Wherever you live as a homesteader, and whatever you’re doing on your homestead, it’s only a matter of time until you’ve got to deal with unwanted pests. One of the most persistent, destructive, and paradoxically cutest pests around is the raccoon. Who could stay mad at one of these charismatic little critters? Those black masks,
11 Tips to Keep Raccoons Away From Your Homestead (Without Traps) Read More »
If you’ve ever had mice infest your home or chicken coop, you know they are problematic enough. But they don’t hold a candle to their larger cousins: rats! Rats are bigger, stronger and more difficult to deal with than mice. They spread disease and spoil food just the same, but they can also easily injure
17 Ways to Keep Rats Out of Your Chicken Coop (For Good!) Read More »
If you were hankering to grow fruit in your garden or elsewhere on your property, but your patch isn’t particularly sunny, don’t give up hope just because you fear struggling with the shade. Although most fruits do best and produce the best harvests with abundant sunshine, there are many that grow just fine in partial
30 Fruits and Berries That Grow in (Partial) Shade Read More »
If you dream of homesteading but feel like it is only ever going to be the stuff of dreams because you don’t own any land, don’t despair just yet! It turns out that homesteading is a way of life. It’s a lifestyle and, partially, an attitude. It turns out you can homestead anywhere, whether you’ve
47 Ways to Homestead Even If You Don’t Have Any Land Read More »
Sustainability gets talked about like it’s some pricey, all-or-nothing endpoint in your life, some finish line you have to cross so you can say, “I’m sustainable.” It simply isn’t. Sustainability is the sum of the actions you take daily, and most of them actually make you more self-reliant and cost little or nothing. You can
40 Ways to Be More Sustainable Starting Today Read More »
For so many of us, ditching or transitioning out of our current lives and into one that’s on a homestead, a simpler lifestyle that’s so much closer to those of generations past, is a dream. Many of us, the fortunate ones, make the dream a reality. I hate to say it, but the truth demands
20 Ugly Homesteading Truths No One Ever Told You Read More »
Despite the appeal and promise of a simple life, homesteading can be expensive. Sometimes it can be even more expensive than living in town, on the grid and smack in the middle of society! Pretty much every project and every chore you undertake on your homestead will require supplies or components of one kind or
11 Places to Find 100% Free Homesteading Supplies Read More »
If you’ve ever seen those peculiarly dressed folks going down the road in their horse and buggy throughout the northern stretches of the Eastern United States, you’ve seen the Amish. The Amish are traditionalist Christians known for their work ethic, adherence to simplicity and, for many of them, shunning of many modern ways of the
30 Amish Habits for a Quieter, Simple Life Read More »
If you own chickens, you’ve got to know how to pick them up. Whether you’re moving them around, checking their feathers or for injuries, or you just want to enjoy a little quality cuddle time with your favorite member of the flock, you’ve got to do it right. Picking up a bird haphazardly is a
How to Hold a Chicken Properly Read More »
at’s better than a perfectly salty, crunchy dill pickle? Nothing, I say! Whether you’re having it as a side or right on a sandwich, homemade dill pickles are one of life’s great pleasures… but they can also be downright revolting if they don’t come out crisp and crunchy. Sadly, that’s something that is all too
How to Can Crunchy Dill Pickles Like a Pro Read More »
