Does watching Little House on the Prairie make you long for simpler days?  Do you get a sense of satisfaction when the new green shoots of vegetables pop through the dirt in your garden?  Does the smell of fresh baked bread bring back pleasant memories of days gone by?

If so, you may be interested in the growing self-sufficiency movement.  Just what is self-sufficiency?  Self-sufficiency is a process not a destination.  It’s the process of being able to rely on yourself for your needs.   Self sufficiency may involve gardening, orchards, preserving your harvest, baking bread, raising chickens, foraging for wild edibles or any of a hundred other activities depending on your likes and dislikes.

No two people begin the journey to self-sufficiency in the same way.  I enjoy baking and cooking so this was the first step in my journey.  Try making your breads, tortillas and snacks.  You can add in making yogurt and yogurt cheese to your list of self-sufficient activities, as both are quite simple to do.  While your learning about fermented products, experiment with kefir and sourdough bread or how about making sauerkraut?  OK so cooking is not your thing?

How about gardening? Do you have a green thumb – houseplants all over the place? Try setting up a small vegetable garden outside. Even people with no space can grow veggies in containers.  Tomato, pepper and string bean plants all do very well in containers. Not interested in veggies? How about a small kitchen herb garden?  Try “easy” herbs like basil, parsley, cilantro, thyme, mints or oregano.  Or how about a fragrant herb garden with lavender, sweet woodruff and roses?

Maybe you’re looking for an indoor activity? There are a lot of crafts that lend themselves well to self-sufficiency.  Teach yourself to sew, knit or crochet and make some of your family’s clothing.   Try making soap or candles.  Maybe woodworking is more your style?

Looking for something more challenging? Try raising animals – poultry for eggs or meat; goats for milk; rabbits; turkeys, etc.   How about bee keeping? Vermiculture (worms)? How about hunting or fishing?

However you decide to begin your journey, you’ll find that each new skill is just a step toward becoming more self-sufficient.  There is so much to learn and so many ways to take this journey that it’s a journey without an end.

Article written by: Ellen LaFleche-Christian, Moonlight Creations Jewelry & Gifts, http://moonlight-creations-jewelry.com
 
 
 
 

For only $39.99, you can receive 100 packets of our select heirloom vegetable seeds (a savings of over $175), which is enough to supply the average family with a ready supply of healthy fresh vegetables even during the hardest times. Vegetable seeds have a storage life of at least five seasons and this is a great opportunity to establish your own food security for a low price. Even if you have only a small garden area, it is possible to grow a good quantity of your own wholesome food for a cost that is much lower than you can buy it anywhere. Our seeds are non GMO and are 100% open pollinated, meaning that you can breed your own seeds for use year after year. Unlike others offering vegetable seeds at low prices, our seed is hand packaged and is hand selected from the freshest supplies on the market! Find out what's in our vegetable seed sets here. (To order, just click a button and then choose the option at the lower right to use your credit card).

There is actually a lot of variation in our seed sets on a weekly basis based on available supplies. Though the crops don't tend to change, the varieties change every few days.

As a general guideline, each 100 packet sets contain ALL major crops, including: Heirloom Tomatoes (including beefsteaks), Bell Peppers, Chiles, Eggplant, Beans of several types, Sweet Corn, Beets, Chard, Cabbage, Collards, Kale, Mustard Greens, Turnips, Carrots, Radishes,Cucumbers (slicing and pickling), Melons, Watermelons, Lettuce (several types), Asparagus, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Celery, Leeks, Onions, Okra, Peas, Parsnips, Spinach, Zucchini, Winter Squash, Pumpkins and a few culinary herbs. 

We try to make sure that ALL of the above crops are included and typically several varieties of each are included. Each packet is large enough to supply the average family with an abundance of food.

We also include some less known crops such as Amaranth, Oriental Greens, Chicory, Endive, Lamb's Lettuce, New Zealand Spinach, Miner's Lettuce, Artichokes, Cardoon, Salsify, Luffa, Cucuzzi, Rhubarb, Wild Strawberries, Popcorn, Dent Corn, Southern Peas, ... just to name a few.

Our 50 packet sets contain everything that our 100 sets include, with the exception of the less known crops and the fact that multiple varieties may not be included.

Our 25 packet tomato seed sets contain twenty five varieties of our best old fashioned heirloom tomatoes. Included is a rainbow of colors and tomatoes of all shapes and sizes. They are ideal for salads, slicing, making tomato sauce, tomato juice and for canning too.