Self Reliance

[QuantumJo]

There is solid evidence that there’s a correlation between atmospheric Co2 levels and average global temperature. To deny that the industrial revolution has played part in increasing Co2 levels is naive at best. But, that is far from the whole story on climate change. Many factors have a equal or greater influence on global temperature fluctuation. Precession of the earth axis (a wobble in the Earths axis), cosmic ray flux (the change in cosmic rays entering the Earths atmosphere), solar activity (solar flares and CME’s) and geological events like volcanic eruptions are a few of the known natural influences on global climate change.

There’s not much I can do to change the wobble of the Earth or prevent volcanos from erupting but I can reduce the amount of Co2 I dump in the atmosphere. This year I will have solar panels installed on my property that will provide 138% of my current electrical usage. Also in the spring my wife and I are getting a car that runs on electric only, for daily running around. The EV will reduce our gasoline consumption by about 1000 gallons per year. At some point I would like to drop our gasoline consumption to near zero.

This year I planted the largest garden that I have had to date. 28 tomato plants and 60 pepper plants. Next year I will be adding beans, cucumber, zucchini, yellow squash, broccoli, cauliflower, and lettuce. I am also looking into having some chickens for fresh meat.

Working to become more self reliant in the suburbs isn't so hard. It just takes time and commitment. At some point all the grass in my back yard will be replaced with plants that my family and I can eat.

[Clint Dixon]

There’s not much I can do to change the wobble of the Earth or prevent volcanos from erupting but I can reduce the amount of Co2 I dump in the atmosphere. This year I will have solar panels installed on my property that will provide 138% of my current electrical usage. Also in the spring my wife and I are getting a car that runs on electric only, for daily running around. The EV will reduce our gasoline consumption by about 1000 gallons per year. At some point I would like to drop our gasoline consumption to near zero.

This year I planted the largest garden that I have had to date. 28 tomato plants and 60 pepper plants. Next year I will be adding beans, cucumber, zucchini, yellow squash, broccoli, cauliflower, and lettuce. I am also looking into having some chickens for fresh meat.

Working to become more self reliant in the suburbs isn't so hard. It just takes time and commitment. At some point all the grass in my back yard will be replaced with plants that my family and I can eat.

The average person takes 21,600 breaths in a day. In doing so, they exhale approximately 8640 litres of air over that same time period - much of it Carbon Dioxide. One can reduce the amount of CO2 they are dumping into the atmosphere each day by simply breathing less.

To sum up - quit blowing so much hot air! ;^)

[Gordon Maney]

There’s not much I can do to change the wobble of the Earth or prevent volcanos from erupting but I can reduce the amount of Co2 I dump in the atmosphere. This year I will have solar panels installed on my property that will provide 138% of my current electrical usage. Also in the spring my wife and I are getting a car that runs on electric only, for daily running around. The EV will reduce our gasoline consumption by about 1000 gallons per year. At some point I would like to drop our gasoline consumption to near zero.

This year I planted the largest garden that I have had to date. 28 tomato plants and 60 pepper plants. Next year I will be adding beans, cucumber, zucchini, yellow squash, broccoli, cauliflower, and lettuce. I am also looking into having some chickens for fresh meat.

Working to become more self reliant in the suburbs isn't so hard. It just takes time and commitment. At some point all the grass in my back yard will be replaced with plants that my family and I can eat.

That will be a lot of tomatoes. I work with several people I learn have very large gardens. I admire those who do that. I am not sure I have the energy. It is an earnest and wholesome activity, however. Good job!

My attempt at helping the environment is in having planted about 6,000 trees at my place in my time here.

[QuantumJo]

Wow, thats a lot of trees. You must have a large chunk of land.
What kind of trees have you planted? Conifer, Deciduous?

[Bruce]

Reached 100 Degrees Here Today

Gordon Apple Seed? Good job on the planting Gordon.

