I Survived 30 Days on Gardening, Fishing, Foraging & Bartering

[@aslandus]

That apocalypse potluck really puts into perspective how important holiday feasts would've been for people before supermarkets were a thing. Most of the time, you'd be eating what you could get or trade for, but a few times a year you could get together with friends and family and really enjoy a bountiful variety of foods you might not normally have access to.

[@averageday]

Completely agree!

[@kellysoo]

100% accurate reasoning here.

[@kalanimuncan9807]

I had a heart attack reading this

[@D_A_D_]

Man, the community aspect of this really shows how our ancestors depended on each other and our different strengths and weaknesses to fulfill the needs of the group

[@_EllieLOL_]

As President Hoover said, Trust in your fellow man

[@buktababe]

Yes! Building self-reliance is a great goal, but humans survived this long because of their relationships with each other!

[@anthonybeervor2265]

That is the ultimate fallacy of the American doomsday preppers: their belief in the ideology of American individualism.

[@LilyAurora9]

@@anthonybeervor2265 They all think they can be Rambo and run off into the woods and survive. They have a hard time trusting anyone else.

[@hdaviator9181]

@@anthonybeervor2265 Lets see how open these people will be to sharing and giving away free fruits and vegetables when its a real survival situation. This so called "American Individualism" is just self reliance and self responsibility.

[@rancisgamer]

This is the part that some prepers and apocalypse movies skip as having no value but its the part that keeps everyone in the movie alive. 👍🏿 well done

[@epicgardening]

There needs to be a movie about it

[@baverchr]

@@epicgardening The Martian! :P

[@jessicarenee1004]

Right? Ok Kevin... when can we expect the movie to drop..? lol

[@_EllieLOL_]

Yea, eventually your supplies will run out Having 20 years worth of freeze-dried food sitting underground in your bunker is great, but what will you do once that runs out

[@_EllieLOL_]

B. Brown and if it isn’t? What if it’s cobalt bombs? Those last 175 years before the area becomes habitable again What if it’s a bio weapon that kills 85% of humanity and there’s no one left to rebuild society? Both are highly unlikely but still possible Yes if you’re strong you can survive without it, but the prepared will thrive :)

[@tami1100]

There should be a set month where people throughout the country do this every year. I would love to be a part of it in my local area. It would definitely get people out there in the garden and get everybody thinking about the hard work and where their foods come from. Thank you so much for sharing this journey with us! I'm super inspired!

[@veldtwalker]

I would be for that! And rotate what season it is in as well, especially here in Canada.

[@xvgonzales]

same

[@tauceti8341]

I like the idea but all at once would really deplete the natural sources. All in moderation! :-)

[@kelhawk1]

An Idea came to me back in the 70's for our group of hippie friends to have a "Fast or Forage Weekend", once a month, where we choose how and where to have a primitive camping experience, but bring no food. The goal would be to continue the monthly schedule, rain or shine, through the winter as well, and likely have to go hungry once in awhile...I explained to the circle of blank stares...

[@timmafee0]

99% of people would starve

[@mrmrlee]

We recently added 4 chickens to our yard which has a garden, they provide 3-4 eggs daily and consume garden and weed scraps. In turn they provide excellent fertilizer, with very little expense or effort on our part. I heartily recommend chickens to anyone considering improving their preps.

[@rogerajohnson6495]

My wife grew up on a dairy farm in Arkansas. Her family was pretty self sufficient. They did buy sugar, flour, corn meal, coffee and tea. Her mother did know how to grind corn and wheat if she had to. She also knew how to forage for wild food which they did that a lot. I feel that my wife could survive if she had to because of what she learned from her family. She still does these things.

[@Lyphgerd]

As someone who lives in such a rural area in the middle of no where, my first thought was "this is such a dumb challenge" since all of this stuff is a bit easier to get (like hunting, fishing, farming) but as I kept watching I didn't realize all the roadblocks you have to face with living in such a big city like that with the space like that. Is is a true challenge. Every day is a different challenge within itself and it just got more and more interesting how you did it. I was absolutely hooked by the end of it and wanted more! You sir have earned a subscriber.

[@KristenRobertskris10lr]

@Southern Fern and the zombies, the zombies wouldn’t help at all

[@Liliarthan]

@@KristenRobertskris10lr yes, how can one possibly balance defending against zombies and doing all this work. You definitely need to group up and diversify.

