You probably have a well-stocked bug-out bag (BOB) stowed away at home in case SHTF, but what about your car? Emergencies can also happen while you’re on the road, which is why you should have a BOB for your vehicle as well. Here are the top 20 items you need to pack in your car BOB. (h/t to FoodStorageMoms.com)

It is ideal to use a durable canvas bag to store all your emergency supplies. Keep in mind that while these items can be useful during emergencies on the road, this list is not meant to be a definitive list of all the prepping items you will ever need in your vehicle’s BOB. Different geographical locations and different roadside conditions will require you to adjust your BOB’s contents to suit your own personal needs. Remember to take into account your local weather and climate. (Related: A basic list of winter survival items you should carry in your car.)

First aid kit

A basic first aid kit should include bandages, gauze pads, tweezers, ointments, disinfectants, and medication for car sickness and minor ailments.

Emergency drinking water

Stay hydrated while on the road by packing reusable plastic bottles filled with clean, drinking water.

Emergency food supply

Some ideal options for emergency rations include granola bars, high-protein dried fruits, nuts, trail mix, and other non-perishable snacks.

Emergency toilet

After eating all those emergency rations, you might find yourself in need of an emergency toilet. You can use disposable 4-gallon bags to cleanly contain your bodily waste. For sanitation purposes, be sure to use bags equipped with deodorant chemicals and not just regular plastic bags. You should also have a roll of toilet paper or two.

Hygiene items

Good hygiene is very important to prevent the spread of bacteria when you’re on the road. Keep your hands clean by packing the necessary personal hygiene items, such as baby wipes, hand soap, and hand sanitizer.

Emergency road flares

In case your car breaks down, you need to keep yourself visible to make sure rescuers can find you, especially during cases of severe weather. Emergency road flares are a great way to make your presence known.

Flashlights with extra batteries

You can use flashlights to signal for help or make vehicle repairs in the dark. Be sure to have an extra pair of batteries in case your flashlights run out of power.

Portable radio with extra batteries

Your car might have its own radio but you can bring a portable radio with you if you have to walk somewhere on foot. It can be useful for learning about weather updates and local current events.

Names and phone numbers of people to contact in an emergency

In case something happens to you, a list of emergency contacts can make it easy for emergency responders to know whom to notify.

Compass

You can reduce your chances of getting lost with a trusty compass.

Maps

GPS technology requires battery power, but a map does not.

Blanket

Blankets provide an extra layer of warmth during cold weather.

Matches or lighters

If you suddenly need to start a fire, having either one of these can save you a lot of trouble.

Pocket knife

A decent pocket knife can cut anything open in an emergency.

Tire gauge

It is important to check your tire pressure on a regular basis.

Toolbox

This will allow you to make quick repairs, should the need arise.

Change of clothes

You might need an emergency change of clothes if you’ve been on the road for a while. Make sure to pack a pair of comfortable walk shoes in case you have to go somewhere on foot.

Emergency cash

It is recommended to have around 50 dollars in small bills for emergency use.

Pen and paper

You can write down small notes to remind yourself of things you might otherwise forget.

Paracord

You never know when you might need to tie your prepping equipment together.

Sources include:

FoodStorageMoms.com

BugOutBagAcademy.com

As their name suggests, “forever foods” are items that are meant for long-term survival. All preppers understand that having access to clean food and water is a priority during a crisis, but the question of how to store food for the long-term inevitably comes up. While many survival foods are made to be stored for a few months (or years), perhaps all of them do come with expiration dates.

Luckily there are many foods that never expire. We’ve listed 12 of them below. Take note that a lot of the foods we’ll be talking about will not be enough to prepare a complete meal, but they can add flavor and some calories to typical survival fare.

