Listen Online 
Download 
Get all of the Podcasts in convenient, giant zip files 
Subscribe on iTunes
Summary
part 1 of a 2 part podcast
Paul, Mike, Tim, Rebekah, and Clay discuss GAMCOD (originally Grow A Million Calories On [1 acre of] Dirt -
enough to
feed 1 person for a year). Stephen joins in part way through.
The new GAMCOD requires you to grow food on a 200 sq ft plot of dirt (unimproved ground) and record the process on video. The idea is to grow as much as possible in a single growing season without augmenting it with
compost, fertilizer or other bought-in stuff. There's a
thread on Permies for GAMCOD with more detail. On the
Wheaton eco scale, most of the stuff they do at the labs is level 5 or more. The idea of the GAMCOD movie is to do really simple stuff which appeals to level 1 people.
Paul says people want more videos etc. about
gardening. There is a lot of bad advice about
gardening, so there's a good case for that.
Level 1 people believe various misconceptions about gardening:
1) costs more than buying food at the store
2) requires massive knowledge
3) takes an enormous amount of time, it'd be easier to work and buy food.
4) requires an established garden
5) provides a tiny amount of novelty, not your main food.
They discuss these points, and how their
experience shows they are wrong.
The consensus is that it can be cheap but you may have to adjust what you eat.
If you do "conventional" gardening there's some truth in point 2, but with the right approach you can grow plenty without too much knowledge but there is some knowledge needed. Paul hopes the GAMCOD movie will provide the needed knowledge for beginners.
Addressing the point about time: Mike Haasl reckoned he spent under 5 hours in total; Stephen reckoned he spent about 20 hours. They agree it need not take much time. Rebekah makes a good point that you have to be consistent. Also gardening is good for your soul.
Relevant Threads
GAMCOD forum
GAMCOD 2025: 200 square feet; Zero degrees F or colder; calories cheap and easy
GAMCOD: Video Submissions
GAMCOD - strategy C
PEP/PEM BBs to complete during GAMCOD
Support the Empire
Help support the empire and get all of the podcasts in a bundle
here in the digital market at permies.
To support production of these podcasts, make a donation
here at Paul's Patreon page.
This podcast was made possible thanks to:
Dr. Hugh Gill Kultur
Kyle Neath
Bill Crim
anonymous
Chris Sugg
Kerry JustTooLazy
Jocelyn Campbell
Bill Erickson
Sasquatch
G Cooper
Dominic Crolius
Penny McLoughlin
Mehron Kugler
Pasquale DeAngelis
havokeachday
Julia Winter, world's slowest mosaic artist
Greg Martin
Mark
Sean Benedict
Rita Bliden
Dana Martin
Candace Dahlk
Keith Kuhnsman
Leanne
Eric Tolbert
Nick DePuy
Nathan Hale
Opalyn
Rose
Polly Jayne Smyth
Todd Gerardot
Katie Young
Ivar Vasara
Brent Lawson
Weston prestage
Candice Crawford
Chris Holtslag
Song Zheng
.png)
7
