SCP Survival

Best Survival Gear and Supplies

Pallet Gardening

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Spring is here. ‘Tis the season to be…….gardening!!

A neighbor friend told me about a method of gardening using pallets. The premise is placing a pallet on the ground, filling it with soil, and then planting vegetables and herbs between the planks of the pallet.

Pallet Gardening

This is not something that I have tried myself – but looks interesting. Anything that gets more people growing their own food is good by me. Many of the examples that I have seen people doing have some material laid under the pallet to minimize grass and weed growth through the pellet. Potting soil is often used – which is generally weed free.

Gardening in Pallets

Other than laying the pallet flat – a vertical garden is established by leaning the pallet up against a structure – building, wall, tree…..whatever. Soil is kept within the pallet by placing landscaping fabric along the back.

Pallet gardening looks to be a great idea – especially for those with minimal space.

Should You Help Your Friends and Neighbors During A Disaster?

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It is so easy to say that you’ll turn away someone when they come calling – until it happens. My daughter’s friend has issues. She is a walking disaster in many ways.

She was a teacher until persuaded by her husband to go into business together in a restaurant. He had both restaurant experience and business experience so it wasn’t an unreasonable thing to do. But it didn’t work and they lost all the capital they had built up over the years.

Under the stress her bipolar disorder flared. He couldn’t cope and started to beat her up. They separated and each took a rented place and shared custody of the children. He got adequate work and is able to support his lifestyle. She, with her mental health issues has had ongoing problems with employment.

Now the friend has been away from teaching for so long she cannot get back into it for various reasons relating to registration and the local teaching culture. While the economy was good she was able to get work. Now it is tightening the work she used to get is no longer there. The government support only pays $10 a week more than the cost of her rent in one of the lowest cost suburbs so she is not paying her utility bills.

It is only a matter of time before she has the power and water turned off and then is thrown out of her place for not paying rent (she is still paying it at the moment, but only just).

The stress is making her mental health condition much worse than it need be. She is difficult to tolerate for more than one day at a time, given her personality issues that she has been working hard on for years. There is no way my daughter wants to have her friend living with her but the friend’s father refuses to have her also and there is no other accommodation for low income families.

Now when the inevitable happens and this friend and her two young children are turned out of the house what is going to happen? She will turn up next door at my daughters place as her father is so unpleasant towards her.

We have already had a conversation about it and my daughter is prepared to put her up on a one day a week basis for a limited time. Then she will be hard hearted and send her around to her father’s place to sleep in the car outside his place if he won’t let them in. She has turned this friend away before when the demand was too great so I think this will be possible.

This is just the first step to things being difficult for so many. Apparently we have around thirty families in our immediate community who are living like this and who have to seek public assistance to eat.

Part of me wants to be angry and blame them for getting into this mess in the first place through making bad decisions. Part of me is very aware that when jobs are difficult to get, and  “appropriate care” for children costs what this mother could get for working.

As a society we no longer support such parents though we find money to remove the children and put them into foster care, often in circumstances worse than they would be with a mother with mental health issues who is working. The court awarded custody to the father at weekends as he was “working”. So was she and she had to pay for child care so she could bring in enough to feed them and provide a bed, a shower and toilet during her days of care.

This is not yet a SHTF scenario, but it will be shortly as it already is for the 30 odd local families in this situation.

And as a society we have to live with the consequences of having children poorly fed and without housing. I don’t know where they go and I don’t want to know (yes, I know being ostrich-like with my head in the sand is not a good idea). I just know that as the economy worsens and as people with poor health no longer have social support that things will get more and more dire for so many.

I have made a decision that with so many poor people the best I can do is not to be one of them, using up the limited resources that are there. My husband and I have to pay off our mortgage and support our daughter and her two children who live next door.

I’m here to make it easy for her to work at a reasonably well paid job by being the “slack in the system” providing child care when it is needed, looking after them when they are sick and helping out when things get difficult so she is able to continue to work. My husband was only five minutes away when someone smashed into our daughter’s car and he was able to support her to do all the things that needed to be done.

We could also help to get her to the train station and back again while the insurance people took their time about paying out so she could get another car. Her work and hence her income was unaffected. Family resources made life much more manageable in a difficult week.

Frankly we don’t have the time, energy or resources to help every family in dire need in the community. By having strong bonds we can, however support our own family and make sure we are prepared for what is coming.

I feel torn that we cannot help this woman more. But we have to realistic and I think the friend will appreciate boundaries early on in the situation so she can have ongoing support. She is not unaware, having done a lot of personal work and she knows that the most that people can manage to have her around is about three days.

