On Monday I got tested on whether I am walking my talk. I was heading to town (an hour from my house), and just as I was making a turn towards my first stop, my car started making a horrible noise. Fortunately, I was only three blocks away from a mechanic shop. So I limped my car into their parking lot. I was warned that they were booked 2-3 weeks out, but then I explained my situation and they drove it around the lot, and they put me on the schedule for next week. So it looked like I wouldn't have transportation to town (grocery, pharmacy, bank) for at least 10 days. I had to do a quick scan of the basics for the family and 83 farm animals. Do we have enough on hand? I knew the humans would be ok. Even though we were out of kid snacks, we had actual food. There would be a little protesting, but he would live. Do we need pharmacy stuff? Do I have enough rabbit food? Do I have enough cash for fuel and hay? Sooo, if YOU were stuck without warning, and couldn't get to resources for 10 days, would you survive, without having to survive on stale graham crackers? Weather events, mechanical issues, illness, supply chain disruptions or busy sports seasons all can interfere with access. In the next week I will be posting in the classroom, a 7 day workshop I ran this Fall on how to prepare your home for extended disruptions. It isn't from a place of scarcity or fear, but to help build and maintain a buffer for your family, to insulate against the unforseen events that we can all experience, so you can keep rolling forward. What is one thing in your house that you know right now isn't ready for a 10+ day disruption?

Yesterday I went to help a friend who was widowed 2 years ago. I always schedule 2+ hours for visits to her house, because once we start talking about gardening, the time flys by. She has been sustenance gardening for over 20 years, and there are things she and my other very experienced friends do each year. 1. They stick to tried and true varieties. They don't order 200 varieties from Baker Creek. They have 2-3 varieties of each type of veggie that they plant every year, and when possible, save seeds for next year. I regularly buy nasturtium seeds because our season isn't long enough for them to self seed, but I buy VERY few seeds per year, and it is usually planned in advance. 2. Perennials and plants that self-seed are your time hack. Things that don't need babysitting (like seedlings) seedlings save you insane amounts of time and mental energy. Spinach and lettuce can self seed. I have been experimenting with direct fall planting as much as possible to save time in the spring. 3. They have killed more plants than you will grow in your lifetime. That is how you figure out what works for your space. Having 2-3 varieties of each, means that when the weather does weird things, at least one will work. There will be losses each year. The smoke from fire season can affect our crops, as can heat or moisture. Hedge your bets with 2 different varieties. 4. They will only add one or two new type of veggies per year to test out. They go into it knowing it may not work, and limit their learning curve. They also start small in testing. My new test this year is two types of Millet. Last year I was focused on medicinal herbs. 5. They ask a lot of questions from other gardeners. They ask locally from people who have tested things in their specific climate. I have a few friends who have been market gardening for decades. Also, on slow days, ask the farmers at the farmers market for info. 6. They accept that they can't grow it all. With insane amounts of resources and time you theoretically could grow anything anywhere, BUT is it really a level of investment you want to make? I am growing coffee and vanilla inside, but not big stuff like cinnamon, papaya or black pepper (as much as I want to).

Nothing shortens a learning curve quite like a decent mentor. The people who I have learned the most from were never on a stage giving speeches. They were rough around the edges, and often had never sat in a college classroom. My first (informal) mentor for raising goats was a chain smoking mail lady with a heart of gold. I learned about ranching and cattle from older guys who rarely left the ranch. I learned about sourdough from a retired National Park law enforcement officer (who served in Vietnam as an Army Ranger) originally from Georgia. I learned a ton of fencing tricks from a lady sheep rancher 12 years younger than me. My favorite mentors learned from grandparents or the school of hard knocks. They can be shy about sharing information, and it definitely requires building a relationship to get their help. Most important is to listen to the stories, and the long version.. To ask specific questions, and be ok if they don't have an answer. Often, they may get back to you with the answers you needed. Mentors can save you years of mistakes, and definitely make the journey a lot more fun. You never know when or where you might cross paths with just the person you need to learn from. Keep your ears open and be open to meeting new people of all walks of life. Image: Agnes the cow looking over her new hay feeder.