(ModernSurvival.org) – Regardless of what is going on in the world, everyone needs food. As history has shown time and again, when food becomes scarce, people become violent. Those without the foresight to prepare before hard times target those who did out of sheer desperation, leading to conflict — and often, death.
This is precisely why the term OPSEC (operations security) comes up so much in prepper circles. If the desperate masses don’t know about one’s supplies, they can’t take them. But how can one hide their garden, where fruits and vegetables are obviously growing? What’s to stop people from simply taking what they want?
The obvious answer is to put up fences concealing the growing plants. However, in a truly dire situation, fences won’t stop starving people from invading (and likely destroying) a garden. With a little planning and strategic planting, however, one can create edible landscaping that the untrained eye would never suspect is actually a flourishing source of food.
Hidden in Plain View
The idea behind a hidden landscape garden is to make it look like anything other than an actual garden. Instead of growing plants in neat rows as one often sees, disperse plants that blend in among the landscaping in ways that one would never suspect.
Instead of rows, add plants to flower gardens where no one would think to look for vegetables. This is also a great place to conceal fruits and vegetables that are colorful, as they will blend in with the bright flowers.
Another option is to plant vegetables within or between rows of hedges. The idea here is to camouflage food-bearing plants among other growth that is expected to be found on a person’s property.
What to Plant
Some plants are simply going to attract more attention. For example, fruit trees develop their end-products (often brightly colored) on branches that anyone can plainly see. While these may be nice to have, they will be hard targets for hungry thieves. What some don’t know is that many of these trees come in dwarf varieties that, when strategically planted between hedges or other standard trees, are easily hidden.
Other plants, specifically those with edible roots such as carrots and potatoes, are hard to spot unless one knows exactly what to look for. Additionally, many weeds are actually edible as well, and the average person will walk by them without a second thought.
Berry bushes are great additions not only because they produce edible fruits, but also because many grow nasty thorns that can deter invaders. For the sake of OPSEC, darker berries might be the way to go so as not to attract attention. Strawberries planted along the edges of these berry bushes are great, too. They grow low to the ground, and the bushes help to camouflage the color.
For flavoring, plant herbs here and there as well. Again, unless someone knows what to look for, these plants will blend in with other landscape growth. When properly arranged, one can create a garden that no one will ever suspect exists.
In addition to providing food, many plants actually improve the security of one’s home. To see how, check out our article on how to grow your home’s defenses, literally.
~Here’s to Your Survival!
Copyright 2023, ModernSurvival.org