1. Apple cider vinegar (ACV) — As long as you keep it sealed, ACV will last forever when stored in a cool, dry pantry. You can use ACV as a dressing for salad, as a marinade for meat, or even as a non-toxic cleaning product for your home. ACV also boasts a number of health benefits, from being a great natural hair cleanser to an ideal natural weight loss supplement.
2. Salt — Just make sure to buy the pure kind. Seasoned salt does expire. Pure salt, however, can last indefinitely. You can use salt to also extend the shelf life of other foods like meat or even fruit.
3. Soy sauce — Soy sauce is mostly made of salt, which explains its long shelf life. As long as you leave it unopened, soy sauce can last forever. The condiment is a great way to add some flavor to your meal.
4. Pemmican — Created by Native Americans, pemmican is a concentrated blend of fat and protein from lean and dried meat. Traditionally, pemmican was made from bison, moose, deer, or elk.
5. Raw honey — It is true that honey will crystallize over time, but it is still safe to eat after you heat it for a little bit to get it back to the right consistency. You can combine this with soy sauce to make a simple but delicious glaze to your meats.
6. Corn starch — When kept dry, corn starch can stay good indefinitely. You can use it to thicken stews or gravies.
7. Dried lentils — Lentils are some of the best survival foods because they are easy to cook, have a high nutritional value, and are excellent sources of protein. There is also evidence to suggest that legumes can help regulate blood sugar levels in people with Type 2 diabetes.
8. Alcohol — Distilled liquor serves two purposes. The first is to help uplift spirits when SHTF. While dangerous when taken in excess, alcohol can help people in crisis feel less stressed. During a SHTF scenario, alcohol can also be used as a barter item, or a disinfectant.
9. White rice — Stored in the right conditions, white rice can last forever. Just be sure to store yours in an airtight container to keep bugs out.
10. Powdered milk — This can serve as a good alternative source of calcium and vitamin D during emergencies.
11. Hardtack — Hardtack was a favorite during the Great Depression. It is a mixture of water and flour that is formed into a hard cracker. While the taste may be bland for some, hardtack can provide long-lasting sustenance during an emergency.
12. Ghee — Ghee is butter that has been boiled until all the moisture has evaporated. This helps lengthen its shelf life.

These “forever foods” are important additions to any pantry, and any prepper worth his or her salt should have a least a few of them in their bug-out location.

Sources include:

MDCreekmore.com

Blog.SurvivalFrog.com

MedicalDaily.com

OffTheGridNews.com

Our ability to track weather thanks to various apps is nothing really to brag about. Meteorologists and the latest weather apps may provide forecasts based on educated guesses, but really, everything’s up in the air – pun intended – when it comes to understanding nature.

And what will you do when SHTF and those apps no longer exist? One prepping skill a lot of us have forgotten about is looking for – and understanding – the signs from nature of changing weather. Certain weather patterns can be observed and show you what you can expect.

Look at the sky

Clouds are the most obvious signs of coming weather.

• Rain clouds tend to be lower to the ground. If you notice clouds being generally high, you can expect fair weather.
• Nimbostratus clouds are dark clouds that hang low and are usually associated with rain.
• Cumulus clouds are bright white and look like cotton. Cumulus clouds are vertically-developing clouds and can, therefore, look like “towers.” These can indicate the possibility of showers later in the day.
• Cumulonimbus clouds are dense, towering vertical structures and are indicative of a coming thunderstorm or other severe weather.
• Cirrus clouds, which are stringy, fluffy clouds, may mean bad weather within the next 36 hours.
• Altocumulus clouds look like “fish scales” and are another indicator of bad weather within the next 36 hours.
• Cirrocumulus clouds are small, puffy clouds that come in rows. This may mean that cold weather is coming.
• Mammatus clouds, as their name suggests, look somewhat like mammary glands and look like a pattern of pouches hanging underneath the base of a cloud. They may indicate an upcoming thunderstorm.

Other indications of bad weather may include the following:

• Rainbows are a good indicator of rain. Rainbows west of you may indicate that rain is on the way, as weather patterns typically move from west to east. If the rainbow is east of you, the rain has probably already passed.
• Look for rings around the moon. These halos are caused by the refraction, reflection, and dispersion of light through ice particles, indicating an upcoming snowstorm.
• A red sky in the morning tells you that dry air has already passed and that rain or snow is coming.
• If you are experiencing a red sunset, it may mean that a high-pressure system is on its way.

Observe animals

Animals are highly attuned to Mother Nature. Closely observing both domestic and wild animals can give us clues on what to expect.

• Deer, elk, and other large game animals will move to lower elevations when snow is coming. If you notice these animals migrating to lower elevations earlier than expected, it may indicate severe weather.
• Bats flying around in the evening is usually an indicator of fair weather the next day.
• Frogs are highly sensitive to rain. When you notice them croaking more, or generally being noisier, you can expect rain.
• Spiders also come down from their webs right before rain begins.
• Birds likewise give a good indication of bad weather. If you notice them flying high, chances are there will be fair weather. If they are flying lower, you can expect rain.
• Cows appear nervous before an oncoming storm. They try to prepare for this by seeking shelter. If they cannot find any, they will lie down in groups in a field. The same holds true for sheep. Sheep may gather together in a tight group before a storm.

Even if you aren’t planning on being a prepper, it is still good practice to be aware of your surroundings. The observations written above are the collected wisdom of many people who depend, or have depended, on the weather for their livelihood. They are just as useful today as they were centuries ago.

This isn’t the only preparedness guide on nature that we have. Preparedness.news has got you covered for all your survival needs.

