Price increases and shortages

[Zeedman]

My "garden shed" is a Rubbermaid, this is a "Keter". DD's gave me my shed as a Mother's Day gift some 5 years ago bc the wooden one (originally behind the tool shed) was falling apart.
EVERYTHING I keep in this stays dry 365 days/year. You could store probably 2, maybe 3 large garbage cans full of feed in this. My large garbage storage cans hold 250 pounds of feed each.
Just FYI and it is a good investment for just over $200.00

DD has a large plastic shed that she uses to store her mower & garden tools... squirrels chewed their way into it, probably hoping to find shelter (as they did in my wooden shed ). That could have been disastrous if there was anything edible there. Just an FWI.

 

[Phaedra]

Keep a sharp eye on it anyway, rats and mice can materialize out of nowhere it seems. ;-) We keep ours in metal cans. The dogs also really help deter them. My little 5 pound dog has come trotting back from the shed with many a prize.

I guess, no mice or rats would have a chance in the house with our five security officers - 3 dogs + 2 cats.

Once there was a small family of mice under one of the chicken runs, and some weeks later, they disappeared. We still had no idea who ate them, the hens who watched over them all the time, or the crows or the magpies who need to raise their next generation on the trees nearby.

 

[Phaedra]

The treasure hunt in the discounters will also continue. We also had some 50% off nice baked fish fillets for dinner.

 

[Dirtmechanic]

Wheat and grains are about to get out of control. The market will lose 25% or so worldwide with the ukraine thing. No planting this spring. Futures are doubling and tripling. Stock that flour while you can, Trade limit means the stock went up so high they shut off trading. This has been going on day after day after day.

Wheat continues surge toward all-time high as Russian invasion of Ukraine shuts down exports

Wheat futures trade limit higher again on Monday, continuing a surge toward all-time highs as Russia's invasion of Ukraine shuts off a key source of exports...

www.marketwatch.com

Also the only FDA approved supplier of potassium iodide is out of stock. This is what is used to protect the thyroid from radiation.

 

[jbosmith]

These aren't the cheap knockoffs currently lining hardware store shelves. Ball, Kerr, Bernardin, and Golden Harvest lids are all the same lids sold with different designs and in different areas.

I've canned a little over 8 dozen jars of beans and 20 something jars of red onion pickles in the last week without a failure. When I do I have the occasional jar that doesn't seal, the problem is almost always a small dent or twist in the band that I missed.

One word of caution about Golden Harvest that has nothing to do with the quality - the jars are metric and the middle of the jars are a little wider so they don't fit quite the same in canners.

FWIW I got curious after writing this and ordered some lids myself. They came today and have both Newell and Rubbermaid trademarks in various spots on the box.

 

[meadow]

FWIW I got curious after writing this and ordered some lids myself. They came today and have both Newell and Rubbermaid trademarks in various spots on the box.

Which ones did you order?

I purchased Superb in bulk during a sale last Fall. They look really nice. US made, sealant is thicker and wider than the current-day Ball lids.

 

[jbosmith]

Which ones did you order?

I purchased Superb in bulk during a sale last Fall. They look really nice. US made, sealant is thicker and wider than the current-day Ball lids.

Golden Harvest. They're a pretty standard brand for me since I live throwing distance from Canada. They're the same lids sold as Ball or Bernardin, but without the branding or designs taking up writing space, and for half the price. Pre-covid you could get them at IGAs in Quebec for $2/dozen on sale or $3 regular price which is about what they are on Amazon now. I haven't been to Canada since the border got complicated

FWIW, someone gave me some Uline branded lids last year that were good enough that I ordered more myself too. I don't know who makes them or how long they'll last but they were flawless for me.

 

[Artichoke Lover]

Gas is $4 a gallon here now.

I picked up some extra soap, seeds and fabric today.

Considering the price of food and the chaos going on I’m considering growing a bigger garden than I was planning this year. I don’t want to do the extra work again this year but I may end up doing it anyway. If not for my family maybe for others in the community. Probably close to I’ve already decided to repot instead of pinch off my extra seedlings. If I don’t need them I’ll give them away or sell them. So many people in our community were right at or below the poverty line precovid and food costs have already doubled and are on the rise.

 

[Phaedra]

Gas is $4 a gallon here now.

I picked up some extra soap, seeds and fabric today.

Considering the price of food and the chaos going on I’m considering growing a bigger garden than I was planning this year. I don’t want to do the extra work again this year but I may end up doing it anyway. If not for my family maybe for others in the community. Probably close to I’ve already decided to repot instead of pinch off my extra seedlings. If I don’t need them I’ll give them away or sell them. So many people in our community were right at or below the poverty line precovid and food costs have already doubled and are on the rise.

I am planning similar things. I would replenish the pantries in both houses this week with supplies for one year. Besides, I want to grow more food from seeds and other propagation methods.

Last year I mixed some very old seeds (most of them are Brassicas) with the wildflower seeds and compost. At the end, we have several wildflower patches for the pollinators and a nice amount of extra greens for the chickens. I am expecting that some of them, both wildflowers and veggies, would self-seed and grow this year. I also shared seedlings, cut flowers, veggies, and eggs with our neighbor, who like gardening. We take good care of ourselves and then see how further we can be helpful.

Yesterday I googled how can I use Norway spruce cones (there are so many falling from those 15-20 trees between our neighbor and us) and surprisingly learned that their young shoots and immature male cones are edible!

 

[ducks4you]

Sorry, I have a friend who moved here from FL and she was amazed that I could store 400 bales hay and 50 bales straw in my loft. She said that nobody in FL could store them in buildings bc of the humidity.
Gotta be a better way! Keep brainstorming!