Thread: FARMING in T2K
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Old 12-09-2008, 01:18 PM
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First of all Grae Cheers for providing such good information! I have dealt with some of what you are talking about first hand from growing up in Maine as well as having a strong interest in homesteading and organic farming. I have also spent a lot of time talking to my grandfather about what he had to do working on the farm, as a boy age 12-17(just before ww2) Just what you described sent my mind racing as I imagined functioning farms similar to the ones I have seen here in the northeast only perhaps more contained and fortified. Reading about raising small animals made me think of my experiences and I will share some of what I have learned about them.

Rabbits are a brilliant animal for the small farm. They are easy to keep and feed and they are good eating. They can be raised by children as a daily chore. So they require very little care and produce many babies. They also can be skinned for there fur to make things like mittens ,hats and liners for boots. One of the best things they do is make small pellets of manure which can be stored indefinitly. A large trash can works great for storing the collected rabbits pellets use them like time release fertilizer for plants, by putting a scoop at the base of the plants and as they get rained on the nutrients from it will seep into the soil and help the plants grow. You can also add water to the pellets and make what off the griders call "poop-tea" which can be sprayed by various methods. In any case rabbit pellets are one of the least offensive fertilizers and is easily handled and transported.

chickens are also good for as previously mentioned reasons and do eat a lot of bugs. Eggs are an amazing thing to add to your diet when you eat the same ho-hum beans and corn all the time. Ducks are also excellent and are a bit heartier than chickens thought not as good to eat in my opinion,. Ducks are a bit smarter than chickens as far as taking care of themselves go. But either are decent, one thing I have noticed about poultry is they attract a fair amount of predators like foxes, weasels ,fishers and mink. Though they aren't likely to hurt people they can be devastating to the birds. My grandfather lost 40 pigeons to one Mink and I have had ducks, chickens pigeons and geese harmed and killed by such animals.

Speaking of geese a pair two two are an excellent addition to any farm they don't need to be fed, as they eat grass and are the best watch dogs a farm could ever have! They can spot enemies long before a dog can and are remarkably vicious and loud. They are edible but often tough, there eggs are massive as one is a good sized good omelet. Also there feathers can be collected to fill pillows and jackets and sleeping bags.

Pigeons are another creature I have had lots of experience with my grand father has raced homers for many years. They can forage for themselves and will return home after foraging at night, they are also good to eat. They also produce a large volume of manure which is very high yielding in Nitrate....so much so that in the past they used the product of dove coats (pigeons coops) to make gun powder in the 17-19th centuries.

I also thought I would add a little to what the general wrote. Particular concerning cannabis sativa or hemp. As far as growing hemp goes its a very easy plant to grow, it is very hearty and requires little maintenance. It has many uses and can be cultivated specifically for its seeds as a source of food, and as an oil crop (which can be made into biodiesel). It can also be cultivated for fibre as eventually fabrics will have to be made by hand. Hemp can be made into very hard wearing strong fabric. And while its said that industrial hemp cant be used to get you high this is sort of misnomer, as the cannabis sativa used for making rope is also the same plant that is cultivated for marijuana. However, it is cultivated differently and from the strains grown specifically for industrial uses. In other words it depends on what your growing it for the plant is grown and characteristics selected over a long period of time to obtain the product it is used for. Weather or not its grown for food or fiber there is no doubt Marijuana would make an excellent trade good once the world collapses. One of the the best things about this plant is it easily found in non hybrid form and the saved seeds will germinate.
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