Sources include:

Survivopedia.com

OwlCation.com

FarmersAlmanac.com

Science.HowStuffWorks.com

Before refrigerators, eggs were preserved using different methods to prolong their shelf life. (h/t to PracticalSelfReliance.com)

If you keep chickens in your homestead, you can preserve their eggs so you can cook with eggs even during winter, when chickens ease up on their laying habits. Knowing how to preserve eggs ensures that you have a year-round supply of homegrown eggs.

The simplest way to preserve eggs is by keeping them cool. Eggs have a natural outer coating that preserves the egg inside. If this coating is washed off, refrigerate the eggs.

Store unwashed eggs in a cool closet or back room for weeks. Keep temperature below 50 F and humidity at about 75 percent.

Fermented or salt-cured eggs

Fermentation is an old preservation technique that involves creating the right conditions so natural lactic acid bacteria can thrive while preventing spoilage bacteria from taking hold.

1. Fermented eggs

Salt-cured eggs are a form of a fermented egg. To make whole salt-cured eggs, hard boil the eggs then ferment them as a natural probiotic pickle. Use a salt brine with a bit of starter like sauerkraut juice or whey.

Allow fermented eggs to culture on the counter in a jar of brine and starter for about three days before refrigerating. While the cooler temperatures in the refrigerator slow the lactic acid bacteria considerably, they’ll still be slowly culturing under cold temperatures. Salt-cured eggs must be consumed within two weeks.

To save some time, you can cure eggs directly in a jar of sauerkraut.

2. Salt-preserved egg yolks

Try preserving just the yolk if you want to make a delicious cured product that can be used as an alternative to Parmesan cheese. Grate a bit of cured egg yolk over pasta for an umami boost of flavor.

Freeze the egg whites so you don’t waste anything.

Freezing

Here are several ways to freeze eggs.

3. Freezing raw eggs

Eggs are easy to freeze and they can be stored for several months. When freezing eggs, you have several different options: you can either freeze whole eggs, or you can store the yolks and whites separately.

If you’re freezing eggs, it’s better to store them scrambled. After they’re thawed, use three tablespoons of scrambled egg mix if the recipe calls for one fresh egg.

4. Freezing cooked eggs

To freeze cooked eggs, fry an egg or bake it in a muffin pan, then freeze it. Frozen cooked eggs will keep for several months.

5. Freezing eggs in baked goods

For this method, you need to make an egg-heavy baked good, then freeze it. Try baking brownies or pound cakes. (Related: Knowledge is power: 31 Crucial skills for every homesteader.)

Pickling or canning

Pickling and canning eggs can extend their shelf life by at least four months.

6. Pickled eggs

Eggs pickled in vinegar should be kept in the refrigerator.

To make pickled eggs, hard boil and peel whole eggs. Pack the eggs into a jar, then cover them with a brine. Use a ratio of one cup of vinegar to one teaspoon of salt. Add spices (optional), then let the flavors infuse for about one to two weeks before eating.

You can keep pickled eggs for at least four months in your fridge.

Old-fashioned egg preservation methods

When SHTF and you lose electricity, try some of these methods that don’t require refrigeration.

7. Preserving eggs in wood ash

Wood ash (the ash that you clean out of a wood stove) can be used to preserve eggs.

Eggs stored in wood ash have loss rates of about 20 percent after six months, with only 40 percent spoilage after eight months. Do take note that eggs preserved in wood ash may have a stale taste.

8. Preserving eggs in oats or bran

Oats or oat bran can cushion eggs to keep them from breaking. However, this method won’t preserve high-quality eggs.

The quality of these eggs may degrade over time, but most eggs preserved in oats are still edible. Try coating eggs in beeswax before packing them in oats to prevent dehydration.

9. Wax-preserved eggs (paraffin or beeswax)

Similar to the methods listed above, coating eggs in wax aims to seal the pores in eggshells to prevent spoiling. While wax can seal pores a bit more thoroughly than other oil-based substances, it requires more work than the other methods.

Dip fresh eggs one at a time in hot, melted paraffin. Cover the whole egg, then take it out immediately with wire tongs. Let the paraffin harden then quickly dip it again, but reverse the egg. Let the wax cool.

Carefully wrap each egg separately in waxed or paraffin paper. Avoid scratching or breaking the coating. Pack the eggs in tin cans, then seal with paraffin to keep the air out. Canned waxed eggs will keep for several months when stored in a cool place.

10. Preserving whole eggs in salt

Packing whole eggs in salt is just as effective as using ashes or oats. The eggs won’t spoil, but they lose moisture because of evaporation.

