Nancy,

I understand your exact situation. My wife is back in nursing school and I am a teacher and market gardener. We have 4 kids and we are living off one income. I have a small CSA that we have been selling produce through since mid October. We have 6 high tunnels that allow us to grow and harvest produce straight through the winter. We have been eating alot of salads, and stirfrys. This last summer we didn't get much frozen or canned. We just didn't have the time. Also, our produce was selling very well and we needed the cash more than the produce at the time. We paid ahead a bunch of bills (taxes, daycare, propane, etc) I wish we could have processed more. Next year, we will do that. Even if is is just a quick blanch and in the freezer.

We are fortunate enough to have two freezers of pork and beef. Also, lots of root vegetables and greens to harvest from our garden. With that being said, we are using our small CSA sales to buy the staples that we don't have. Are we starving, not really. In fact we are probably eating better than ever. Almost everything we eat is from scratch and we don't buy many processed foods. It is amazing how a garden can turn from a hobby to a necessity.

If I were you, go with the tried and true winners in your garden. Grow what grows and what you can use. That is what we are planning on doing next year.

Good Luck,

Jay

Nancyjane -- first, let me offer my deepest condolences on your situation. You said that your husband was laid off for the winter -- I hope that he has a job again in the spring. This is not a happy time for our country. I'm sure everyone here will send our best thoughts out into the universe for you and everyone in your situation.

I think a more pragmatic approach to this, as opposed to my kid in a candy shop one, would be to first sit down and make a list of what you need or want to put up/stockpile for the next winter, something like:

Frozen:

50 quart bags of corn, 25 quart bags of green beans, 25 quart bags of chopped peppers, 25 quart bags of ....

Canned:

100 quarts tomato juice, 100 quarts canned tomatoes, 25 quarts salsa, 20 quarts beets, 10 quarts pickled cauliflower, ...

Fresh in storage:

5 bushels potatoes; 50 butternut squash, 1 bushel storage onions, ...

That might give you an idea of how much of each thing to plant. If I want to end up with about 50 quart bags of frozen corn, I know from prior experience that I need to plant roughly 400 row feet of corn at a minimum, probably more like 500 or even 600 to ensure I get there if there are weather issues and the yield isn't as good, of if I get overly zealous some day and decide to give away 12 dozen ears or something (I've been known to do this!)

In this way, if you know what you really want, you can prioritize you purchases of seeds, plants, and eliminate those things that you really don't want.

Also, probably time to dump the things that are fun but either not that useful or not very productive. For me, that would be a lot of the things I try every year and either have poor results with, like okra (climate incompatibility most years) and probably sweet potatoes (critters!), or things like ground cherries and tomatilos that I put up a lot of, but then don't always end up using all of them by any means.

And, if there are ways to increase or expand your production capacity, I would do that to. Make new beds or till new ground if need be and you are in a position to do it. Try to tap (literally, if it's maple trees) wild food resources if you can --- I often find freebies like mushrooms or berries or feral asparagus growing free for the taking along the pedestrian walkways where I live -- at the right time of the year, I always take a couple of grocery bags when I walk the dog, in case I find something good. I would say "bees or poultry" but neither of those are economical for the amateur, IMO, at least not in my experience.

Worst gardening year ever -- well, I know how that feels, the weather is always such a challenge. Where I live, Michigan, we are like Forest Gump's box of chocolates -- we never know what we're going to get. 2008 and 2009 were cold -- great years to grow lots of broccoli, cabbages, peas, etc. 2010 was abnormally warm, and the warm weather crops thrived. 2011 -- only God knows, and I don't believe he/she is telling us mere mortals in advance. So, it's kind of a crap shoot -- do I plant more melons and fewer peas? Or, should I just plant potatoes, broccoli, and rutabagas and forget the okra and melons entirely because they'll be total flops? I don't have any answers there.