[@marianne3024]

This is really cool! I live in the middle of nowhere, fully off grid, And unless I want to eat Squirrels and rabbit (I can live off chicken eggs though), it’s not that fun to live off stored food. Plus I can’t yet make vodka lol I can forage but where I live now, there’s pretty much nothing in summer. We just started a garden so we Don’t have much production yet. We do have wild boar around here though but no fish for many miles. That’s one thing I wish we had close. I do trade eggs for produce right now. And occasional grains. I can’t imagine living in the city anymore. I had to temporarily back in 2014 and it was horrible.

[@abyssal_phoenix]

Well, I accidentally planted a potato in my raised bed which I left alone this year to become an ecosystem. When I threw potato peels in for food for the worms and etc. There was 1 potato in there, it hasn’t been watered since early April, and it has been hot and dry for 2 months. All weeds died, the potatoes thrived. So I think potatoes are my goal for growing. Being resilient and adaptive is needed when you want a crop in the climate change, our weather is pretty unpredictable. (Btw new potatoes are starting to grow already)

[@yourmichigangarden]

Wow!

[@benabele3552]

What zone are you in?

[@abyssal_phoenix]

@@benabele3552 7a i think But the weather usually doesnt follow the rules of the climate zones😂

[@benabele3552]

I’m in 7a as well. I’m new to gardening but I think the key is finding what works through experience.

[@sleepyninjarin7971]

I planted potatoes in Australia... they are all dried out and dead after being watered every day

[@kristophjj17]

This is what I remember most from my childhood. My family was in a rough spot financially for awhile so we lived with my grandparents out in the countryside of PA and had a big garden that produced most of our food. We had chickens for eggs, and my dad and Poppop would hunt and fish for our main source of protein. My Grammy taught me how to preserve fruit and veggies through canning and pickling for the winter months and we always had deep freeze full of venison and fish that we'd trade with our farmer neighbors for beef and chicken. I'm almost 24 now and I can't wait to start my own massive garden again once I buy a home and leave apartment life behind!

[@hellodarling9073]

That right there, is my childhood. I grew up in the village, post war conditions (during '90s), without good financial source. Growing food, having farm animals and helping out my parents was my lifestyle for a while. No internet, no social media, no advanced technology. I miss it, it was so much simpler and I remember being a happy kid without having much stuff and how united our comunity was. This video reminded me of that. Thank you.

[@amandadebara8612]

Now that your in your own house you should do another apocolypse challenge once your settled in your bigger space! See what you can do with all the space you will have. lots more potatoes, but lost of other stuff too now!

[@catnipaddict88]

That would be awesome

[@thatsalt1560]

I think he needs at least some chickens first, or a pretty gigantic field of beans. Isn't he growing avocado trees? I'd wait for that one too.

[@mikiwilliams4133]

@@thatsalt1560 avocado takes like 5 years to fruit so unless he started them in pots a few years back he wouldn't have avos to eat

[@cozycasasmr4510]

The boiled rock 😂😂

[@Jreichh]

And he almost burned himself holding it haha

[@octaviusgalacticus2253]

Hahaha

[@teresabritton1396]

Read the story of " Stone Soup"

[@blackwing1071]

@@teresabritton1396 yes

[@roymakescomics]

@@teresabritton1396 try cooking it. Quite delicious actually.

[@epicgardening]

Hope you guys love this, here are your timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 1:57 - Rules 3:18 - Body Composition Before 3:50 - Growing Strategy 5:52 - Day 1 7:37 - Grunion Runs 10:55 - Foraging, Bartering, Fishing 15:31 - Mulberry Foraging 17:48 - Silver Play Button :) 19:20 - Apocalypse Potluck 22:17 - Body Composition After 23:40 - Closing Thoughts

[@generaldiego]

Where's the time stamp you running into water in your underwear? Ha great video man! I've always wanted to try similar or supplement over here in Columbus, Ohio and in apt so def challenges

[@Jreichh]

You had me at 0:00

[@Jreichh]

You made a mistake around 24:00 about trading potatoes for eggs but you traded kumquats at 17:00

[@imogenekoch2151]

You might want to pin this, in my comment section it is like 10 comments down

[@Luna_77723]

Pin it please I'm begging youuuuuuu

[@nehasanghvi7245]

You can try to barter some coconuts and use dry coconut flakes instead of bottled oil, they release their own oil and add flavour to the food

[@Kiterpuss]

I was thinking about using some kind of nuts or even bartering for some lard or butter! But I'm from a rural part of the US where hunting and cows are easy to find

[@SK-he5yj]

Unfortunately, Coconuts don't grow here in San Diego. It is too dry here. The tree can grow but it will never fruit...