Whole eggs preserved in salt will last longer than eggs left on the counter, but their quality may also degrade. Use this method as a last resort.

Keep these egg preservation methods in mind if you want to make fresh eggs last the whole year round.

Sources include:

PracticalSelfReliance.com

FoodRepublic.com

We have never seen anything like this before.  According to satellite data that was just released by Reuters, “at least 1 million acres of U.S. farmland” were covered by water for at least seven days this month.  That is an agricultural disaster without equal in modern American history, and yet the mainstream media is treating this like it is some sort of second class story.  It isn’t.  This is the biggest news story of 2019 so far, and people want to know what is going on.  A few days ago, I posted a story entitled ‘“As Many As A Million Calves Lost In Nebraska” – Beef Prices In The U.S. To Escalate Dramatically In The Coming Months’, and it has already been shared on social media more than 145,000 times.  Farming communities all over the central part of the nation now look like war zones as a result of all this flooding, but the media elites on the east and west coasts don’t want to write about it.  And with more flooding on the way for the next two months, this crisis is only going to get worse.

This is the time of year when farmers are gearing up to plant wheat, corn and soybeans, and now a substantial portion of our farmland will not be able to be used at all this year.  According to Reuters, at least a million acres of farmland were covered by floodwaters for at least seven days this month, and that “will likely reduce corn, wheat and soy production this year”…

At least 1 million acres (405,000 hectares) of U.S. farmland were flooded after the “bomb cyclone” storm left wide swaths of nine major grain producing states under water this month, satellite data analyzed by Gro Intelligence for Reuters showed.

Farms from the Dakotas to Missouri and beyond have been under water for a week or more, possibly impeding planting and damaging soil. The floods, which came just weeks before planting season starts in the Midwest, will likely reduce corn, wheat and soy production this year.

And with “as many as a million calves” lost to the flooding, a lot less food than anticipated is going to be produced in the United States for the foreseeable future.

Between March 8th and March 21st, almost 1.1 million acres of cropland and over 84,000 acres of pastureland were covered by water for at least a week.  With more rain on the way, it is essentially going to be impossible for most of those acres to be usable this year.

In Iowa, 474,271 acres were covered by floodwaters for at least seven days in March, and Iowa farmers are facing some very tough deadlines.  Corn must be planted by May 31st and soybeans must be planted by June 15th in order to qualify for flood insurance.  For most Iowa farms that were covered by floodwaters, that is going to be impossible.

Overall, the recent flooding caused “at least $3 billion” in economic damage according to authorities, but many believe that the final number will be far higher.

Thousands upon thousands of farms have been completely destroyed, and thousands upon thousands of farmers will not plant any crops at all this year.

In addition to the vast agricultural devastation that we have witnessed, thousands upon thousands of homes have been destroyed as well, and now the National Ground Water Association is warning that “the safety of more than a million private water wells” could be compromised…

Record flooding in the Midwest is now threatening the safety of more than a million private water wells. The National Ground Water Association estimates that people living in more than 300 counties across 10 states have their groundwater threatened from bacterial and industrial contamination carried by flood waters.

If you live in the middle of the country and there is a chance that your well may have been compromised, please don’t take any unnecessary chances.  Contaminated water can be really, really bad news.

Unfortunately, this is just the beginning.  According to the NOAA, we are entering an “unprecedented flood season” that could potentially “impact an even bigger area of cropland”…

Spring floods could yet impact an even bigger area of cropland. The U.S. government’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has warned of what could be an “unprecedented flood season” as it forecasts heavy spring rains. Rivers may swell further as a deep snow pack in northern growing areas melts.

In my previous article entitled ‘”200 Million People At Risk: National Weather Service Warns Apocalyptic Midwest Floods Are “A Preview Of What We Expect Throughout The Rest Of The Spring”’, I included a map from the NOAA which shows which areas of the central part of the country are projected to receive unusually high levels of rainfall over the next few months.

Unfortunately, there is a tremendous amount of overlap with areas that have already been devastated by flooding.

On Friday and Saturday, there will be “more heavy rains” in the Midwest, and Nebraska is in “the direct path” of the center of the storm…

From the Central Plains to the Midwest, it has been a disastrous spring for river flooding. A weather system slated to bring more heavy rains Friday into Saturday could aggravate the situation along and near the Missouri and Mississippi rivers.

It’s a one-two punch that combines additional rainwater with fresh runoff from snowmelt. Perhaps worst off is Nebraska, in the direct path of Friday’s quick burst of moisture. Barely a week has passed since Gov. Pete Ricketts estimated the cost of ongoing flooding in that state at more than $1 billion.