Some day, I swear I am going to grow a garden entirely from those 10 for a dollar packets and 25 cent packets from the discount stores. They are the old, standard, open pollinated varieties, things like Rutgers tomatoes, Waltham butternut, Copehagen Market Cabbage, Straight Eight cucumbers, Black Seeded Simpson lettuce. For a return on the dollar, you can't beat them, though. In 2007, I had some health issues and didn't get nearly as much of a garden planted as I had some years. The only winter squash I planted were the seeds from ONE ten cent package of Waltham Butternuts and ONE ten cent package of Table Queen Acorns. I ended up with like 20 hills of squash, planting like 2-3 seeds per hill, and I had OODLES of squash, like 150 plus butternuts and probably 70-80 acorns. THAT was a real return on investment. I think only Bernie Madoff in his prime could have done better :-) (well, probably :-( or :o are more appropriate).

I like the idea of a Ponzi plant. In order to keep it growing, you need to feed it compost made from three other Ponzi plants.

From want to need? An awful lot of people in this economy, nancyjane.

I don't know if it is any comfort or not to know that a lot of other people are in the same boat and the fates haven't singled you out and are punishing just you.

Even those of us who still have a bit of income (touch wood) are thankful for the help with the grocery bill.

If you have the place to store them, a few things that store fresh would be nice: winter squash, pumpkins, spuds. It's nice to have some fresh stuff over the winter.

I look at prices in the market. If I have to buy some produce, I'd rather buy the stuff that is cheap and grow the stuff that is expensive. If there isn't enough room to grow both and I have to choose, I'd rather grow the Anaheim pepper that is $2.25 a pound and buy the 20 cent a pound potato. I'd rather grow the $2 a pound eggplant and buy the 29 cent a pound cabbage.

If you aren't vegetarians in your family, you might take a look at a couple of meat breed rabbits.

I've raised eggs and while they are better than store bought, they cost 2-3 times as much, so I don't think chickens are a good investment if you are really counting pennies.

I actually kind of misrepresented our situation ( I didn't lie, DH is out of work!)
We happen to be lucky enough to have a couple of years worth of house payments in the bank and the unemployment (if we ever GET IT, been waiting 2 months!) will cover the mortgage payment.
I just don't want to dig into those savings accounts to live day to day!
On the gardening front, I'm asking Santa for the materials to build a couple of new raised beds. We have horrible gophers, so we NEED the expensive wire under the beds. I also want to plant a couple of dwarf fruit trees this year.
I'm really going to make a list of what we REALLY use. Probably not quite as complete as Denni's list, but it did make me think of priorities.
One thing I DON'T skimp on during these tight times is good food! I try to cook mostly from scratch, mostly from the garden when I can, and local is important.
I tried the chickens, but it was rather expensive for just the 2 of us, then they started to eat their own eggs. That was the end of that!
Raising animals for meat....been there, done that way back in my back to the land days. I don't have the energy for that. I can afford store bought meat.
HEY! Anyone want to hire a talented wood carver? LOL NT

There are a lot of people who have gone from want to need, and if I'm not mistaken, there's going to be a lot more in the next couple of years.

I have been expanding my vegetable garden, and have taken courses at the county agricultural extension office in food preservation. I've only tried dehydrating so far, but next year hope to can both with a pressure canner and a water bath canner.

A lot of terrific information can be garnered from LDS web sites. Many of them have a food calculator which will tell you approximately what you should have on hand. (Of course, you will want to tailor any list to your own family's particular tastes and needs.)

A lot of people had bad years for their gardens last year. I wouldn't necessarily blame your garden's poor performance on the use of heirloom seeds. Heirlooms, by their very nature, ARE tried and true varieties. If you want to know the best varieties of all kinds of vegetables for your area, check with your county agricultural extension office and/or look on the website of one of the large land grant universities like Ohio State or the University of Florida. They can recommend varieties which do particularly well in your area.

Remember, heirloom vegetables will grow true from their own seeds - saving you the cost of buying seeds the following year. Hybrid vegetables will not. You have to weigh the advantages and disadvantages of each and pick the one that is right for you.

I would also look into 4-season gardening. There are a number of excellent books on the subject, and most should be available from the library. I am going to put up a hoop house next year so that I can garden - at least for greens -throughout the winter. This can be done even up north.

I know it seems like the gardening year just ended, but in a few weeks it will be time to start vegetables like tomatoes, eggplants, and peppers inside so that they will be ready for the garden after your last frost date.