[@farisasmith7109]

Cool challenge. Really shows how important community is. Even now my neighbor and always have something to pass over the fence. If everyone shares something no one should go hungry.

[@marylandj3228]

I've seen someone do this as a vegan challenge but actually watching this one with eggs and fish seems more like something I'd eventually try. I'm new at gardening and I want to thank you so much for your videos.

[@epicgardening]

You're welcome!

[@ryno4ever433]

I can't imagine someone trying to do this as vegan or even vegetarian. It would be damn near impossible to fulfill your nutrient and calorie requirements in this way. Those diets work because of our modern advancements. I say this as a vegetarian. If the apocalypse hit, my vegetarianism would go out the window so fast.

[@cinnamonsparrowdesigns]

@@ryno4ever433 I'm mostly plant based too and I agree. Eggs and fish would be as far as I'd prob go for animal protein but it would be hard to get sufficient calories to eat only plants probably. I def love my frozen Gardein stuff and ready made tofu too much haha

[@ryno4ever433]

@@cinnamonsparrowdesigns Yea, I use plant based meat sometimes but I rely on it less nowadays. I definitely make use of a lot of heavily processed things like breads and pasta though (who doesn't). This wouldn't be feasible in this situation without some very hard work, very specific planning, a large plot of land, and help from other people.

[@liriodendronlasianthus]

It's funny because vegan options that can cover my protein and fat intake don't grow where I live, they're expensive to import. Where I am, we have an easier time accessing eggs and fish. One time, I did some math on a nutritious vegan diet vs a regular one, an angry vegan started berating me for "not trying hard enough" and that I might as well eat my own dog. Part of the reason I made that post is because I am on disability and I still earn a minimum wage in a small Asian town. I don't drive and I am dependent on family members to get groceries. I have peers who have been able convert to veganism successfully, I am happy that they're able to do so. Personally, I just can't do it yet.

[@homesteadgamer1257]

21:51 This part right here really (the whole barter process entirety, too, but specifically this timestamp) emphasizes how important it is to have community. No matter how small, if one person each has a "specialty" in their home or garden that they can barter, everyone in the community will thrive no matter where you live. It's good for everyone to know how to forage and garden and fish and hunt, BUT if each person is slightly better at one aspect than the others, you will never lack, and in times of hardship, the community is there to pull you back up.

[@whereswipa2268]

This is one of my favorites videos. I’m a pro-foraging, survival enthusiast. I am in the process of learning what’s safe to eat within my area (Tampa). I’ve been harvesting edible weeds from the community garden…well I’m still here 😊 my friends think I’m nuts but there’s so much food “just growing”. Thank you for a fun video. I may do a test run of 1-week just eating from the garden. I did an only cook what’s in your freezer and pantry. As a clean out and a way of not buying groceries for a week. I’ll do it again!!

[@amber19619]

Have a question if you decide to do this again have you thought of bartering services for food such as helping someone clean the coop for eggs or helping a bee keeper chores for honey for example? So glad to see this video! Love your channel keep up the good work.

[@epicgardening]

Yeah I think I would probably do something like that!

[@-whackd]

I bartered my time at the office for $300 one day, then I bartered the $300 for a month's worth of groceries.

[@AlonzoWhite]

I just started following you a couple months ago. Your short documentary was intriguing and compelling. I loved your ground rules. I loved your take-aways, particularly as it pertained to the value of mutually supporting, like-minded friends and neighbors. All in all, I felt very inspired! Thanks for sharing!!

[@epicgardening]

Thank you for watching Alonzo!

[@jeffreystewart9809]

Did this back in 2018 and it was one of the most rewarding experiences ever. I was able to raise rabbits and had a garden to support what I foraged, caught and bartered for. I'm planning on doing it again this year and have an actual homestead to support it.

[@songbirdJ1]

You really hit on a topic that resonates with me. I'm helping put together a community food forest in my county, and I'm beginning to forge a career as a permaculture designer and educator, so the aspect of community really struck me in this video. My goal is to show people what is possible, and the abundance you all shared is exactly the kind of experience I would love to see become commonplace in our society.

