Planning for Difficult Times Ahead

We’re already suffering from the effects of the hike in oil price and the longer it goes on, the worse it will get. Quite how badly we’ll be affected, I can’t predict. I just hope this doesn’t turn out to be the US equivalent of the Russian three day ‘special military operation’.

One thing I’m pretty sure of, food price inflation is going to go even higher. UK farmers are hit with increased fuel and fertiliser costs. Foreign farmers are suffering the same increases and increasing shipping costs on top.

AI Image illustrating food price inflation

Fertiliser

Since the cost of fertiliser is directly linked to gas prices, they’re doubling. So, hopped online and ordered 20kg of Growmore from Elixir. I was tempted to order two sacks, but storing fertiliser can be tricky. It has to be kept bone dry and Snowdonia is humid at best. When it arrives, I’ll double bag it to store. Not forgetting that I’ve about 12 tons of sheep muck maturing nicely under tarpaulin.

Land

The old raised beds that I’ve been taking up, leave behind much improved soil where the beds were. Also, the paths between the beds, which have had years of being covered in multiple layers of woodchips, now have deeper and better soil than I started with.

Once the last of the now rotting, old side planks come out, I’ll run the Merry Tiller over the area, level it and let the grass grow back. Then, if we need to, that area can be quickly brought back into production.
Insurance

I’m not panicking, just taking out insurance against a situation that looks more probable by the day. It’s not really practical to be 100% self-sufficient, growing wheat and cereals is a task best left to farmers. But, I can easily produce enough vegetables to supply three families. Not on my own, I’ll need help, but the basics of decent land, water supply and fertiliser are covered.

Seeds

When there was a bit of a panic about food during the Covid pandemic, people went madly buying huge quantities of seed. Despite the regulated high quality of seeds generally in the UK, they have a shelf life. See the seed life chart on this page about testing seed germination viability.

Of course, you can freeze seeds, but there are potentially problems with that if the seeds aren’t properly prepared.

When you look at the cost of seeds, open pollinated are very cheap. You can buy 800 Red Acre cabbage seeds for around £1.24. By being careful about storing them, you can make them last 3 or 4 years. At 50% germination, that’s 100 cabbages a year! Basically, don’t bother stockpiling seeds.

Ready

If food prices go shooting through the roof, we’re ready to sustainably produce enough to keep us and others supplied with vegetables. If they don’t, we haven’t wasted any money or effort in preparation.