I don't expect to achieve self-suffiency but I think it's something to aspire to as a lifestyle.

If I was to work to that end, one of the first things I would do would be to stock up on firewood (especially at the moment!) and make a big, fox-proof, chicken run and stock it with meat and egg birds.

I'm interested to hear what other BE's in the UK (or those heading home) would do if they were working towards a self-sufficient lifestyle...

Over to you.

You would actually kill those poor chickens????

Only the ones that peck.

(Actually, I'd get someone else to do it. )

To each his own.

Don't get me wrong... I love animals... but I'm not vegetarian and I'm confident any chicken I raised and ate would have had a much better life than one I bought in a shop.

I don't think that this is the beginning episode, rather a re-hash of previous, but it certainly gives you a real taste of self-sufficiency:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZZ-r...600A64&index=1

Yes... I love River Cottage... it eggs me on (and drives my DH mad!!)

Why just tonight I watched the episode where they made Dandelion jam!!

Off-topic, but if you watch River Cottage carefully, it can give to a pretty good idea as to whether life in the true West Country is likely to be your "bag" or not.

Personally, I don't think that Hugh F W really fits in at all but the common interest of producing the TV series gels the thing together for him.

We grow green veggies now - lettuce, spinach, kale, brocolli, bok choy - so would like to continue that. We do them in earth pots here as the soil is rubbish. So, as we plan on renting a flat, all we would need would be a little paved over patio as we plan on bringing them with us.

That's inspiring.

Taking the plants with you??? I'm wondering what sort of import problems there are with that idea? Will UK customs allow you to bring them in??

You'd need a big garden. Like that old TV show "The Good Life" or was it Goode?
A small holding would probably do it, maybe a couple of acres, room for a pig, some Chickens and a big vegetable garden. A wind turbine to offset some of the electric use. Water butts to collect water for the garden.
I think theres something where you can go into forest land and collect fallen wood, but not cut down trees.
You could supplement with coal, still available and delivered.

I didn't know you could take plants, etc. into the UK. Good to know

The DH has self sufficiency aspirations and in Aus he did a lot of veggie gardening and we had chooks. He's struggling more in UK - he doesn't have the knack that allotment gardeners seem to have. In UK there is a good land share scheme that HFW (I think) got set up so those with land to spare share it with those who don't have any and they often share produce.

Our weird son and his partner are evangelically self sufficient but not afraid to sponge off anyone in the process which really ticks me off!

I believe that self suficiency is certainly something that people are considering nowadays at different levels of course, but the cost of food and the incredible scandals surrounding the food business are encouraging more people to create their vegetable garden, and why not extending to having a few chickens for eggs ?

In these times of hardship people are getting creative in many ways and are getting back to basics, just like our grand parents used to do, and it certainly did not kill them

Us French are calling it "system D" or the ability to adapt against adversity and God knows that I will speak for most of everyone in the forum when I say "are we fighting Guys"

Karim