[@kan-zee]

Being a Solo *Lone Wolf Prepper gardener* is a fantasy..... *Community unity cooperation* is the True survival way... Did you get any food fatigue...(tired of eating the same produce) every day ??

[@epicgardening]

Totally did. I was so sick of potatoes

[@abyssal_phoenix]

Epic Gardening impossible in the Netherlands. We eat 5 days a week potatoes 😂.

[@christineherrmann205]

@@epicgardening if you were alone on Mars...

[@mburgers1964]

@@abyssal_phoenix yep, cook, fry, bake, roast you name it!

[@abyssal_phoenix]

M Burgers I’m mostly a fan of baked and deep fried potatoes. I need mayonaise or veggie with my cooked ones, otherwise I don’t really enjoy it

[@Iamfeartheviper]

i would be really interested if you did this again, since you have a larger garden now. A season 2 of this would be cool, Love this concept.

[@acolley2891]

No wonder people in rural areas around the world revolve their lives around food...they HAVE to!

[@Superbug-tf8zy]

i mean, everyone needs food

[@wcskeleton1388]

Superbug 3003 dont be ridiculous

[@megaanny1]

The stone in the potatoes reminds me of the fairytale of the soupstone. In that tale a traveller starts boiling a stone in a pot of water. He tells everyone he has a special soupstone that makes the tastiest soup. He allows people to taste it, if they bring some veggies, herbs or meats for the soup. More and more people add things. In the end the traveller removes the stone and everyone shares the soup full of good veggies. They have a lovely meal together. The next day he goes to the next town and picks up another rock along the road.

[@ecto78]

This is so cool!! I love bartering and foraging when I can!! My neighbor lets me forage blackberries from her yard. I actually made a cobbler from some frozen berries from her yard the other day. Yum!!

[@seanbernardo4067]

Sorry Kevin I lied to you I said you’d have 600k subs by Wednesday It’s only Monday...this is a result of how badass you truly are..congrats my guy

[@epicgardening]

How dare you lie to me bro!

[@kellyy4525]

This is so the way my Dad grew up. I love that you did this and shared it with us all. Just the idea of prepping ahead just makes me realize how important it is to "prep ahead" for whatever may be in the future. I'm just getting started really growing vegetables and it's so rewarding and I'm sharing with my 86/84 year old parents now! Cycle of life :-)

[@thombaz]

In a situation like this I would chose to only grow Pepsi and Cheese.

[@ericfricke4512]

Cheese trees are SO finicky.

[@PeelyFishy]

Lol

[@Mapstom2018]

@@ericfricke4512 You just need to Veg them for a while so that you can get some larger cheese production sights.

[@kjb6606]

You can’t forget the chetos and pizza

[@sciencewizard2861]

@@Mapstom2018 how to make sure that those pesky Mouse bugs don't get them

[@silentthunder2108]

I literally laughed out loud when you boiled that stone.

[@epicgardening]

LOL me too

[@katballou6316]

Chanell Barker good source of minerals

[@PromisedJubilee]

It's like that children's book "Stone Soup"! Highly recommend!

[@KristenRobertskris10lr]

@@PromisedJubilee my teacher made stone soup for my class, wasn’t half bad except for the kid who vomited on the carpet

[@Serial8killer69]

I’ve laughed a lot also, and remembered, in my country there is a very famous delicious and traditional soup that traditionally has a big rock in it, the soup is called “sopa da pedra” that literally means “rock soup”… you should check it out!

[@Katemazing4]

I'm doing my first attempt at growing this year and I've been showing my family your videos to get us all educated along the way! Now we're growing over 20 different things to see what we can do best!!! Love your content and I'm happy I found your channel!!!! Thanks for the help with my green thumb!!

[@epicgardening]

That's so awesome!

[@tanluwils1736]

Thanks for sharing this experience with us man. I'd love to participate in something like that sometime. It seems like it's one of those things where it takes a village to support each individual within it. Also, huge congrats Kevin on reaching 100,000! You deserve it!

[@epicgardening]

Thanks so much!