You may contact me directly if you think I might be able to answer any questions you have (although people have already given you some excellent suggestions), or if you would like to trade for some heirloom vegetable seeds.

Good luck and God bless.

Di

Thanks for even more great info!
I have a newish Baker Creek store just a couple of miles away!!!!
I'm also starting gardening with my spec ed class, and will be starting seeds as soon as we get back to class in January!
Can't wait! NT

On the issue of the talented wood carver: Yes, very much so. If you've got talent, use it.

Art galleries will take quality pieces on consignment, especially if it is a tourist area.

People will buy small inexpensive carvings for gifts and decorating. Folk art sells to tourists and for gifts.

My suggestions: duck decoys are huge sellers at good prices and don't have to be super fine workmanship (less time invested), especially if the paint part looks a bit antique.

There is a big market for bears and horses. Dogs, if the artist is good enough to make an accurate representation. Dog owners are picky about accuracy. Horse owners and bear collectors, a lot less so.

Purebred dog fanciers will pay a LOT for a quality piece of art. I know. I've paid $300-$500 several times and paid $1200 once. Those are art pieces, not toys, and I treasure them. Only the $1200 piece is a one of a kind. One of a kind has collector's value.

It's difficult to find polar bears and there is a large polar bear collecting niche in bear collecting.

Copies of native American masks would sell like hot cakes and they would not be time consuming to make. Mostly the real trick is in copying the paint.

Sell on ebay. Sell on consignment in furniture shops, art galleries, and gift shops. Advertise on Craiglist.

Banks, restaurants, and the airport around here display art from local artists with the artist's card, so a potential buyer can contact the artist.

Go for it!

Oregon, I'm in Sonoma Co where there are an abundance of bear carvers!
The rest are some great ideas.
I just found out that my daughter is giving the DH a professionally done website for his wood and pumpkin carving for xmas! That might generate some work!
Di, I have a dehydrator and a really nice foodsaver for freezing stuff. It's a lot easier than canning IMHO. I might get into trying again when I get some fruit growing.

I totally agree with everything oregonwoodsmoke said about growing expensive crops and being sure you grow some "keepers" for the off season. In Sonoma County, 4-season gardening should be a piece of cake. (I used to live in Yolo County.) Berries and other small fruits are a great bang for the buck and should be able to pay you back with the first crop, if you even need to buy them. I've given away more strawberry plants than I can possibly recall.

Another possible source of income is selling your extra seedlings, and fresh herbs and flowers usually sell well at the farmer's markets for a premium price if you have access to setting up a booth at one.

For supplies and materials, try FreeCycle, Craigslist, etc. Many folks have odds and end of things like chickenwire and are happy to get it out of their garage.

Good luck. It's great that you thought ahead and have that savings stashed away, but I think you are also wise to try and leave it as untouched as possible!

I was layed off this winter 2nd time in 25 years. My boss (owners son) and I discussed it before it happened.Reason for lay off was lack of work. reason for it to be me is, 1I have been there the longest= highest paid. 2 my wife had a good job.3 children gone and have good jobs.4 I have 70 + ac of land that I never seem to have enough time for.5 it would let him keep 2 younger workers with children working. then the other shoe dropped , a chain bought the hotel that my wife worked at for 16 years and brought in their own managers. food will not be a problem deer in the freezer plenty of rabbits this year (couldn't keep them out of the garden, planted extra the easy way)and they are well fed. I changed my plan of landscaping to maybe extending a field 2 more ac and having a few years fire wood very dry. Rocking the orchard might be easier if she can drive tractor and I hook chains.No new hardwood floor in living room and den but maybe new cedar fence posts for all the gardens (4 ac). I think if you have soft apples make apple sauce or cider.

We have been living off of one salary for 26 years since I decided to stay home and take care of our autistic son. Then 2 years ago DH was laid off, so have no salary and living off our savings in CA! Luckily we had planned on an early retirement. I have always planted a garden out of need and canned, froze or dried the surplus. I do try one or two new veggies but pretty much stick with the tried and true that are good producers. Also do lots of trades on the seed exchange forums so don't have to buy as much.