This is it.  America is being hammered by one storm after another, and I very much encourage you to get prepared for a very rough ride ahead.

There is going to be a lot more flooding.  Prices for beef, dairy, wheat, corn and soy products are going to rise significantly, and just when you think they are way too high they are going to keep on rising.

This is already the worst agricultural disaster in modern American history, and federal authorities are telling us that we should expect things to continue to get worse for at least two more months.

Perhaps the mainstream media will eventually decide to take this story seriously, but until they do those of us in the alternative media will do our best to keep you updated.

About the author: Michael Snyder is a nationally-syndicated writer, media personality and political activist. He is the author of four books including Get Prepared Now, The Beginning Of The End and Living A Life That Really Matters. His articles are originally published on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News. From there, his articles are republished on dozens of other prominent websites. If you would like to republish his articles, please feel free to do so. The more people that see this information the better, and we need to wake more people up while there is still time.

Preppers plan ahead for everything – from possible disaster scenarios to everyday emergencies like a flat tire. They also plan for the kind of items that they add to their survival food supply. (h/t to TheMerrillProject.com)

If you wish to start setting up your own food stockpile, here are three common mistakes that you need to avoid when buying food.

Buying food in bulk doesn’t always save you money

This may depend on the prepper, but buying items in bulk doesn’t always save you money.

Here are two reasons why:

1. You buy so much of one item that you get sick of it.
2. You buy too much food that you store it in your pantry, you forget about it, and it goes to waste.

Unless you have enough storage space, buying seasonings and baking ingredients in bulk may be to your disadvantage. Purchase the typical size available at the grocery store. With these common bulk items, you only save a couple of cents to the dollar per ounce.

If you have an extra room just for storing your survival supplies, here are items that are better to buy in bulk:

• Canned fruits and vegetables – Preserve your own fruits and vegetables if you have the resources or buy canned organic products.
• Coffee and tea
• Condiments – Buy condiments that your family likes, like BBQ sauce, ketchup, hot sauce, or mustard.
• Dried beans – Buy kidney, Pinto, or white beans, as long as your family likes eating them.
• Granola and granola bars
• Honey
• Jams and jellies
• Oatmeal
• Pasta (e.g. macaroni, spaghetti, etc.)
• Salt and pepper
• Sauces – Ideally, you should also learn how to preserve sauces to ensure the quality of each jar in your pantry.
• Spices and seasonings – Different spices and seasonings are a lifesaver, especially if you want to make each meal delicious even after SHTF.
• White flour
• White rice – Brown rice is healthier, but it has a shorter shelf life.

Think of the items that your family uses or consumes a lot, like beans and rice. You can save more money per ounce if you buy these products in bulk.

Not considering the product’s best buy dates

Before you buy a whole case of ketchup or other products that are on sale, double-check the best buy dates. You don’t want to keep expired food in your stockpile, do you?

Take note of best buy dates so you know how to properly organize food and when to rotate items. The best buy dates of items in your stockpile will also help you keep track of how much food your family consumes in a year. (Related: Food storage tips and tricks for preppers.)

Buying without planning ahead

Never go to the store without planning ahead. There’s no point in buying beans in bulk if your family prefers rice instead.

Consider how often you’re going to use each item before you buy in bulk. For example, you can use rice to make both savory meals like beans and rice, along with desserts like rice pudding. Incorporate versatile ingredients into your recipes so you can make the most out of all the items in your pantry.

If you have pets, don’t forget to buy pet food and treats for them. You may also want to stockpile your kids’ favorite food so they can snack on something familiar even during a disaster.

Avoid these three common mistakes when planning your survival food supply to save money, time, and space in your storage.

Visit FoodStorage.news for more articles with tips on how to maximize your storage space.

Sources include:

TheMerrillProject.com

UrbanSurvivalSite.com

In movies and TV shows, burglars are sometimes portrayed as comedic and ineffective. However, preppers take threats like burglars seriously, especially since thieves can be sneakier and craftier in real life. (h/t to ThePrepperJournal.com.)

Why is home security important?

Whether you live in an apartment in the city or in a homestead near the woods, you shouldn’t let yourself be lulled into a false sense of security. Consider this: Over two million burglaries are reported annually in the US. Is your home safe from thieves?

Secure your property by getting a home alarm system so you’ll be alerted if anyone attempts to break in to your house. After you notify the authorities, it wouldn’t hurt to have self-defense weapons so you can protect your family if things escalate.

Follow the three tips listed below to improve home security.

1. Check your property for possible hiding spots

After you see any possible hiding spots, make sure that no one can use these areas to sneak into your house. For example, if you have bushes or trees around your property, especially near windows, keep them trimmed so they can’t be used as a hiding spot.

You should also trim shrubbery that is high enough to block the windows in your house. Otherwise, burglars may try to hide behind them to break in to your home without anyone noticing.

Finally, install outdoor lighting in your property. Areas around your house that get very dark at night are potential hiding spots for burglars, and installing motion-detecting lights around your property can help deter thieves. (Related: Simple strategies you can implement NOW to significantly improve your home security.)

2. Fortify your windows

Think about the last time you had to leave your house in a hurry because you were already late for school or work. Did you sometimes leave your window unlocked because you didn’t want to waste another minute securing your home?

Before you leave your house, make it a habit to check not only the front, side, and garage doors, but also your windows. There’s no point in locking your doors if you forget the windows. An unlocked window is an invitation for burglars to break in. Tell everyone in your family to keep all doors and windows locked if they’re leaving the house.

You can also take things a step further by getting shatterproof glass for your windows. This kind of glass is designed to withstand heavy blows from strangers attempting to break in to your home.

3. Keep your private life private

This may seem redundant, but in the age of social media, almost everyone knows everything about their neighbors because people love discussing all sorts of things on Facebook. If you’re planning a vacation, don’t announce it on your social media. You never know who’s keeping tabs on your activities so they can break in to your home and steal your valuables.

Do you really want to let complete strangers know when your house is going to be left empty? You also need to stop checking in at places on Facebook or Instagram because you’re just letting thieves know that you’re not at home.

As a prepper, you’re responsible for keeping yourself and your loved ones safe. You need to be vigilant so you can also protect your property from burglars.

Additional home security tips

Below are more tips that you can follow to ensure that your home is protected against thieves or potential attackers.

• Don’t use cheap locks. Invest in high-quality locks to keep your home safe.
• Never leave ladders in your yard. Once you’re done maintaining your home or yard, put the ladder in the garage and keep it under lock and key.
• Stop hiding keys around your house. Thieves will find a way to retrieve that “hidden” key, so leave your spare key with a trusted neighbor instead.

If you go on vacation, you can rest easy knowing that your home is secure because you have taken all the necessary precaution to keep it safe.

Sources include:

ThePrepperJournal.com

AskAPrepper.com

Homesteaders work hard to cultivate the plants in their garden. However, something as small as a weed can wreak havoc even in the most carefully maintained yard. Thankfully, there are two tips that can help you get rid of pesky weeds. (h/t to OldWorldGardenFarms.com)

Did you know that most of the weeds in your garden show up because you work too hard? By easing up on the gardening tasks, you can significantly reduce your weeding chores.

How do weeds end up in your garden?

Like vegetables, weeds have to be “planted.” But while you intentionally plant vegetable seeds, weed seeds invade your garden at will.

Weed seeds will occasionally find their way into the garden surface. Some seeds are blown in by the wind while others may be carried and left behind by birds and other wildlife. Unfortunately, you also unknowingly help weed seeds on the surface get planted.

Whenever garden soil is disturbed by hoeing, shoveling, or tilling, the next crop of weed seeds is planted. This then becomes a vicious cycle that will annoy even the most hardworking gardener.

How to effectively eliminate garden weeds

Not working too hard doesn’t mean neglecting your garden if you want to get rid of weeds. It just means that you can focus on other tasks in your homestead instead of doing things that may aggravate your weed problem.

Here are two secrets to successfully eliminating garden weeds.

1. Don’t till and hoe too much.

It may be considered a crucial gardening tool, but the rototiller is a major planter of weeds. Rototillers are used to rip up sod and prepare the soil for a new garden, but the tool also creates more work and problems in an established garden. Rototillers can be expensive to buy, maintain, and use, and they are weed-planting machines.

In late fall and winter, weed seeds find their way onto the surface of the soil in your garden. These seeds often lay dormant. However, when spring rolls around, using a rototiller will flip the soil along with hundreds or even thousands of weed seeds. This then distributes the seeds all over your vegetable garden.

Once these seeds get a chance to germinate, they will double or triple the weeds in your soil, starting the weed cycle. You will spend a lot of time trying various methods to get rid of the weeds sprouting from the freshly tilled rows and around your plants.

Using a rototiller every few days only tills under the weeds in the rows while hoeing works weeds between the plants. Both these activities only replant more weeds in the soil, which is the last thing you need if you want your garden to thrive.

Tilling and hoeing also affect the soil structure of your garden. The heavy foot traffic and wheels rolling behind a tiller will compact the soil, and a vegetable plant’s growth may be stunted if its roots are compacted. This is one reason to try cultivating a raised row garden, which doesn’t require any tilling on your end. (Related: Tips for starting your own organic garden.)

