food if they're hungry, it happens now on the allotment plots we have here, I couldn't begrudge a hungry person something to eat what really annoys me is when very early in the morning someone drives in with a gang and takes a specific crop to sell for their own gain, we across the plots have had that happen a few times with soft fruit like blackcurrants that have a high market value. I'd be very cross about that. Usually though we get most of what we grow and if there is too much I put it at the bottom of the drive for folk to take or divide it up between friends and neighbours it only seems right somehow. I hate waste and I'd much rather see things eaten than composted. I've found over the years that little things like that make for very good relations with the folk you live among.

Farway

humptydumptybits wrote: »

If there are serious shortages do you think your crops would be safe? I've never had an allotment so I don't know what the security arrangements are like but if people are hungry would there be a temptation to go in one night and your crop disappears?

When I had an allotment it seems many folk thought our plots were a handy free greengrocers, hunger & desperation never came into it AFAIK. Like Mrs LW, folk used to just strip crops, whole rows of runners for instance

Regarding Mrs LW berries getting nicked, round here it seems I'm the only one who picks berries, not sure why, maybe not handily packaged or just don't know what they are or what to do with them?

tori.k

If we landed all the fruit, veg and fish that's grown and caught in the UK, the price would be so low that gardening would purely be for pleasure.
Thats heavy apocalyptic thinking humpty. We've been having shortages of CO2 for months yet its gone pretty much unnoticed by most people.

maryb

Last year round about the third week in October all the pumpkins were taken from our allotments but other than that we haven't had any thefts. One shed was broken into but they thought it was teenagers rather than theft

I think it's more likely shops would be targeted than veg patches. After all you have to be able to prepare raw veg and that presupposes a living set up where that is possible

I can see allotments clubbing together to keep a few geese. Excellent burglar alarms:D

Floss

Our allotment site is surrounded by 6' steel fencing, with 2 double gates on the entrance with a lock on the inner & padlock on the outer. As a result we don't get much bother from thieves.

maryb

We don't have a gate at the moment as the Council lorry that was delivering manure took off the gatepost. But we haven't locked it for years. People lose keys, so for a while we had a combination padlock. Until someone who was disgruntled at being evicted for never cultivating his plot decided to take revenge by resetting all the numbers

humptydumptybits

tori.k wrote: »

If we landed all the fruit, veg and fish that's grown and caught in the UK, the price would be so low that gardening would purely be for pleasure.
Thats heavy apocalyptic thinking humpty. We've been having shortages of CO2 for months yet its gone pretty much unnoticed by most people.

And yet two posters have confirmed that they do get crops stolen from their allotments.