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Dandelion Balm for Aches and Pains

Keeping your homestead in working order is bound to give you sore muscles, joint pain, and irritated skin from time to time. Luckily you probably have the cure outside in your lawn. Dandelions can be used in a balm to help treat soreness and skin irritation. All you need other than dandelions are some oil (olive, coconut, almond, or sunflower will work), bee’s wax, and some canning jars. How to Make Dandelion Balm Gather up all the dandelions that you have available. Next, you want to dry them out so that your balm isn’t watered down. Spread them out […]

Food That Magically Re-Grows Itself

I recently found this awesome infographic on Pinterest that depicts several foods that can regrow themselves, no garden needed! It’s from WholeFoods.com. Most of these you can do on your counter, windowsill or on your porch, and it’s a great way to re-use scraps from vegetables (which, if you’re shopping at Whole Foods, will probably have cost a lot!) This is also a fun idea for winter. As your garden dies out, you can grow celery or what have you on your countertop! Not to mention, this would be a great little science project for kids, especially homeschoolers. Why should […]

Benefits of Homesteading for the Kids

Kids today are very different from kids a hundred years ago, and the idea of homesteading and sustainable living might seem very foreign to them. This is especially true if you are introducing this sort of lifestyle to a child who has already passed a couple of years old. However, living sustainably is very important, and you need to be the one to guide the children. One of the first things you have to do is show them the importance of sustainable living. Explain to them why it is so important that they learn to reuse items and to learn […]

How to Make a Fly Trap

Not only are flies annoying, but they are disgusting too. They can spread diseases just by landing on your food, without your even noticing. They can ruin the time you spend outside trying to relax, and they can sneak inside every time you open the door. And while raising animals and having a compost pile may increase their numbers, even if you have no animals and a near sterile yard, they can fly on over from your neighbor’s. What can you do about it? Trap them with a few things you probably already have laying around the house, and here’s […]

Using Rain Catchment Water on Your Homestead

If your homestead is off-grid, then water catchment is essential. But even if you are connected to the grid, why pay for a resource that you can get for free? No matter where your homestead is, water catchment is not an option that you should dismiss without consideration. Why use Water Catchment? If your homestead is off-grid then you will either have to haul water, or run a generator to power a pump to get your water. Both of these options require you to have a steady supply of fuel for either your vehicle, or your generator, and that […]

Brewing Mead at Home

Winter’s coming up, and on top of being cold, it can be boring! You’re stuck inside, there aren’t many chores to take care of, things to do or fun to have. With lots of free indoor time during winter, it’s a great time to try your hand at brewing some mead! It’s lots of fun to drink as well. If you’re a fan of fermenting already or simply would like to give brewing a try, it’s a great fermenting project for winter time. Why Brew Mead? If you’ve never heard of mead, it is essentially wine brewed with honey […]

3 Ways to Save on Raising a Dog

Dogs can be expensive to keep, but they don’t have to be! You can maintain a high quality of life for your dog while cutting costs at the same time. Here are three ways to save money on raising a dog. Selection The first cost to consider is the price of the dog itself. A specialty breed can easily cost you thousands of dollars, and that’s just to get the dog. Then there are the health complications that go along with dogs that have been bred for specific traits. One the other hand, you can get a rescue dog […]

All About Alpacas

Finances can be a determining factor in the success or failure of your homestead. Finding a way to make a living on your homestead, or better yet, through your homestead, can have you go from scraping by to rolling in money. That may sound like an exaggeration, but it’s been done before. One way is to raise alpacas. What is an Alpaca? Alpacas are basically a half size llama. But unlike llamas alpacas are not bred to be pack animals, they are bred for their fiber (it is similar to sheep’s wool but softer and contains no lanolin), or […]

How to Make Bone Broth (Video)

This time of year is perfect for bone broth. It’s finally cool enough to have something cooking in your kitchen for a long period of time, and odds are, if you raise animals and are slaughtering some for the winter, you’ll have lots of extra bones lying around. Bone broth is a great way to use up these bones, and it’s incredibly nutritious as well. As flu and cold season rolls around, you’ll be glad to have a nice supply of hearty, nutritious broth to help you heal. But it’s healthy on a daily basis too, and you can use […]

Winterizing Small Engines

Tools aren’t cheap, but preventative maintenance is. Don’t overlook properly winterizing your small engines this year. If you do, it could mean having to spend hundreds of dollars on repairs next spring. Instead, follow these easy steps to take care of your tools. Clean Them Spray off your mower or trimmer with a pressure washer and soapy water. If you don’t have a pressure washer just use a hose, or what you have available, and a scrub brush. Make sure you remove all debris. Spray WD-40 into any tight areas, or areas that you notice any rust. Change Oil […]