2. Always cover your soil.

Another easy way to eliminate weeds in your garden is by covering the soil. Once you do this, very few weed seeds will germinate in your garden.

During the growing season, cover all of your walking rows with mulch so you don’t have to spend too much time maintaining them.

You can cover your garden soil with at least six inches of the following materials:

• Bark chips
• Grass clippings
• Newspaper (a biodegradable and garden-safe material)
• Shredded leaves
• Straw

Once the soil is covered, mulch around plants to keep weed seeds out. Use at least two to three inches of mulching around your plants and in your growing rows.

The mulch will help keep out weeds while the compost provides the plants with added nutrients. Make sure you always cover bare soil to keep weeds out of your garden.

Cover your crops in the fall

Lastly, you should plant a fall cover crop every year. When you leave garden soil bare during the winter, you run the risk of creating next year’s weeds. Aside from preventing weeds from sprouting, cover crops help put nutrients back into the soil which your vegetable crop took out while they were growing.

Refrain from tilling and hoeing too much to keep your garden weed-free and don’t forget to put mulch to keep your crops healthy.

Sources include:

OldWorldGardenFarms.com

SundayGardener.net

According to Agriculture Secretary Sunny Purdue, there “may be as many as a million calves lost in Nebraska” due to the catastrophic flooding that has hit the state.  This is not a rumor, this is not an exaggeration, and this is not based on any sort of speculation.  This number comes to us directly from the top agriculture official in the entire country, and it means that the economic toll from the recent floods is far greater than most of us had anticipated.  You can watch Purdue make this quote on Fox Business right here, and it is important to remember that this number is just for one state.  It is hard to imagine what the final numbers will look like when the livestock losses for all of the states affected by the flooding are tallied up.  This is already the worst agricultural disaster in modern American history, and the National Weather Service is telling us that there will be more catastrophic flooding throughout the middle portion of the nation for the next two months.

Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts says that this is the worst flooding that his state has ever experienced.  Ricketts originally told us that 65 out of the 93 counties in his state have declared a state of emergency, but that number has now risen to 74.  Hundreds of millions of dollars of damage has been done in his state alone, and that is just an initial estimate.

It deeply offends me that the big mainstream news channels have spent so little time covering this disaster.  This is the biggest news story of 2019 so far by a very wide margin, but because it happened in the middle of the country they are not giving it the attention that it deserves.

In the short-term, food prices will not rise too dramatically because the stores are selling the food that has already been produced.  But as the months roll along, you will start to notice food prices steadily increase.  Millions of bushels of wheat, corn and soybeans have been destroyed by the flooding so far, and thousands of farmers will not be able to plant crops at all this year.  And the livestock losses that we have already experienced will be felt for many years to come.

Beef will never be lower in price than it is right now.  So if you are a beef lover, you may want to stock up.

When the flooding initially came, it happened so fast that many farmers were powerless to do anything about it.  In Sherman County, farmer Richard Panowicz says that ice and debris were “exploding from the river”…

“Within 15 minutes it was devastation,” Panowicz said, with water, ice and debris exploding from the river with nothing to stop it.

He described some ice chunks as 3 feet thick and the size of an extended-cab pickup.

Panowicz said a lot of the dead calves he’s picked up have had broken legs. Many of the carcasses were found by neighbors.

In other cases, farmers were faced with a heartbreaking choice between saving their animals or saving their neighbors.  One farmer that rushed to help his neighbors ended up losing 30 calves to the floodwaters…

Before Mahon could think about his animals, he needed to help his neighbors. As the water rose, he rescued one with his tractor, the floodwater lifting it up and spinning him 180 degrees. He helped save three more people — including an 85-year-old woman and a 9-month-old baby — with a boat, he said.

Then he could start counting his losses. He estimated the flood carried away 30 calves and almost as many cows, nearly $50,000 out of his pocket. It might be more.

Can you imagine the grief that these farming families are enduring right now?

Many of them are financially ruined and will never be able to go back to farming again.

Dave Eaton’s family has been farming the same plot of land for 152 years.  But now the Missouri River has swallowed his farm, and with much more flooding still to come, he anticipates that his farm with be underwater “all year”…

The farm has been in his family 152 years. He was born there. He’s been thinking about what he’s learned about the Missouri’s upstream reservoirs and the mountain snowpack, and what it means for his land.

“It’s not like I’m new to the area,” he said. “My gut feeling is we’re going to be under water all year.”

And he is definitely not the only one that has had his year ruined.