I think she would appreciate having one day a week in a house with toilet and shower rather than four days and then be chucked out forever. But what when this is not an isolated incident, albeit number 31 in our district? What when the numbers and suffering become so great that something has to give and these people stop being reasonably polite?

The 4 Types of Emergency Food You Need

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I watched “Doomsday Preppers” once, they showed 3 or 4 different people who were preparing for 3 or 4 different “Doomsday Scenarios”. I understand that every week presents new scenarios with new people showing their solutions. Now, I have the privilege of talking to a dozen different “preppers” everyday and each of them has a different idea of what “Doomsday” will look like, consequently everyone has a different preparation priority list. While I can’t fit each person into some category of sorts, I can give some broad examples of expectations and offer advice on food solutions for each situation.

First, Weather Disasters: earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, tornadoes, forest fires, floods, snow/ice storms, normally fairly short term. Some folks have been or know someone who has been affected by weather disasters OR live in an area where natural disasters are a distinct possibility.

In such circumstances, life is in absolute turmoil as public services are down, water is contaminated and rescue personnel are working overtime. I have to ask, “If your house has just been washed away, are you going to be sitting in a rubber raft with 200 pounds of rice and dry beans?” “If you are stranded in your car, buried under 6 feet of snow will you be boiling water to fix dinner?” “If you are on your way to the family retreat when your car breaks down, do you want to carry 40 quarts of home canned beets for the next 20 miles (possibly two days)?”

In these predicaments, Survival Food is optimal. Survival food is lightweight, compact, high in calories, vitamins and minerals, can be stored in just about any conditions and requires NOTHING to prepare.

In weather disasters or temporary situations of civil unrest where you are confined to the home, office or storm shelter, emergency Food is also applicable. These would be prepackaged entrées that require water and heat to prepare. It should be noted that while these prepackaged entrées are extremely quick and easy to prepare, they generally provide less than 200 calories per serving and are intended to be served with other food, ie. Salad, bread, drink and a dessert. A food storage of easy to prepare items from the grocery store, that are used regularly makes eating at home no different than any other day providing you have the means to cook them.

Second, Personal Financial Setback instigated by job loss, unfavorable changes in the stock market, illness, or death in the family. As companies regularly conduct lay-offs or choose to close the doors of American facilities only to then open production facilities overseas, oft times people are witness to their formerly “professional” neighbor suddenly delivering pizza and they thus begin to brace themselves for a similar situation.

One customer told me about his car engine seizing and his personal circumstances snowballed downhill from there. An older couple lost a significant amount of money in stocks, reducing their monthly retirement income. Whatever the details, it’s a personal disaster.

These situations call for food storage which can be full cupboards of grocery store goods that are used normally, home canned or dehydrated food, emergency food, long term storable food or a combination thereof (if looking for a good starting place, check out this really thorough survival food list).

Third, Food Shortages caused by drought, floods, world demand or oil prices, economic depression without total collapse causing hyperinflation and/or an increase in crime causing food outlet closures. The possibility of food or other resource shortage is reported on fairly regularly even in the main stream media.

There has been a return to gardening and home canning over the past 10 years because this is the prediction made by most “preppers” I talk to. GMOs, pesticides, additives and preservatives have played their part in influencing these people as well, but the greatest influence has been the rising cost of food in conjunction with the fear of food shortages on a macro scale.

The potential for wide spread food shortages is also the best reason for having a long term food storage. The classical definition of Long Term Food Storage is: individual ingredients packaged in bulk in airtight containers to be stored for decades. I harbor intense concern for those who have never cooked “from scratch”, and anticipate using these products for the first time under duress. My most emphatic advice is to learn to use flour before you start grinding wheat.

Fourth, Paradigm Shifting Events such as wide spread economic collapse, an EMP type event, biological warfare or/and prolonged civil unrest even to the point of civil war. This is absolutely “Doomsday”, SHTF or TEOTWAWKI.

Every type of food would have its place in one of these scenarios. Ideally, the long term food supply would be used in conjunction with the garden and other ingredients from the cupboard providing the widest variety and greatest nutrition. When planning a Long Term Food Supply, one must consider the number of people to be fed and for what length of time, the ability to grow adequate fruits, vegetables and livestock, what additional ingredients are required to produce an end product, and how many calories are provided by each item being stored.

