Here’s to living a healthier life for less!
The journey that I am on is one of land stewardship with the goal of living a healthier life for less. I don’t want to continually have to earn more and more money just to purchase food that could be growing in my own yard, year after year, for little or no effort.
In this video I use a Blueberry Bush as an illustration:
For those of you who do not watch videos, here is a simple rundown of the basic concept. Though it may take a few years to produce an impressive amount of berries, a Blueberry Bush can be purchased for about $10 - $20 USD. A pint of Blueberries often costs $2 - $3 USD. So, for the price of about 5 pints of Blueberries, you could purchase your own bush. This bush here will produce multiple pints of Blueberries, in just this year alone.
If someone had more room, they could plant an entire field, or at least multiple plants. Also, if the type of Blueberry is not a patented variety and if you know a little bit about propagation, you could turn that single plant into an acre of plants! Of course it might take a little time and effort, but over time you could do it!
If you did, then you would not just get a few pints on a yearly basis once the plants matured, but hundreds of pints of Blueberries. Technically, you could still accomplish this by purchasing only one plant.
Since Blueberry Bushes can produce for 20 years or more, the return on your initial investment can be huge. Rather than buying pint after pint every year of my life, I am transitioning into acquiring plants so that I can grow my own instead. If the plants produce enough, or if I propagate enough, then I could have extra to share, or sell to those who still pay for their pints.
Also, when dealing with non-patented varieties, I could even sell propagated Blueberry plants to others who have also grown tired of purchasing food that they could just as easily be growing themselves. If this occurs, then not only will I not need to keep leaving home to earn money to buy food with, but I could be creating things of value at home to earn me money! This lifestyle of growing is where my desire for long-term land stewardship comes in.
Soon, we shall be purchasing around 8 acres to set up a homestead on. A lot of my life right now is preparing plants, animals, and other things for that land. I’ll keep you posted, but in the meantime, consider growing to save!
As always, I'm @papa-pepper and here's the proof:
