Well, it’s that time of year again.

The time to look in the mirror and say OMIGOODNESS WHAT HAVE THE HOLIDAYS DONE TO ME!

No. That’s not it.

It’s the time of year to look back and see what was accomplished in 2013.

So – without poking around any further – here’s a look at how things shaped up on Econopocalypse Ranch in 2013. Are you ready? I am (though I think I may have broken my calculator punching in all the harvest numbers). 

GARDENING RESULTS

Crops harvested:

Buckwheat: 2 lbs
Water Chestnuts: 4lbs
Sorghum grain: 4lbs
Amaranth grain: 3lbs
West Indian Gherkins: 1 lb 5oz
Velvet Beans: 4lbs
Various berries: 5lbs
Herbs and teas: 1lb

Total: 832lbs, 6oz

Estimated Egg Count (Chicken and Duck): 250

(Note: I got rid of our poultry this year after multiple predator strikes. Plus, I had a lot of traveling to do… unlike plants, they can’t be left alone for days at a time. Dang I miss those eggs…)

TREES AND SHRUBS PLANTED

1 pecan tree
2 apple trees
1 “long” mulberry
50 sugarcane plants
1 “Pride of Barbados” tree
6 agave plants
1 native persimmon
3 loquats
2 peaches
3 jujubes
2 banana trees
1 clump of bamboo
4 native pawpaws
6 avocadoes
2 rabbit eye blueberries
3 goji berries
5 pineapples
1 prickly pear
2 lemon trees
3 loquat trees
5 figs

INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS

Built/dug 5 new garden beds
Began building a 96 square foot Epic Tree Fort
Redid front walk
Changed side fence and created nursery area
Added potting soil bin
Acquired new Clarington forge digging tools
Acquired new British-made machete
Acquired a Silverfire TLUD stove
Acquired a better tiller
Acquired a huge pile of tree shreds
Took down former goat run
Made a new worm bin
Created an in-ground cassava storage pit
Created a greywater oasis
Took down a rotten oak
Started deep mulching “islands” in the front food forest

SOUTH FLORIDA FOOD FOREST

Planted:

1 mulberry
1 chocolate pudding fruit
1 tamarind
1 bed of ginger
1 cinnamon tree
1 grumichama
1 jabuticaba
1 acerola cherry
3 surinam cherry
1 cherry of the Rio Grande
Multiple canna lilies
1 heliconia
Multiple naranjillas
1 jackfruit
1 tropical almond
1 fig
1 canistel
3 edible hibiscus
1 katuk
1 monk’s hood
1 sea purslane
1 Gynura procumbens
1 saltbush
3 turmeric

Added: 

Stepping stones
Bird feeder

BLOG

Total Posts: 373

Survival Plant Profiles Created: 9

New Videos Posted: 7

Top Posts:
Survival Plant Profile: Cassava – King of Staples

A hugelkultur cinderblock raised bed (with mosaics)

How to make cane syrup at home… without a sugar cane press

Microclimates

MELON PITS!!!

Pollinator Attractors

Tool Review: The Planet Whizbang Wheel Hoe

Survival Plant Profile: Sweet Potatoes

Survival Plant Profile: Shepherd’s Needle

American-made artisan clothespins

OTHER WRITING

Articles for “Natural Awakenings” Magazine: 12
Articles for “The Marion Gardener:” 5
Articles/posts for Mother Earth News: 15
Articles/posts for The Prepper Project: 152
Seed-saving/Survival Crop comic book: 10 pages

CONCLUSION:

This year we harvested almost 250% more than we did last year in 2012.

Granted, 2012 wasn’t a very good year because of the toxic manure issue – but I’m still quite pleased with the overall results. (Incidentally, the manure problem was mostly cleared up in 2013’s annual beds after generous applications of biochar. Some of the trees are still crippled, however, and I’m starting to doubt they’ll ever recover.)

I’ll repeat my disclaimer on numbers from last year: our weights are approximate (though based on a lot of notes) since many things were eaten in the
garden and never made it to the scale to be weighed. We also didn’t
bother weighing most of the salads we consumed – or the edible weeds we
mixed into stir-fries.

The food forest made a good jump forward this year. Some of the trees added a good 3-5 feet of growth, though we aren’t getting many fruit yet other than the occasional fig or kumquat. The blueberries are failing to grow with any speed, unfortunately, but the pomegranates and loquats are shooting for the sky. One day our harvest numbers will be outrageously large thanks to the tree crops. I hope more of them will start bearing in 2014 – the deep mulching and chop n’ drop programs across the half-acre food forest are bound to make a difference.

As for the blog, I now regularly get between 500-1000 pageviews a day – a lot better than 2012. The newsletter has almost 100 subscribers and the feedback has been quite positive. I greatly enjoy the many sharp folk that stop by here and comment on a regular basis, not to mention the very appreciated people that mail me seeds and cuttings to try out.

There will be lots of new and wonderful things to report in the New Year. May your gardens overflow with abundance in 2014. Personally, I can’t wait for spring. If this winter continues to be mild, it’ll be an amazing year for my citrus and other borderline species.

All the best,

-David the Good