Planning for being self sufficientish in 2016

[Flo]

Yeah well the last of the ordered seeds arrived today for the allotment. There's an order in for bagged compost and manure to help out on the new plot where the soil is not exactly growing positive (I know, don't tell me not to take over a derelict plot). It'll be some time before it gets used with the rain we have but it's not due to be delivered till a week next Thursday so no haste. I'm busy scrounging cuttings to fill up the new plot - things like gooseberry strikes and raspberry runners and seem to have a good supply now.

There's also a lot of green manure seed packets in store among the ordered stuff for soil improvement - well it's cheaper than having to collect or buy heavy stuff - transport and all that.

I've surveyed the house and all the furniture is in good order so that won't be an expense this year. The worn out socks have been replaced. I'm discussing with myself the need for new shoes to last the year. Other than that, the clothes supply is generous. It would be nice to decorate the bungalow but it's not essential at the moment.

So anything else is just "I want" not "I need". I think. What about the rest of you?

[Green Aura]

Wood for flooring, throughout the rest of the house - as we don't have any storage big enough it has to be ordered as we need it (at vast delivery cost each time, grrr) and one more room to dryline. I'm hoping those are the last biggish expenses, everything else will be paint etc and can be done as and when. We need more bookshelves, but hopefully we'll have those before the New Year.

We continue on the quest to find decent short season veg, so perusal of the catalogues will start shortly.

At the moment we have more furniture than we know what to do with (our gal brought everything so we have two houses worth in one) so we'll be getting shut of some not needing more, thankfully.

Clothes? When they fall apart we replace them. Who knows when that will be.

[Flo]

Artic King Lettuce are sturdy apparently as are Spanish radish but there's more to life than salad.

Glad I'm not in a house that needs serious repairs. There has to be a reason for a house that seriously needs that amount of spending.

[Green Aura]

There is Flo. We bought a fixer-upper and then spent years deciding what to do - with further delays due to family issues. It's structurally sound, just had lots of stupid little rooms that served no purpose unless you need lots of bedrooms. And part of it had never been insulated since the day it was built. That's at the shop end so it wasn't top of our list of priorities.

Now, at last, we've been able to get cracking.

[Brewtrog]

Bestman at a wedding this year, but that should be my only major expense. Planning on doing a lot more foraging for brewing, especially now I can brew beer from grain - I've wanted to try some hopless ales for a while now. Thinking of changing some things in my bed in the garden, the wormwood definitely needs to be put in its own pot, my liquorice should be ready to harvest and I'm going to grow some burdock (looking forward to proper d&b).