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Simple Steps to Greater Self-Sufficiency

The goal of everyone who is interested in homesteading is to become more independent and less reliant on the “machine” that seems to run the lives of most people. Many today have no real idea of where their food comes from or what would happen if they no longer had easy access to electricity. They need the modern conveniences of the world to live. You do not want to be like those people, and you do not have to. The following are some easy things that you can start doing now, and expanding upon later, to help increase your level […]

Why Start Seeds Indoors?

We’ve posted a bit about tips for starting seeds indoors as spring has been approaching, but I wanted to talk a bit today about why to start seeds indoors. You want to have a beautiful garden, and you want it to provide you and your family with plenty of food when it comes time to harvest. This means you need to start the seeds at the right time. You want to make sure they are strong enough to survive and thrive in the garden, and one of the best things you can do is start your seeds indoors, getting ready to […]

Opening Day-Georgia Spring Turkey Hunting (Video)

Think all the good hunting is in the fall and winter? No way! Spring is prime turkey season, and they’re a great animal to go for. Big and juicy, as well as fun to hunt, you’re sure to get hooked in no time. In this video, YouTube “Turkeyologists” walk you through their opening day of turkey season in Georgia, with some excellent, high-def footage of the hunt. I thoroughly enjoyed this video and can’t wait to give turkey hunting a try this season. Enjoy! If you enjoyed this, you might also like…. Do You Have What You Need to Hold […]

Entertaining Yourself on the Homestead

When you have a homestead, you and the family tend to spend quite a bit of time there. That’s not to say you don’t get out and have fun off the property, but there will certainly be quite a bit of time on the property. Naturally, you want to have some things available that can keep you happy and entertained, especially on those rainy days or when the snow comes and you can’t spend as much time outdoors. First, get some board games, as well as a deck of cards. Make sure that you get different types of board games, […]

Why Should Homesteaders Hunt?

If you love the idea of homesteading, and you want to do the same types of things that your forefathers and foremothers did, you will want to add hunting to your list of activities for the homestead. Of course, it is about far more than tradition. You will find many benefits for the homesteader who hunts. When Times Are Lean One of the biggest benefits to those who hunt is that they have the capacity to put extra meat on the table. Even if you raise chickens and other livestock to use as meat, having extra in the freezer is […]

The Amazing Moringa Plant

The moringa plant is an amazing superfood, often called “the miracle tree”. It is insanely nutritious, and contains a high amount of calcium, which can be otherwise hard to grow, but is an essential nutrient. Alone, the leaves of the moringa tree are like an all-purpose multivitamin, making it a great choice for survival-minded homesteaders or anyone wanting to get more vitamins in their diet naturally. The moringa has been used for centuries as an all-purpose source of food and medicine. Its small leaves are both edible and highly nutritious, and it’s seed pods are edible as well. It is most commonly […]

Raising Quail (Video)

I think one of the greatest things about the internet is that we can get an inside look into what other homesteaders are doing and how they set up their gardens and animal raising operations. This is a very informative look at Big Bear Homestead’s quail raising set up, with a detailed tour of the coop. I have always been very interested in raising quail, particularly because their eggs are supposed to be highly nutritious, and they’re just as productive as chickens. This video really motivated me to explore the idea of raising quail more, so if you’ve been wondering […]

How to Grow Cucumber Vertically

Cucumbers are a delicious treat to grow in the garden, and it’s really fun to branch out and try different varieties, from pickling cucumbers for your root cellar to small, juicy Gerkins you’ll rarely find at the supermarket. The trouble with cucumber plants is that they crawl…like crazy. The cucumber plant from simply one seed can spread out up to 20 square feet when grown in garden beds. If space is a challenge in your garden, this probably doesn’t sound too appealing. Fortunately, there’s a very simple solution: letting cucumber grow upward, instead of outward! It’s very easy to train cucumbers on a […]

Dirt Cheap Foods for Homesteaders

Whether you’re an urban homesteader or full-blown, land-owning, farmer, you have probably come to a time in your life at some point in which you had to keep your budget tight. If you are saving up for land, land development, or simply trying to budget and spend in a smarter way, food is always one of the biggest expenses, and it can be hard to know how to cut back on food spending without going for less healthy, processed foods. Fortunately, there are many wonderfully healthy and nutritious foods out there that are not only good for you, they’re dirt […]

Simple Yet Healthy Homemade Ketchup

Ketchup is an American staple, but did you know you can make it very easily at home? Unfortunately, a lot of store-bought ketchup is made with loads of sugar and sometimes even artificial coloring and flavoring. If you’re craving some delicious ketchup but want a healthy, whole-food version that doesn’t sacrifice health for taste, I’ve got the perfect recipe! This recipe uses all natural, easy-to-find ingredients, and instead of lots of cane sugar like regular ketchup typically has, it requires just a bit of honey and coconut sugar, which are much healthier and both have a very low GI index […]