[@brandoncomeau130]

Kevin you’re the only one i seen brave enough to attempt this and put their green thumb where their confidence and mouth is. Thank you for the family friendly content, the honesty and the willing desire to share ypur knowldge with ppl like me, My brother, my homie much live buddy 💪🏽💪🏽❤️

[@solo8430]

I would like to just say thank you for this, you really put the thought alot of us has been tossing around into realistic terms and scenarios. The value of community I believe was the most overlooked and underrated asset to surviving...and the boiled rock was hilarious

[@joshuahebert4914]

I'm with you on preferring the mulberries over blackberries.

[@kelhawk1]

Like the quality of these videos, a mulberry pie cannot be beat.

[@cheryllovestoread]

Very very interesting! I’m in Central CA and of course my first thought was how many people I know with fruit rotting on their trees and falling into their yards. So, I was all over the fruit, no problem. (And mulberries ARE delicious fresh and dried too. Great little nutritional powerhouse!) But, alas, we can’t live on fruit alone. I realized that I didn’t know many other gardeners that I could barter with. So I truly agree that living in community is the safest strategy, both from malnutrition and zombies!! One other thing that you said in one of the clips in passing, is that finding your daily food took lots of time! I don’t think the average person realizes the energy it takes just to subsist when you are, say, homeless. Or living on very few dollars/food stamps. When your body is truly hungry and your next meal doesn’t exist until you walk to find it, it gives you a whole new perspective on being poor. As always, I’m grateful to live in a climate that really does feed the world. Californians have an abundance all around them. I appreciate you walking us through your challenge. Great video & congrats on your KZbin Play Button. Well deserved!

[@stephfitti]

Mulberry trees as decorative foliage is something very comon in Brazil. My childhood memories are filled with long walks, eating mulberries with my friends and homemade mulberry jam. Hahahah

[@noveltystylus6703]

In my DnD games, this kind of challenge would eventually lead into someone trading blood to a witch for a handful of potatoes.

[@evilgizmo1410]

I mean....it can be used as an egg substitute

[@daniellek808]

This was great, it’s not easy to grow everything. Good to have friends.

[@funnytime1111]

This is great information considering the current situation, we may actually need these resources soon. Thank you!

[@cfiocco]

I love how you found a sense of community through this callenge! I come from an urban setting and now live in a very rural area. I feel a little different in this setting because I am a freelance artist catering mainly to urban folks but I have to say that in our rural area (this may be the case for others as well!) it's like community is our default. Even though my community is mainly interested in snowmobiles and hunting (which are both awesome!) and not so much in my work, it's as if community is built at a more basic level of unconditionnal support which might be less of a reality in cities. Good job for doing the challenge for a whole month!

[@chrishernandez9277]

“I think I can do that” as I struggle to put down my chips and pizza rolls

[@AnnaDuweke]

Thanks for making this video, Kevin. Honestly what I've loved the most to hear is how you've connected to more like minded people and actually got in a rhythm with living the barter/self sufficient way. Isn't that how it's "supposed to be"? Trading in fair value, helping each other out and literally getting together? Beautiful! @epicgardening

[@seedylee]

i felt like i was w my friends at that potluck. really needed that.

[@leafletleaflet]

It was really interesting to hear the bit about trading skilled labor (garden consultation) and something that isn't even food yet (rare seeds) for food! I never thought about bartering like that before. I'm not very good at growing vegetables but I can do a lot of textile things (mending, weaving, crochet, sewing, etc) which might be more useful than I realized in this kind of context

[@Palatineoffacts]

this is how our ancestors lived before globalization and industrialization

[@LmaoMoni]

To be fair they also had scabies and scurvy

[@knowledge-quest5812]

@@LmaoMoni that was from lack of hygiene...

[@thematrix3663]

Scurvy is from lack of vitamin c though.

[@canadrian]

Umm... www.ditext.com/diamond/mistake.html

[@darkmatter1475]

@@BobDevV I agree with you on this, but I think it's still important knowledge on how to do these things. We have a generation of people who can't even sew a button on a shirt without googling/youtube after all. I don't think everyone should give up all or any modern ways of living. But in a time when me might not be able to rely on super markets I would at least like to know how to grow and store some things. As for the hard work, we have so many ways of growing food that people in the past didn't have the luxury of doing. We can grow fruit trees in houses nowadays. Lol. And of you have a yard you got to go out and mow it anyway :/

[@Gerwulf97]

This is awesome. Kinda shows the best version of an apocalypse. And I love it cause you're not glorifying it nor saying its not possible but showing its some work, you were still losing body fat, and need more time to prepare to do it well enough to sustain yourself on.

