I grew up 11 miles outside of Lebanon, Oregon. As you might imagine, there was a lot of riding on the school buses during grade school and high school. What I saw during those rides was important to our nation; smaller farms with lots of gardens, fruit trees, and animals. Why? Because during some crisis, any crisis, the rural areas surrounding cities can be a source of food for people in need and that might be a significant number of people.
Most of those farms, some 40 years later, are gone. Even the fencing is gone. The homes are still occupied, but for any number of reasons, people just live there and get food at the store. This problem is not unique to our area. I have spoke to others about the rural life and how the farms are gone.
Problem is, the structures are gone too. You can’t build working, productive farms in a day or a month, or a year. They are constant work and take years of development, especially if the soil needs improvement.
This means, in an emergency, you won’t get food from these areas over night. Not happening.
We as a society need to be aware of this and do more to support the hobby farm. It is important to you and your children.
Era Lewis 