Best Crops in a Survival Situation

Ive put together some basic information regarding what crops to

grow if you are in a situation where these crops are your basic
and storable primary food sources.
This information is based on a large suburban garden in a Zone 5
climate. Climates less than zone 4 are unlikely to support survival
gardens and gardens in higher zones will in general have an
easier time of it. Most nutrient dense crops will require 90-120
frost free days to grow to mature harvest. Colder than zone 4 will
require starting many crops indoors to artificially extend the
season.
The nutritional value and growing considerations of various easy
to grow nutrient dense crops are shown in the chart below as well
as the number of food days that 100sq.ft. of each crop will feed
one person at 2000 calories a day.
Nutrition: the chart shows the dry weight value per 100g of each
crop. The number listed for protein, fat, carbs and fiber is grams
of each nutrient per 100g of dried crop or the value may also be
viewed as a percent. Calories are listed per 100g of dry crop.
Food Days: How many days of food you can expect to get if you
plant this crop in 100 FT.SQ. of garden space in conditions found
on todays farms. You will need to plant multiple crops to not only
balance your diet, but to ensure against crop failures due to
weather, disease or insects.
Growth Issues: Indicates how easy it is to grow a particular crop
and what issues it might have. For instance, Corn needs quite a
lot of nitrogen fertilizer and is susceptible to damage from deer
and raccoons. Peanuts need well drained soil. Sweet Potatoes
need warm temps and will get damaged by mice, etc. Wild

means it is very hardy and will grow outside a prepared garden,

without attention. A wild rating is an excellent crop to grow
outside your prepared garden.
Yield: Expected production is listed in pounds per 100 SQ.FT of
garden. The first number is the weight of the crop after drying and
the second number is wet weight before drying as picked from the
vine.
Storage Group: How to store a particular crop without using large
amounts of energy, such as canning.
Dryer: the product needs to be dried extensively before storage to
prevent spoilage and includes most of the vegetables and greens.
Cellar: those crops that may be stored in a cool cellar for many
months without spoilage. If your harvest of these crops is
abundant and you are unlikely to consume all of them before they
spoil; it may be wise to dry some of these crops in the early
winter, for late spring and early summer consumption.
Minimal means is will store without much effort like seed crops
such as chia or corn.
Air: air dry before storage if it is harvested in wet conditions or
needs the moisture level to be reduced before storage. This may
include some seed crops as well as crops like chufa. The produce
is usually placed in shallow trays and put in the sun or in front of
fans to further dry.
Rating: This is a rating based on the nutritional quality of a crop
as well as how reliable of a crop it is and will it easily produce the
calories you need to survive.
In general, the foods are listed in order of survival preference for
each type of storage group.
As with any information, your soil fertility, weather or expertise
may affect your harvest, but the below list is a great place to
start. Many desirable foods are not listed as they will not grow in
zone 5. Fruits and most nuts are not listed as they are perennials

and not planted in an annual garden. Neither is meat and

livestock. All of these are important to a balanced diet.

The following group is what I would grow as the main calorie crop. Easy to
grow, store and eat. The numbers are kilocalories.
Sesame 5659, sorghum 3342, cowpeas 3297, chickpeas 3392, filberts/hazelnuts
6345,
soybean 4468, flaxseed 4589, pumpkin seed 5812, mustard seed 4936, chia seed
3682, kidney beans 2421,

The following group would be for use in the dryer for winter storage. This
group will provides many vitamins and minerals plus carbs and proteins.
Cucumber 3222, tomatillos 3386, zucchini with skin 3228, green tomatoes 3227,
spinach 2245, arugula 3057,
Collards 2325, kale 2880, chufa 3387. All spices and greens from the other crops
like mustard greens or pumpkin flowers or dandelions.

This is the root cellar category and maybe best to dry some of your crop to live
from March until the new crops start in July. Cellars do not tend to be
effective latter than the first of April.
Irish potato 3325, pumpkin flesh 3612, sweet potato 3495, garlic 3749, shallots
3265, onions 3308,
rutabagas 3104, butternut squash 3117, parsnips 2953,