Storing and Protecting Summer Clothes

Getting ready for the winter doesn’t just require getting out your warm clothes, but also packing up your summer ones. Depending on where you live, this might mean that your clothes will be packed up for 4 to 5 months. Improperly storing clothing for that period of time could result in damaged or ruined summer wear by the time it gets warm again. The biggest threats are typically mold and moths. Here are a few tips on how to fight these threats and keep your summer clothes safe all winter long. Combating Mold Nobody wants to wear moldy clothes. […]

Slaughtering Pigs: A Simple Guide

After investing so much time, energy, money, and emotion into raising your pigs you want things to go right when you slaughter them. If it is your first time slaughtering a pig, a sloppy kill and messing butchering can really turn you off from wanting to raise pigs in the future. The following are directions and tips on slaughtering and butchering pigs. Make sure to thoroughly plan things out before you begin, you will not be able to stop half way through and finish it later. Clean Kill Plain and simple, shot the pig between the eyes. You […]

Getting the Homestead Ready for the Winter

Days are getting shorter and nights are getting colder. Are you and your homestead ready for the changing season? Here are a few tips on getting ready for the winter so that you don’t get caught out in the cold. Preparing the Home The first preparation should be firewood. If you don’t already have a nice big pile of wood cut and dry, then you are going to go buy a cord of wood or have it delivered. Locate gaps and cracks that will cause drafts, fill them with caulk or foam to help insulate your home. If your home […]

Safe Homemade Weed Killer (Video)

If you are homesteading and have not heard about the dangers of using chemical herbicides like Round Up, then you have probably been living under a rock. For everyone else, controlling weeds with natural methods can be time consuming and energy intense. Aside from mulching your garden heavily, what can you do? Here is a short video of a recipe for homemade weed killer, it even shows some of the results at the end. If you liked this, you might also enjoy… Natural Healing Techniques Doctors Don’t Want You to Know… The Weight-Reducing Magic of Yoga… The Ultimate Woodworking […]

Preserving Meat with Salt

Whether your homestead is off-grid, you don’t have enough room in your freezer, or you want meat that could last when power is interrupted, salting is a great time-tested option. In this article, we will discuss dry salting. The process works by using the salt to draw out the moisture from the meat and any potentially harmful bacteria until microbial growth is prohibited. It is basically chemically induced dehydration. There is always a risk of food poisoning when one is consuming meat that is moths, or even a year old, get properly prepared and use caution when salting your meat […]

The Benefits of Having a Rooster

Roosters have a bad reputation. Many people who want to raise hens for eggs choose not to have a rooster in the flock. Some have heard that roosters are aggressive, or they don’t want to noise, or they just so the reason to have one. But the reality is that hens can be just as aggressive; if there is no rooster around the dominant hen will take on the role of rooster. If noise is keeping you from having a rooster around then you shouldn’t have chickens at all because hens make plenty of noise. There are benefits to having a […]

Nutritional Supplements for Off-Grid Homesteaders

Most people associate homesteading with healthy living. This isn’t without cause, most homesteaders have a higher level of physical activity than those living a typical modern sedentary life, fresh and air and sun, and a more direct relationship to their food. But homesteaders, especially off-grid homesteaders, will be functioning off of limited resources, and this will sometimes include their access to nutrient-rich foods. When your homestead is not able to supply your nutritional needs your body is going to suffer, if your body suffers, your output suffers, and if your output suffers it will inevitably follow that your homestead will […]

All About Feverfew

Feverfew is a great resource to have on your homestead. With so much work to get done, you can’t just take a sick day every time you don’t feel good. You need to have a medicine on hand to get you back on your feet. Feverfew can help with that. Uses Feverfew can be used to treat headaches, reduce fever, and help with inflammation. It works by opening up your vascular system and allowing the blood to flow smoothly as it should. Feverfew is said to be safe for pregnant women and children. Cultivation Feverfew is grown from seed. […]

Tips for Stretching Wire Fence

Whether you are trying to keep your animals in, or wild animals out, a good fence is going to be an essential part of nearly all homesteads. Simply putting up some wire between posts will not get you much. Even if you are able to contain your animals, it could be because there is a steady supply of food and water available, rather than their inability to escape. But potential predators will not be deterred so easily. The following is a few tips on getting your wire fence stretched out tight and started right. Determine the Grade After getting […]

Household Uses for Hydrogen Peroxide

Every knows that hydrogen peroxide can be used as an antiseptic to treat wounds, but hydrogen peroxide can be used for more than just wound care. Here is a brief list of other ways you can use this cheap, versatile, and safe product. Oral Care H202 (hydrogen peroxide) can be diluted with an equal amount of water and be used as a mouthwash to kill gingivitis and help with toothaches. A bonus is that it will help whiten your teeth. Don’t go overboard with this, though, using it too regularly can damage tooth enamel. Laundry Boost Do you remember […]