Panowicz says that the hay and silage that were meant to feed his cattle this season were soaked “in 3 to 4 feet of water”…

The hay and silage to feed his cattle are soaked after sitting in 3 to 4 feet of water.

Sand now covers much of the pastureland he uses to graze his herd of commercial Angus cows and purebred Charolais bulls.

And 40 of his recently born calves died in the flood.

So what is he supposed to do?

Some Nebraska ranchers will bravely try to rebuild, but for Panowicz it appears that the end has come…

“I’ll probably sell the (remaining) cows and calves and get out of the cattle business,” said Panowicz, 65. “I’ve been around cows since the early 1970s.”

I could go on and on, but I think that you get the point.

America’s farmers have been utterly devastated.  America’s cattle producers have been utterly devastated.  Food production is going to be way, way below expectations, and food prices are going to escalate dramatically in the coming months.  This is the kind of scenario that I have been warning about, and this crisis is going to continue to get worse as all the snow from one of the snowiest winters on record melts.  In Minnesota, there are still more than 20 inches of snow on the ground in some places, and all of that water has to go somewhere.

This is the biggest national crisis that has hit the United States in many years, but the mainstream media and millions of Americans that do not live in the affected areas still do not seem to get it.

Of course once food prices start getting painfully high at our supermarkets everyone will start complaining, but there will not be any easy solutions.

About the author: Michael Snyder is a nationally-syndicated writer, media personality and political activist. He is the author of four books including Get Prepared Now, The Beginning Of The End and Living A Life That Really Matters. His articles are originally published on The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News. From there, his articles are republished on dozens of other prominent websites. If you would like to republish his articles, please feel free to do so. The more people that see this information the better, and we need to wake more people up while there is still time.

When SHTF, you need to still wipe your butt. The collapse of modern society aside, it is necessary that you still maintain good sanitary practices so that you stay alive. Without proper sanitation, it becomes incredibly easy for germs to wreak havoc and potentially decimate entire populations.

In order to see the full extent of what improper sanitation can do to your health, let us look at an extreme example. Kibera, which is located in Nairobi, Kenya, is considered Africa’s largest slum and is part of the top 10 worst slums in the world. There are approximately 2.5 million dwellings in this settlement, representing 60 percent of the Nairobi population occupying just six percent of the land. There are no toilet facilities in most of Kibera, and one latrine — which is usually just a hole in the ground — is shared by up to 50 shacks or households. Disease and malnutrition are widespread here, and a fifth of children die before their fifth birthday. Half of Kibera’s population are children under the age of 15, many of whom have become orphaned by AIDS.

We may have it easier here in America, but that doesn’t mean that we can disregard the importance of sanitation when life as we know it turns on its head. Humans need to expel waste regularly to keep our own bodies clean. This means that, no matter what happens, all of us have to keep our backsides clean as well as our hands in the aftermath.

The dirty truth about dookie

Unsanitary conditions can lead to severe illnesses. Human waste is a huge source of contamination in this regard, both as a primary and secondary vector.

Direct contact with feces means possible infection from germs until you thoroughly cleanse and sanitize your hands. Animals are also attracted to waste, and everything from rodents to dogs to insects will gather around your daily deposits, and in turn become possible vectors of disease.

An average adult will produce three-quarters to one pound of solid waste a day. This waste can be deposited in one or more movements, which means that you will have contact with your backside one to three times a day on average. As a result, you will need to wash and sanitize your hands this many times lest they contaminate everything else they touch. (Related: Staying healthy after SHTF: Best hygiene practices.)

How to stay clean

After you do number 2, you will need to wipe somehow. The best way to do this is with toilet paper. This is why we generally recommend that you begin stockpiling this item now way before SHTF.

If you run out of toilet paper, you will need to use something else. Let’s take a look at some alternatives:

• Paper from books, magazines, or newspapers — This can work well, but heavily inked paper can become slippery and hard to manage, especially when wet. The ink may also stain your backside and introduce more germs. Newspapers are also quite stiff and may tear your skin if used incorrectly. We recommend that you crumple up the paper several times before wiping so that they become soft enough to use.
• Cloth — This is a reliable go-to. Just make sure that your cloth is clean before you wipe! Do not use rags or anything else that has been chemically contaminated.
• Leaves — Generally a good idea, but take the time to choose one that is not from a poisonous plant. Leaves are fairly comfortable to use, and are generally plentiful.
• Snow — This has the added benefit of cleaning your butt while wiping.

Whichever method you decide on, remember to always wash your hands after.

Read more articles on how to stay clean even after SHTF at Preparedness.news.

Sources include:

TheSurvivalistBlog.net

BorgenProject.org

Kibera.org.uk

Nyumbani.org.uk

Healthline.com