[@wannaBtraceur]

Great job , what a great glimpse into a different and more socially healthy lifestyle! You can just imagine how people would see each other as family if this were a permanent thing. Any plans to do this again sometime?

[@epicgardening]

Definitely

[@chloekarst8330]

I did see some cattail in your video and I just wanted to mention that you can eat cattail. The tender shoots taste kinda like asparagus when you steam or boil them.

[@hannahbrooke1034]

This seems fun for maybe a week.

[@Laticia1990]

I think I could go for a week, especially if that potluck was like 5 days in or something. You'd have to hide all the regular food in my house and disconnect the phones, or I'll order pizza. lmao

[@yawnquan]

This video was really great. It wasn’t day by day or detailed but you showed people how to be resourceful.

[@celticlass8573]

Agreed. He also wishes there was more, but since he hadn't originally planned to upload the footage, it's cool what we still got. He said he's going to do it again, and properly document it, so it should be a really interesting video. :)

[@Tomotix]

This was really great and inspiring. It was good to see that this not only maximised your self-sufficiency but expanded your community as well.

[@chrystalroberts7945]

Great concept! When community rallies around you its a great feeling! This was cool to watch!

[@thecurioustraveller7494]

loved watching , sounds like community was the best gain , I'm sure food sustainability is a process and of course bartering has always been part of the journey , look forward to seeing your next longer version .

[@Meg_Davis]

It's so beautiful how community made this so much better. And it all comes down to the beautiful principles of good old, basic economics: create value and peacefully trade for what's valuable for you. As humans we are made for community. I would never want to do life without it.

[@ashtorbytheroots31]

Loved this so much. It’s also an eye opener to what we are capable of doing with such few resources

[@Kunita1]

We NEED a new version of this with all the new knowledge you acquired since then!

[@user-di6cn2ne7u]

We call green onions "gronions" so I was very surprised to learn they are a fish lol

[@Sugarspoon18]

What has just helped me, mentally as a gardener to take a picture or at minimum a 15 second video to garden. INSTANT GRATIFICATION!!

[@justincosby5771]

This was great. I've always wanted to do something like this.

[@kaylaworley6109]

I guess the difference between playing apocalypse and real apocalypse is the aspect of prolonged fear and scarcity, beyond that moment. And the desperation of other people-- it's hard to barter and potluck if other people are struggling.

[@mistyb9853]

I love this and I love watching your videos! I’ve only started watching about 2 weeks ago, but I’ve already learned so much that has helped out with my garden! You really are great at what you do!

[@Back_To_Basics]

I get so much value from watching this video. The abundance of real food that we get from nature for our survival and health is really something to be grateful for. Thank you for the inspiration!

[@jgrady9553]

Great challenge/experiment, and thanks for telling us about fallingfruit. Too bad no one had avocados to trade for some healthy fats and serious calories! Having a community to share and trade with= more realistic survival, and finding the fishing spots was a good addition. Really enjoyed this video.

[@BorrowedYourHeart]

Kevin I loved this video! You should do this as a series!! Maybe for a week and upload each day! I think it would be so cool considering how big your homestead has grown since then. You’ll have a variety of foods to keep you going!!

[@trogdortheburninator3621]

Foraging weeds is great too. Dandelions and red root amaranth are my favorite.

[@LittleKokeshiDoll]

Most bigger cities tend to have foraging groups online where they do meetups to teach people about urban and even nearby rural foraging. I would also recommend joining local mycology groups to learn about foraging and growing mushrooms (mushrooms can be grown in small spaces and typically produce fast yields, especially mushrooms that grow off hardwoods just as oysters, shiitake, etc.) You can also learn how to take spore prints from wild edible mushrooms to grow your own crops so you are not constantly removing them from the wild. Things like this and pre-mapping out foraging locations would have been a part of my 90 pre-prep for a challenge like this.

[@Junzar56]

Knowing what you know now after this experience, are you getting more of a food supply rouse in case of emergencies? It’s great to have fresh food,, but having grains, died beans, pasta, dried herbs and spices,honey, sugar, oil, leavening, bottled and canned items make emergencies a less stressful.

[@epicgardening]

Yeah, I've built quite the stockpile!

[@dragonmammma]

And of course, we all need to plant toilet paper trees, the currency of the COVID-19 SIP.

