Homesteading Archives - