Real food, real resilience — even if you’re not a keen gardener
A survival food plant is one you can count on — in everyday life and times of need. These are plants that feed you consistently, grow with little effort, and bounce back from tough conditions. You don’t need to be a passionate or even competent gardener to grow them.
And they’re not just nutrient packed food. Many of these plants have multiple uses — you can eat them, but also make teas or tonics, use them as home remedies, or even mulch your garden with them. Once you get to know them, they can become the backbone of your health and food security.
What makes a good survival food plant?
To me, a true survival plant ticks a few important boxes:
- It’s edible, tasty, and full of nutrients
- It’s perennial, or at least self-seeds easily
- It needs minimal care or attention
- It offers a long or repeat harvest
- It has multiple uses like food, medicine and garden care
These are the plants that look after you when you’re too busy, too tired, or simply not around. They’re the ones still standing when the rest of your vegies have failed. You can plant them once and harvest for years — no digging, no replanting, no complicated care routine.
My story: from vegie patch to survival plants
I’ve always loved growing my own food. Over the years I’ve tried pretty much every conventional vegetable there is — sometimes with great success, other times with total failure.
But I’m not a textbook (or even good!) gardener. Some weeks I’m all in, planting, mulching, experimenting. Other times, life takes over and the garden gets neglected. That’s when something interesting happens: the conventional vegies don’t do so well… but the survival plants keep growing. Mostly they outcompete the weeds too.
These plants don’t need me to baby them. They thrive in my climate, grow without fertiliser, handle the weather, and often shrug off pests. They’re the ultimate low-effort, high-reward garden companions. The most work is harvesting for your meals.
Not just for “survival”
You don’t need to be preparing for a crisis to benefit from these plants. They’re brilliant for:
- Busy people who don’t have time for a high-maintenance garden
- New gardeners who want early wins
- Seasoned growers looking to boost productivity and resilience
- Anyone wanting to improve their health with fresh, nutrient-rich food and folk medicines.
They also make great companion plants in your existing garden — boosting diversity, confusing pests, and sometimes even protecting other crops. Many can be used as mulch, groundcover, or medicine, even if you don’t eat them every day.
Why you won’t find them in the supermarket
Most of these plants aren’t grown commercially in Australia — not because they’re not valuable, but because they don’t fit the supermarket model. They’re grown and eaten widely in Asia, Africa and the Pacific, but they don’t tick the boxes of mass agriculture:
- No long shelf life
- No standardised look
- Not sold by the tonne
But in your garden, they make perfect sense. You pick what you need, when you need it. No storage, no waste, no middleman.
A garden that feeds you — even when you’re not looking
The ultimate goal? A low-maintenance food forest.
Once you’ve got a few survival plants established, your garden starts to look after itself. You won’t need to dig, weed, or water constantly. You’ll have free, fresh, nutrient-dense food growing around you — every day of the year.
Even a few survival plants in your backyard can make a real difference:
- You’ll save money
- You’ll eat better
- You’ll be more self-reliant
- You’ll feel more connected to nature
And if times ever got tough — whether due to illness, supply chain issues, or a bigger crisis — you’d already be ahead of the game.
The bottom line
You don’t need to be an expert gardener to grow survival food plants.
Start with one or two. Learn how to cook with them. Add them to salads, stir fries, teas, or smoothies. Share cuttings with friends. Build from there.
This site will guide you step by step — with real photos, growing tips, recipes, medicinal uses, and personal advice from someone who actually uses these plants every day.
Ready to get started? Come check out the plants