[Rick Walker]

Self Reliance

Way to go Gordon, so much can and has been said about increased damage to the world we live in, but planting trees is something that benifits everyone and the beauty they provide ,the shelter for the animals we share our planet with and a wonderful gift we can leave for those who come after us. Rick Walker.

[Gordon Maney]

Wow, thats a lot of trees. You must have a large chunk of land.
What kind of trees have you planted? Conifer, Deciduous?

Both. Deciduous trees I have planted include walnut, oak in various species, maple, hickory, tulip poplar, and a smattering of other species.

Conifers include white pine, black hills spruce, blue spruce, norway spruce. Also scotch pine, but they are no longer a thing to plant due to their short lives, so I am thinning them out. I have hundreds of white pines I have to thin, too.

I have 15 acres, and I am about as planted as I can get. It has been my therapy these many years. It is a place in which to get lost. I would like one day to build a simple, little cabin out in it. A place to go with no phone or contact with the world.

I see it as my gift to the earth.

[Gordon Maney]

Thanks for the kind words. I have also planted some hundreds from seeds. It is a remarkable thing to see oak trees measuring 15-30 feet tall, knowing you pushed the acorn into the ground.

Yes, the wildlife. Every year since I started in 1979 there has been more and more.

[Alxj64]

This year I will have solar panels installed on my property that will provide 138% of my current electrical usage. Also in the spring my wife and I are getting a car that runs on electric only, for daily running around. The EV will reduce our gasoline consumption by about 1000 gallons per year.

A friend of mine just did this. We live fairly close to a large shopping center that is connected by little neighborhood side streets so he has an electric golf cart that he uses to get around locally to the grocery store, etc. The fact that you will be using solar to charge your car can jusitfy its existence in my book, and literally on paper. There are too many "trendy" people that are buying the larger EVs not realizing that the energy used to create the battery, and then the process of properly disposing the battery, along with the efficiency loss in a coal fired plant transmitting electricity to the charging point all creates more emissions than a small gasoline powered car obtaining around 30-40 mpg. You, however, are going about it in a much more efficent way but not using the coal fired electricity.

[Hobcobble]

This year I planted the largest garden that I have had to date. 28 tomato plants

Holy Toledo! I hope you like spaghetti. You'll need a big truck
to take the excess to market. That, or buy 24 gross worth of
quart Mason jars. ;)
John

[QuantumJo]

Both. Deciduous trees I have planted include walnut, oak in various species, maple, hickory...

Thats great Gordon. Re-establishing a forest on what I can only imagine was clear cut land is a great service to all of us. Not to mention how cool it must be to just wander around in it!

A friend of mine just did this...

The car I am looking at is the Nissan Leaf. It will be assembled in Smyrna, Tenn. and items like seat covers & carpets are made from recycled materials. The switch to an electric vehicle is mostly motivated by the operating cost of a gasoline powered vehicle. As a bonus the tree hugger in me also gets a little something.

Holy Toledo! I hope you like spaghetti.

We go through a lot of pasta and tomato sauce in the cooler months. I want to see if I can grow enough veggies in the summer to hold me until the following years harvest.

[Gordon Maney]

Yes, the wandering around experience is really great. Therapeutic.

[Bruce]

We go through a lot of pasta and tomato sauce in the cooler months. I want to see if I can grow enough veggies in the summer to hold me until the following years harvest.

This is a noble endeavor, I am jealous, the deer and critters eat almost everything we plant here, so it's 3,000 bales of hay/silage a growing season.
Thank goodness I don't have to participate in the haying op, in 26 years I've helped out 5 or 6 times! Our first growing season we had 40 plus tomato plants I made so much gravy.............

[Charles Talbert]

Even bigger benefit

Not only is the vegetable garden great exercise for anyone who may not participate in much stenious activity, and a money saver at the grocery store, it also eliminates the untold long list of additives, insectacide residue, and bacteria, etc that may be in the processed veggies purchased at stores; many of which are from outside the US these days.

[QuantumJo]

That has also been a concern of my wife and I. Especially when feeding my young daughter. We're also suspicious of meat products we buy. Free range only for my daughter.