[@drasco61084]

As others have commented one really has to appreciate how important community is. We humans thrive together we're not meant to survive all alone.

[@christineherrmann205]

This was pretty cool. I'm wondering how your trade partners fed their chickens, if you know. They can get a lot on their own free range (bugs and weeds amd such) but they usually need grain too. As I'm finding out, grains are a fairly difficult thing to homestead. I'm trying amaranth right now, but I'd be interested to see what others find the best grain to try to homestead is.

[@epicgardening]

Yeah grains require so much space!

[@swedishdogs3327]

That's a problem I'm facing in the future, I won't be able to grow wheat and it's hard getting ancient grains, especially ones that can handle my climate. So I hope free ranging, oats and barley will be enough!

[@TheRealHonestInquiry]

@@swedishdogs3327 try some Spelt ;)

[@thomaswolf6507]

Tip regarding small fish (where I come from there is no size limit on pan fish like blue gills) - eat them bone in. This is best either deep fried or on the grill, most opt for deep fried and the fins turn into a potato-chip like edible when deep fried. But, if you just remove the guts like you would with say, a trout, you will get a lot more nutrition. The bones can be a pain but there is an art to eating them. I know I can always catch bait sized blue gills, etc - but I can never count on quantity or size. Remember to scale them first, you don't want to eat those. The skin is very tasty despite the scaling process which I recommend you do with a simple spoon and outdoors, lol.

[@ArtistWizardry]

Hopefully this wakes people up and appreciate how awesome the system we have in place truly is.

[@MostIntelligentMan]

wut, i grow all my food, i dont even own land, just have patches in wild bushes, its fun and easy and better quality, cant imagine buying food, u dont even know what a hell has been done with it

[@swatson1190]

I live on 10 acres in the middle of the Ouachita Mountains. Most poor folks in the area live like this all the time. I personally have lived like this for several years. I love to hunt and fish. I also love to garden. We have a really good well so we don't even filter it. we drink it straight from the tap. Since we live in the woods we have to grow stuff in the little patches of sunlight. And we forage year round. I make bread from homemade sourdough starter. I make yogurt from a heirloom culture. We have pecan, black walnut, hickory, and oak trees so we have nuts to eat. We have chickens, goats, and pigs. We have muscadines, passionfruit, persimmons, and pawpaws. I plan on trying to grow some mushrooms this next spring.

[@allanramos9003]

Can’t wait to see this!!

[@MichaelJVanecekWrites]

I foraged back in my young homeless days. Mulberries were definitely something I gorged on. :)

[@skilltes037]

I don't understand your words when you said "so I don't go crazy eating potatoes" I could live my life eating potatoes everyday!!!

[@msscamp100]

Thank you for this video. I've often thought about living off the grid, but didn't know how to accomplish that. I now have a better understanding of just what is involved, and how to do it. Thank you!

[@DIYivan04]

That was such a cool/difficult challenge. FYI; In a serious “apocalypse” situation, all those sources are gone within 24 hours.

[@alishamora1781]

It's interesting seeing someone do this as a challenge. This is our way of life, we produce everything, barter , farmers market , forge and hunt everything. But I love seeing this from different prospectives and ways of life.

[@corycrider5697]

This was awesome to see, I love self sufficiency. Think everyone should learn how to be more so. However as your adventure has shown first hand how a community supports one another and doing it in this manner really helps each other value what we have and what others do for/with us more. It's awesome man and I agree with others in this chat that it should happen every year and I would totally jump on board with this! It'd also be cool to see how someone with a whole family (ie Wife and kids) would fair in this challenge. More hands for work but more mouths lol

[@Hikazey]

I know this is a really late comment, but this is when I got around to watching the video. I loved it! These kinds of videos are so interesting to me, and inspire me to grow more of my own food for a healthier lifestyle. Thank you for making it

[@Twiggycmt]

This is great content and deserves way more views.

[@jam_is_jammin]

Can you do a video on the best high calorie foods to plant for an apocalypse garden in the spring and the fall? I'm new to gardening, it's my first year. My focus has been on acquiring seeds to build my own seed library and planting foods that are high calorie, pest resistant or have a long shelf life. I will be growing the popular foods like lettuce and tomatoes, but I my priorities are sun chokes, strawberries, squash, ground cherries, root vegetables (potatoes, carrots, radish), and peas and beans. I have a very small back yard, so I will also be trying to grow vertically. I am very interested in becoming more confident and knowledgeable about growing food. I really love the resources you shared, I bet the kids would love to go on a grunion run. You should have taken one with you, they never get tired and they're so quick.