Emergency Food would be used in much the same way DiGiorno, Stouffers and Sara Lee are now, for variety, when things are hectic, time is short or the cook is exhausted. Survival Food would be a necessity for those on guard duty or a mission away from home.

In a nutshell, these are the definitions one must apply for their food supply planning:

  1. For a short term disastrous event: Pantry Food – requiring no preparation.
  2. For a relatively short term emergency: Emergency Food – requiring minimal resources and preparation.
  3. For all other scenarios including an extended personal crisis: Long Term Storable Food, a necessity as a stand alone supply or to balance other sources – requiring water, a method for cooking and time to prepare.
  4. For the longest term and ultimate sustainability, we have to rely on God and the garden. Home Canning has sustained many generations. With economic trends on a down turn, there is no time like the present to start gardening and learning to preserve food at home.

To be truly prepared you need a complete food storage system that will keep you nourished under any circumstances.

DIY Elderberry Syrup [Recipe]

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You Will Need:

  • ½ cup elderberries, dried
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 5 cloves
  • 1 TBSP freshly grated ginger
  • 2 cups clean water
  • 1 cup RAW, unfiltered honey

Directions:

  1. Put all in a saucepan EXCEPT honey.
  2. Bring to a boil, then turn it down to simmer.
  3. Simmer, covered, until liquid reduces by one-half (about 20-30 minutes).
  4. Strain liquid into a glass bowl.
  5. Squish all the good juice out of berries through sieve/strainer.
  6. Gently whisk in your honey.

You can make this with fresh or frozen berries, but use a full cup of berries, rather than the half cup dried. Store in a closed glass jar in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. This only keeps for a couple of weeks, so make a small batch at a time from your stored ingredients.

Elderberries have been a folk remedy for centuries in North America, Europe, Western Asia, and North Africa, hence the medicinal benefits of elderberries are being investigated and rediscovered. Bioflavonoids and other proteins in the juice destroy the ability of cold and flu viruses to infect a cell.

Used for its antioxidant activity, to lower cholesterol, improve vision, boost the immune system, improve heart health and for coughs, colds, flu, bacterial and viral infections and tonsilitis. Elderberry juice was used to treat a flu epidemic in Panama in 1995.

People with the flu who took elderberry juice reported less severe symptoms and felt better much faster than those who did not.

Elderberries contain organic pigments, tannin, amino acids, carotenoids, flavonoids, sugar, rutin, viburnic acid, vitamin A and B and a large amount of vitamin C. They are also mildly laxative, a diuretic, and diaphoretic. Flavonoids, including quercetin, are believed to account for the therapeutic actions of the elderberry flowers and berries.

Experimenting with Potato Planting Methods

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Up here in the North Country, Good Friday is the traditional date that we plant potatoes. Although I can’t see it happening this year with 18 inches of snow on the ground, frozen ground (Not the same, sometimes snow keeps the frost from entering the soil.), and just an occasional 40 degree day.

But potatoes are a mainstay in my garden.

We aren’t Irish, but it seems that potatoes enter a meal almost daily at our house—mashed potatoes, fried potatoes, baked potatoes, boiled potatoes, au gratin potatoes, potato soup, potatoes and creamed peas, you get the picture. POTATOES!

Potatoes are comparatively easy to grow and keep well. The only thing I don’t like about potatoes is digging them!

Experimenting with the Cage Method

Last year I tried the cage method with potatoes. Create a wire ring (I used 2×4 wire I had laying around.) about 2 feet across, plant your potatoes in a ring around the outside with the eye facing out and fill with light soil and compost, even straw or hay will work.

Layer upon layer, I got about 3 feet high. Wow, did I have potato foliage, but not too many potatoes. However, in all honesty, I think I let them get too dry at times. This method leaves a lot of area for moisture to evaporate from the soil. So was the lack of success me or the method?

What would I do differently? I think this year (As I have the cage already.) I might invest in a length of 6 inch PVC pipe and a cap. Drill holes up and down it, insert into the center of the ring and keep it filled with water.

Experimenting with the Bin Method

I also experimented with the “bin” method. Use an indeterminate potato (Russet flower all season long hence indeterminate.) and keep covering the plant as it grows leaving 6-8 inches of the top out of the soil. Worked okay in a bucket, not so good in a wire cage. Again, I think it was moisture given the drought year.

Growing Potatoes in Buckets

However, cutting the bottom out of a five gallon bucket and planting the potato in there and covering it seems to work! I only did a couple last year, but this year I plan to do more. What worked for me last year was 2-6 gallon buckets. I cut the bottom off with a circular saw, then cut the bucket in half—loved the two with the handles! Set on turned ground, put seed potato in eye up and cover with 8 to 10 inches of light soil. Tip over in the fall and gather your golden nuggets!

