Wasteland Survivalist: A Scientific Guide to Post-Apocalyptic Survival

The first column of the table is "Looking for potential food", which includes wild vegetables, wild fruits, tubers, bird eggs and small animals.

The second section is "Improve the food acquisition system", such as adding fish traps, making fishing gear, repairing nets, and setting traps.

The third column is "Long-term Sustainable Development".

There's not much progress to be made on this part of the work for now; Gu Lang only wrote about crop planting, house expansion, and energy acquisition.

By the afternoon, the dark clouds that had enveloped the island had finally dissipated.

Light shines through the PE film, increasing the indoor brightness.

The surging sea breeze gradually subsided, leaving only the rhythmic sound of the waves.

Feeling much better, Gu Lang picked up the battery and plugged it into the drone.

During this period, in order to avoid wasting precious diesel fuel, he mainly relied on two methods to obtain electricity.

One is a semiconductor thermoelectric generator on a portable wood-burning stove, and the other is a hand-cranked generator that I made myself before.

Both are inefficient, requiring the power bank to be slowly charged before it can output fast charging to power other electronic devices.

Gulang has already begun to plan how to take advantage of the relatively abundant wind power on the island.

By using a sufficient number of plastic sheets to make blades, a hand-cranked generator can be converted into a simple wind turbine.

But that's a plan for the next step; finding food is the higher priority right now.

This time, he plans to use a drone to search for areas that have not yet been explored.

The focus is on those densely vegetated mountain valleys, gentle valleys, and sheltered slopes.

When the drone flew over a mountain valley in the southeast of the island, surrounded by small hills on both sides, the footage caught Gu Lang's attention.

There was a relatively flat, somewhat open meadow, but it wasn't entirely covered in weeds.

A large expanse of uniquely shaped leaves swayed in the wind, standing out prominently in the lens.

These leaves are distinctly heart-shaped, broad at the base, and have long petioles.

He lowered the drone's altitude and zoomed in to observe the image carefully.

The leaves have a smooth surface and intact edges, appearing thick and glossy under light.

More importantly, the veins on the surface are clearly visible, extending radially from the petiole.

"These are... taro leaves?" Gu Lang's heart skipped a beat.

"The characteristics match up. I remember taro is very resilient."

Especially in humid environments, they can survive for a long time even without care.

He was now fairly certain that the area was farmland left behind by the island's former inhabitants.

Feeling that half of the carbohydrate problem had been solved, Gu Lang immediately decided to go and investigate in person.

To ensure safety, he picked out the straightest wooden stick from the "building materials market".

After simple cutting, thin rope was wrapped around the top and middle stress points several times to reinforce them.

A piece of rag was wrapped around the grip to make a simple handle, increasing comfort.

Finally, I made a simple wristband from a sturdy fishing net rope and put it under the handle.

This way, on steep slopes or when support is needed, the wrist strap can help distribute some of the weight and prevent the trekking poles from slipping out of your hand.

When exploring rugged terrain with dense vegetation, trekking poles can save energy, maintain balance, and, more importantly, can be used to "startle the enemy."

He certainly didn't want to be "kissed" by the infamous Pork Chow Mountain Cobra.

However, killing it in an emergency and then using it as a sacrifice is not a bad idea.

This animal, like the black bear we encountered before, is a Class II protected animal and is extremely precious.

With everything ready, Gu Lang held a trekking pole in his left hand and an entrenching tool in his right.

With my backpack on, I started walking along the ridgeline I had identified when I drew the map earlier.

Ridge lines typically offer good visibility and have relatively few obstacles, making them a relatively safe route for exploring unfamiliar areas.

He tapped the grass and bushes in front of him with his trekking poles while clearing away the dense vegetation with an entrenching tool.

About an hour later, he arrived at the open space that had been spotted by the drone.

The scene before him confirmed his guess.

Dozens of taro plants grow in an area of ​​about 100 square meters.

The leaves are large, and the plant height ranges from half a meter to one meter, indicating good growth.

The proximity to the confluence of mountain valleys makes the soil here moist and fertile.

Gu Lang grabbed a handful of water from the ground and quickly sprinkled it onto the leaves, whereupon the water condensed into small droplets.

"Very good, it's not a water-dripping Guanyin."

Taro and Dieffenbachia are both plants of the Araceae family, but they belong to different genera.

One belongs to the genus Taro, and the other belongs to the genus Alocasia.

The most crucial difference lies in the fact that the entire Dieffenbachia plant is poisonous, making it an ornamental poisonous plant that "can only be looked at but not touched."

Taro, on the other hand, is much less toxic and is rich in nutrients such as starch and potassium, making it a common edible crop.

The two are very similar in appearance, except that the ground plant of the Alocasia macrorrhiza is much larger and the tuber is not as round as that of taro.

The simplest way to distinguish them is to test the surface of the blades with water.

The leaves of the Alocasia macrorrhiza are not hydrophobic and cannot condense into water droplets.

Water drips directly from the tips of the leaves, which is where its name comes from.

"Thank you for nature's bounty!"

Gu Lang excitedly used his entrenching tool to select a taro plant on the edge and began to carefully dig it up.

First, clear away the surrounding weeds, then dig in a circular motion from about half a meter away from the plant.

Dig slowly toward the center, avoiding direct damage to the main tuber.

The soil was moist and loose, and soon the shovel hit something hard.

He dug away the soil with his hands, revealing a brown, rough-surfaced tuber with ring-shaped patterns and hairs.

Further digging reveals that several smaller tubers of varying sizes are attached around the main tuber of this taro plant.

The mother taro will continuously produce lateral buds, which will develop into daughter taro. This is the typical growth pattern of taro.

Upon cutting open a small piece, the flesh inside was pure white and had no odor, confirming that it is indeed an edible cultivated variety.

Gu Lang selected several taro roots of moderate size that were not rotten or sprouted.

After putting on gloves, cut it off with a knife, put it in a plastic bag, and stuff it into your backpack.

He only dug up enough to eat for three days, and left all the mother taro roots behind.

Hopefully they will continue to grow and yield a harvest in the future.

I also picked a few of the tenderest leaf stalks, intending to use them as a side dish.

After peeling off the outer fibrous layer of these taro stems, blanch them and cook them until done, then they can be stir-fried or pickled.

With its crisp texture, it is a traditional ingredient in many places.

Carrying his heavy harvest, Gu Lang was in high spirits.

After returning to camp, he spent a long time thoroughly cooking the taro.

Unlike potatoes, taro does not produce toxic substances like solanine even when it sprouts.

However, because it contains irritating substances such as calcium oxalate needle crystals and saponins, taro must be thoroughly cooked before it is safe to eat.

The sap from raw taro can cause skin allergies, which is why Gulang wears gloves when harvesting it.

Eating undercooked taro can cause mild symptoms such as numbness of the mouth and tongue, swelling of the throat, nausea and vomiting, and in severe cases, even difficulty breathing.

Furthermore, the starch structure of raw taro is dense and not easily broken down by human digestive enzymes.

Food is easier to digest and absorb only after it has been cooked and gelatinized; otherwise, it will cause bloating.

Feeling the rising fullness in his stomach, Gu Lang spent his tenth day on the island.