[@BurningBlockAbout99]

This was so inspirational! It made me just feel happy. Happy that you grew your own plants. Happy that you took the time and effort to make memories and give us something truly wonderful to watch. Lifewith2youtubers shared this video with me, and I gatta tell you, I'm happy she did. New subscription for you! I can't emphasize enough how great this channel is. And for any random people reading this..... Hi :3 Have a food ( i mean good ) day!

[@mkrgonzales]

The potatoes being your main staple is like what happens in The Martian by Andy Weir and later the movie with Matt Damon. I think I’m going to try to grow potatoes for sure if I can ever get this veggie garden started! Thx for the inspiration!

[@VibewithLeeLuu]

Amazing! This needs to be the Forever plan! I love this and wish I had a community like this. How can us regular guys with no epic channel do this?

[@epicgardening]

Follow the guidelines in the video, give it your best shot!

[@jongrubaugh160]

As a kid, We had a Mulberry tree in our back yard. When they were ripening I ate them constantly, and often I ate them when they weren't ripe yet and really sour. Most days I couldn't hardly eat supper. Just a fun memory.

[@Torbeth]

At last! We've been waiting for this. Looking forward to just how tired you got of Norland Reds! :-)

[@epicgardening]

Tell me about it hahaha

[@lindsaymarikofoose9099]

I totally thought this video was going to be too gimmicky of a concept but this was actually totally informative! It put a useful spotlight on how to manage your crops in a scenario of self-sufficiency, which is a big reason I think we all garden. Thanks for making the sacrifice and doing all this then sharing it.

[@tommontgomery9400]

May i just point out that the guy at 7:09 has some fabulously bushy eyebrows

[@putrid_swamp_juice]

If that was the amount of potatoes he got for that many eggs, Steven did a bad/kind trade. :)

[@katpihlaja]

Simen Ringstad but if you have an excess of eggs and really want some homegrown potatoes then maybe it’s good 😊

[@Kiterpuss]

@@putrid_swamp_juice Well, if he was also participating in this challenge and his primary currency was eggs, he might not have a lot of calorically dense foods. So if you consider the trade as 1 week of protein for 1 week of calories, it might have been worthwhile.

[@Sun-soilproductions]

tom montgomery-scobie i want to trade for Steven’s eyebrows

[@dragonmammma]

That guy has his own KZbin channel, sorry I can't remember the name. I always refer to him as "Mister Eyebrows."

[@vandanade84]

I am absolutely loving this!!! Little advice, there is a famous Portuguese dish called "Caldeirada" that only requires a litle olive oil , onion slices, tomato slices and bell pepper slices and assorted fishes (whatever available, my favorite is sting ray caldeirada) a litle bit o water and simply let it boil gor about 20-30 minuts... it would have been perfect with the ingredients you had available

[@Jreichh]

The only thing that grew in my garden this year were cherry tomatoes and 3 zucchini, I would have died lol

[@nancylucas8555]

Been there, done that along with two children to feed for months. Glad you filmed this, many people are not so creative or determined. Blessings to you

[@pozzowon]

"what can give the most which calories?.... I came with potatoes" Did you know... That's exactly what the writer of "The Martian" did? And thus, potatoes

[@epicgardening]

Oh, I knew ;)

[@1810jeff]

Another source of protein are house sparrows, in California they aren't regulated so if you trap them you can harvest them but they're a little rough if you're used to farmed meat since they are fairly gamey and tough.

[@MuricaFyea]

14:09 someone trapped in his frig!

[@iDancer101]

I can't believe I stumbled across this video! I've been planning to do this challenge sometime this summer (live in Michigan). I want to see how truly sustainable I can live. Such a great idea for the water fast and foraging sites!!

[@celticlass8573]

Have you done it yet? It sounds so interesting!

[@iDancer101]

@@celticlass8573 Not yet! We plan to try it later this month once most of our veggies fruit. I'm drying herbs, canning, and prepping homegrown items now.

[@caitlinhenshaw6228]

LMAO! I was getting serious Matt Damon on Mars vibes with your potato strategy

[@JonathanSladkoTV]

Would love to see another take on this with your urban homestead today!