I have a new area of the garden that I am turning this year. I’m thinkin’ that what I am goin’ do is trench the potato row, put the buckets in side by side and use the trenched dirt to fill them. That should conserve on water if it is another dry year and save my back from both turning and bringing in coverage soil. But we’ll see!

Safety With Gun Magazines

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M2 Carbine Mag

When I was a youth and enlisted in the Army, my usual firearms were single shot, double barrel, revolver or pump action and not a box magazine fed unit. My first experience was during training when I first fired the little M1 carbine. Lovely little weapon and I still love it today but, here is where it had gotten intense.

We were issued according to what we were carrying and if you had the M1 carbine you got 15 round magazines and if you had the M2 fully automatic version you got 30 round magazines. Being an old snap shooting country woods boy, two things immediately became clear. Unless I was in one hell of a firefight backed up by persons on both sides of me, I would never use the automatic enabled version because common sense told me that would be where the opponents fire would be concentrated immediately.

Desiring to preserve my hide, I objected to the tactics being taught and was hauled off to the rifle range where I was provided with the opportunity to fire for record every shoulder arm and pistol in the Army’s inventory.

I fired Expert with everything they threw at me that day and when the results were compared to my structured range and tactics records there seemed to be a great difference in results. I confided in the drill sergeant that I did not understand the windage adjustment on the rifles and when I applied what is known as Kentucky windage, unless they checked and saw that indeed my windage adjustment had not been made, I was not counted as making the shot.

They quickly told me that I was just fine the way I was and they would be happy to share a foxhole with me and that use of the windage adjustment was optional and for people who really were not shooters. This stuck in my memory and when discussing the M2 carbine and my reluctance to use it in that manner, they wanted to know if I saw anything else objectionable about it.

I said I had observed that the magazine protruded so low from the weapon that special care had to be taken in assuming a prone position to prevent damage to the magazine and this require extra time in assuming a prone position and increased the possibility of getting hit. After a short demonstration in which two magazines were damaged and would not feed the entire thirty rounds and also were difficult to remove from the weapon because of the damage, my thoughts on the subject were recorded and passed around.

Various shooters of the carbine had proven that the fifteen round magazine could be changed much more quickly and could be done in a full prone position without exposing yourself and you could not do this with the thirty round magazine. From then on until the retirement of that fine little weapon, anywhere I went while in the Army and was assigned a carbine, the option of six thirty round magazines or twelve fifteen round magazines were offered. I invariably chose the fifteen round magazines and left half of them still in their protective packaging in my pack as long as I was so armed.

After leaving the service I had given to me a fine looking lever action Winchester that had only one thing wrong with it–It would only accept three rounds in the magazine. The outer tube appeared free of damage and I acquired through a gun shop in Terra Haute, a completed magazine tube, spring and follower which, when installed, showed a bad kink in the follower spring which prevented loading more than the three rounds.

Second incident was a Remington Nylon 66 that had gotten damaged when a truck door was shut on it and crushed the magazine tube. Then this happened with a Marlin 60 which had been dropped. All of these things were repairable, except not at the moment when I needed it the most, but were rendered useless until parts arrived.

This colored my judgment since then and I have settled on ten round magazines for my Marlin 995 carbine which feed flawlessly, held enough ammunition for that follow up four rounds to the same vulnerable place theory which has stood me in good stead for years. It is easy to assume a prone position with this magazine inserted, it does not protrude lower than the heel of the stock and keeping extra loaded magazines on hand ensures that I have a recharge readily available if needed.

The fifteen round magazine sold by various people was junk to start with and was quickly damaged by a grandson on our first test. Added to the fact that since the 22 rim fire is a rimmed round the magazines can not be offset like a rimless round and therefore are not loadable from a stripper clip if any existed since it has to be loaded from front to back and depressing the spring when the last few are loaded is a real bear. Unless you have a slotted magazine with the stripper tool that depresses the magazine spring and follower for you along during the loading.

After trying all of the tests I have mentioned here, the ex-friend said that indeed all of this was so and a person just was well have an AR15 with which I agreed, except if you really needed a 22. He said if you really needed a .22, one with a smaller magazine would work just fine, to which I agreed. He was so mad when he realized he had outpointed himself he stormed off stating that he would never talk to me again. I should have just stayed sick.