Spring Equinoxes Explained (Video)

Today is the first day of spring! Hopefully, you’ve got lots of warm weather and sunlight in your area so you can get your spring garden started. Spring equinox is a great day to start planting, because there’s only going to be more daylight from this day forward. But what is an equinox, exactly? I thought it would be cool to learn a little bit about what makes an equinox and equinox, and where it lies in the seasonal rhythms of our planet. Understanding both the cycles of light and seasons on earth as well as the way planetary changes […]

How to Use Activated Charcoal

I’ve mentioned activated charcoal a few times on this site as a great natural first aid product to have on hand, which it definitely is. It’s probably on my top 5 list of things to have in a natural medicine cabinet, because it can be used in a number of different ways, and is great for homesteaders. Activated charcoal has been used for centuries due to its ability to absorb toxins and impurities. In many emergency rooms, poison victims may be treated using a large dose of activated charcoal, which can absorb the toxin to be passed naturally through the […]

Pros and Cons of Birds on a Homestead

Birds live everywhere, even in the middle of thickly populated urban areas birds build nests, hunt and scavenge for food, and raise their young. So of course, there’s plenty of avian wildlife on any homestead, but are they a blessing, or a curse? Well, there’s a little bit of both. Here are some of the pros and cons: Cons Birds can definitely have a lot of cons for the busy homesteaders. As you grow your food, they’re also going to be looking for it on every inch of your homestead, and odds are, they’ll have their eye on your food. Birds in the […]

20 Ways to Control Your Pests Without Spraying Anything (Video)

One of the principal reasons to go organic when it comes to your garden is to avoid toxic chemicals. However, there’s a reason cheap pesticides are appealing to so many farmers: pests are a real pain, and can destroy your whole crop, even your whole garden. So, you’ll need to find some natural alternatives to pesticides, and fortunately, there’s many very effective, 100% safe solutions for pest problems in the garden. This video, from an excellent organic gardening YouTube channel, has 20 suggestions for how to keep your garden pest-free. You don’t have to sacrifice pest control for the sake of […]

How to Be Prepared for a Power Outage

What happens when you suffer a power outage? A couple of things could happen. You need to wait until the repairs are made and the electric company takes care of things to get the power restored, or you could get the generator going if you have one. Whether you are out in the middle of nowhere on your homestead and are dealing with generator issues, or you are homesteading in the suburbs, you should have some ideas of how to make the power outage as easy to handle as possible. A Light Source When the sun goes down, you need […]

How to Catch and Use Rainwater

To make sure that you always have the water you need for your garden and for other uses around the home, you will want to learn how to capture and make use of rainwater. Fortunately, the process is very simple. If you want to catch rainwater, the easiest way to do this is to utilize rain barrels. You can find these barrels online, and most of the 50-gallon options are under $100. In a pinch, you could use just about any barrel or container, if you are sure it will not leak, for the collection of water. You can set […]

How to Make Your Own Seed Tape

Continuing in the theme of spring from our last few posts, let’s talk about seed tape today, and how easy it is to make your own! Seed tape is a great way to easily plant your first spring crops, because you can guarantee proper placement and spreading of the seeds, as well as greatly reduce your time spent planting. Not to mention, the tape itself helps germination, by keeping the seeds protected and moist. Here is a very simple tutorial for how to make your own seed tape, that will certainly save you time and money. It only takes a […]

The Good and Bad of Snakes on the Homestead

How do you feel about snakes? Many people have a fear of snakes, and for some people, it goes beyond just a healthy respect for the creatures and turns into full-blown hysterical fear. So, what should you do if you happen to see snakes on the farm or around your homestead? Are they good or are they bad? As you will find with most things in life, there are good and bad elements to them, but in most cases, they tend to provide some benefits to the homesteader. The Pros and Cons If you see a nonvenomous snake on your […]

Composting Chicken House (Video)

When it comes to homesteading, I think the more (proverbial) birds you can kill with one stone, the better. After all, that’s a huge part of what homesteading is all about: creating your own little self-sufficient system. This plan for a composting chicken house is awesome. It’s well-known that chickens can be easily put to work both by contributing to a compost pile or soil amendment with their nitrogen-rich droppings, or by being let loose on a compost pile to unwittingly turn it for you as they scrape and hunt all the delicious little bugs. But these folks in Guatemala […]

6 Crops You Can Plant Outside in Early Spring

I keep saying “spring is right around the corner” so forgive me, I’m just excited to get gardening again! As I prepare my own spring garden by starting seeds indoors, I have also been planning to start a few crops outdoors. I really prefer direct sowing for many reasons, while starting seeds indoors will give you that leg up to start your spring garden, and is great in many ways, direct sowing is easier, of course, and a lot of plants prefer not to be transplanted. I think it’s a really good idea to try both this year, especially if you’re […]