For those who are interested, in the blog poll last week that asked what people have stored, the numbers worked out as follows:
Staple items (wheat, bean, rice, etc.) 92%
Canned items 92%
Frozen items 53%
Items especially made for storage (MREs, etc.) 69%
A garden that provides produce 92%
Other 7%
Now I just wish that whoever marked "other" would have left a comment--about the only thing that I can think of is livestock, or hens that supply eggs, etc.--live storage is also a good thing. At any rate, that's how it worked out, and though I don't get a large number of people responding, this was by far the poll that has had the most respondents to date. (Thanks to those who participated!) I was impressed by the level of preparedness that is evident by these numbers. I certainly hope that "other" didn't indicate a total lack of storage, but if so, that can be changed. :)
Perhaps the reason that "other" brings to mind livestock or hens, etc., is because I read this article today about people wanting to raise chickens in Utah. I personally have no knowledge about how to raise or care for hens, but I may have to find out what the policies are in my own state and see if it is a feasible project. It's certainly something to think about. You would have to provide storage for the animals themselves in the form of feed, but wouldn't fresh eggs and fresh chicken be a great addition to food storage?
3 comments:
It took me a long time to figure out how chickens (and pigs) fit into our overall homestead. I hated the idea of buying all of their feed for them.
I guess I warmed to the idea when I realized that they could forage for a large portion of their diet, especially in summer, as well as benefit from unappealing produce trimmings from the kitchen/garden. I'm constantly amazed at how many bugs our chickens find and devour! I cannot wait for the thousands of stick bugs to descend from the trees this fall... lots of inedible tree foliage will be converted to high-quality protein when that happens!
Another thought-provoking post! :)
Ron
Marie, we love the hens that we have here. They are very easy to take care of, we just give them all the garden rejects and fruit and veggie scraps from the kitchen along with a little layer feed. They seem very happy and very healthy. Just make sure they have fresh water daily. Not a bad deal to get fresh eggs daily. We are not planning on eating any of ours as of yet ( we are just too tender hearted )
Chris
Ron and Chris--Well, it's kind of convenient for me that both of you have commented, because I have actually learned a lot about raising chickens from reading your blogs. :) If I ever do obtain some, I hope that my chickens look as happy as yours do.
I like the fact that during some seasons, as you mentioned, they can do a lot to feed themselves, and also that not only do they help the garden out by debugging, they eliminate the need to throw away a lot of what would otherwise be waste from the garden. As for eating them, (and not just their eggs) I think it would take pretty dire circumstances to have that happen, for me anyway. I would probably have a hard time eating something that I raised myself.
If we get some hens, look for a lot of questions on your blog from me--you have been warned! :)
Thanks for your comments!
Marie
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