I love working in my garden, which is a good thing because it's definitely NEED for us. We're getting by on one income plus a little from some freelance work at home, with three small children, in NJ... if anyone knows what cost-of-living is in NJ... unfortunately, moving isn't really an option for us if we want to stay near family and our wonderful church.

Like some of the previous posters, I focus on the expensive crops, especially peppers, tomatoes, and greens. I also prefer veggies which are easy to store rather than needing a lot of processing (with three kids underfoot). Fresh herbs add flavor to staples like rice and beans that can be boring otherwise.

If you have room to spare, include some annual flowers like zinnias scattered through your garden... I love them so I can't resist, and I've noticed they attract tons of bees (for pollination) and parasitic wasps and other predatory insects (for pest control).

I second the seed exchange forums =) For the price of postage, you can get just about anything you would need.

And for the wood carvings, check out Etsy.com, too...

I'm still working out how much of what crops to grow.

My sob story: I got my Master's degree in Dec. 2009 and still haven't been able to find a full-time job, and was laid off from my part-time job in March 2010. Just got a new part time job that starts in a couple of weeks.

The good news is I'm about to get married to a wonderful man who DOES have a full time job, though he doesn't make a whole lot, and he's afraid he could get laid off some time in the near future. So bascially, with the two of us together we're making ends meet, but without a lot of wiggle room, or certainty for the future. (Not gonna have kids any time soon, that's for sure!)

So here I am trying to keep us eating fresh, healthy, organic food out of the backyard.

Another idea that I don't think has been mentioned is you can make friends with people you can barter with, like other local gardeners and farmers. I used to belong to a CSA for a local farmer, and when the peaches ripened I helped him pick them in return for getting the bruised and ugly ones he couldn't sell at the Farmer's Market. They needed to be canned, frozen, and/or dehydrated right away since they were damaged, which was a lot of work for a couple of days, but I'm still eating on them.

I also once got a part-time job at the Farmer's Market, helping take down the tents at the end of the day, and not only did I get paid a little bit of money, but I got a whole bunch of food that didn't sell at the end of the day that the farmers didn't want to haul back home. One day I got a load of beets, another day three whole canteloupes, another day a nice big watermelon.

Oh, and I also think heirloom veggies are great. You can save seed from them, and then you have tons of seed for free that you can then trade to other people for varieties you don't have.

We're gardening on need too. The recession nearly took out my DH's newly-started business and cut our income by 2/3 even as our expenses increased with a kid in college (local, community college -- far more cost-effective than a 4-year program).

I got a job last winter and had very little time for my garden so I had to plant the things that took minimal imput for maximum yield. We got a little bored with tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, and yardlong beans (the borers got the squash AGAIN), but we ate from it all summer.

Now that my job has cut all overtime and we've taken in a young man who lost his job and needed a home I'm very glad that I've got the cabbages, collards, and turnip greens in my winter garden.

I'll be planting the same sort of things this summer -- minimum input, maximum yield, well-adapted to my climate, and pricier to buy in the grocery store.

For example, frozen broccoli is cheap while garden broccoli takes a lot of pest control measures. But even though frozen beans are cheap the return on my money and labor is so good that I raise and freeze a lot of assorted beans. The herbs my DH grows in 3, small beds are probably worth a couple hundred dollars a year for almost no labor and, since most are perennial, a small, one-time investment.

We are also planting our garden out of need. I love doing it, but it doesn't cover the fact that we NEED to plant a garden otherwise we'd be in a mess of hurt.

Me and DH got married Oct 09, bought our first home 4 days before our wedding. Dec 09, we BOTH got laid off on the SAME day! So we have been living in this home for over a year now and paying the mortgage almost fully with unemployment! Sheesh, it's rough times out there!!

We plant a lot of things, but I wish we had more room. We use toms a lot (fresh, sauce, cooking, etc) but they take up so much danged room! I got a lot of heirlooms last year, and wasn't thrilled by the results. I am buying paste and starting the seeds indoors and I hope for good results this year. I only had one paste plant (a san marzano) and I never got a tom off of it! I think the plant was diseased or something when I bought it.

We will hold onto our britches and hope for the best for 2011!! I have a good vibe about this year :) We are currently expecting our second son in April, so it will be a fun year for us regardless!