The real ‘good life’ - part 5

An experiment in sustainable living, by Amy Rhodes

Amy Rhodes lives on a smallholding in Chulmleigh, and along with three generations of her family is on a journey of sustainable living. Starting in September 2021, they aimed to produce all their own food for a year, only buying sugar, flour and salt.

With only a month left of our self-sufficiency challenge it is a good time to reflect on the last year. One really good thing is that we have never run out of food!

We were worried that the stored potatoes wouldn’t hold out until the first new ones, but a mild spring with no late frosts meant they were ready in early May. We have all lost weight and feel healthier, and it has been surprisingly enjoyable to eat with the seasons.

I thought it would get tedious eating the same vegetables, often for months (and in the case of potatoes every day for the whole year!), but it hasn’t. There are the late summer flavours of tomatoes, beans, sweetcorn, courgettes and fresh potatoes - going into the carrots, apples and squashes of the autumn.

There are the root vegetable stews of the winter with kale and mashed potatoes. Purple sprouting broccoli and spring cabbages come just when you are wanting some fresh greens.

Now, I am really enjoying the freshness of new potatoes, peas, broad beans and young carrots.

The things that have been difficult are the amount of time it takes to prepare meals, and the occasional craving for something I just can’t have. All in all though, a really worthwhile year.

We hope to continue to be mostly self-sufficient, just making a few additions to our diet. It will be nice to feel that we can now pass some produce on to family and friends. During the year we have been reluctant to give anything away as we just might need it! We will be holding an open day for people to come and have a look around and hear about our self-sufficient year on Saturday, September 3rd. Please email me so we know how many people to expect and to get directions to find us: amy.rhodes@hotmail.co.uk