The Project Issue #2 and Seed Caches

[mmartin798]

I do like seeing new material coming out for MP. Though in Issue #2 of The Project that just got released, I saw one thing that just seemed off and did the math as I am wont to do.

The article mentions a cache type for a community that is one Pelican case with 1250 packets of seeds. The seeds are chosen for the region, climate, etc and are enough to supply four 100 acre farms for four years. Looking at some agricultural data, the average amount of seed for an acre of land using direct seeding (planting directly in the soil versus starter bed and transplanting seedlings) is right around two pounds. The average density of seeds is about 30 pounds per cubic foot. That comes out to 200 pounds per farm per year or 3200 pounds of seeds, or about 107 cubic feet.

The largest Pelican case I can find is the Mobile Military MM08 Pallet-Ready case at 35.8 cubic feet (internal capacity). So three of these will do the job. It will still fit inside a large sewer vault as the article mentions, but to call it 1250 packets in a single case and imagining carrying the case, opening it and handing a farmer a few small packets to plant is not exactly the right image.

[cosmicfish]

RPG designers and writers almost never do all the research and almost uniformly hate to do the math.

[rcaf_777]

Try searching Seed Bank Kits like Heirloom Seed Bank Kit, they should give you an idea of how the kits should look

[ArmySGT.]

http://www.non-hybrid-seeds.com/survivalseedvault.html

[StainlessSteelCynic]

The image that ArmySGT. posted is very telling. That bucket supplies enough seed for a 2 acre plot. Just two acres. According to what else is on the website, that bucket holds 1.8lbs of seed but there are just over 55,000 seeds in that.
So using that as a basis for some really rough estimates, 100 acres would require 2,750,000 seeds so four x 100 acre farms would require 11,000,000 seeds.

Even without that crude info, I think most people would realize that the proposed Pelican case of 1250 seeds is would be hopelessly unable to supply one 100 acre farm for even one year let alone four.
So four farms for four years?
The Project proposal isn't just overly optimistic, it's so ludicrous as to make you laugh. Or cry.

The website that ArmySGT. linked to makes for a much better Project proposal. One bucket of 55,000 seeds for two acres appears to be enough to feed one family with some surplus so to my mind, a Project seed cache would be say, twenty of these 2lb pails (holding 1.8lbs of seed) to give 40 acres of crop. All that for just 40lbs weight and it's not particularly bulky.

If all that crop is kept as seed then (again using rough & optimistic estimates), the next season you could potentially have 80 acres of crop.
Yes it's going to take some time and probably requires the people being helped to be councilled not to eat the crop but if the Players like the rebuilding aspect then that sort of time period is a good tie to the community they're trying to help.

[ArmySGT.]

Farm Pail


https://www.non-hybrid-seeds.com/sp/farm-pack.html

List
https://www.non-hybrid-seeds.com/fmp-var.html

Homestead Pail

https://www.non-hybrid-seeds.com/sp/homestead-pack.html

List
https://www.non-hybrid-seeds.com/hp-var.html

Livestock Pail


https://www.non-hybrid-seeds.com/sp/livestock-pack.html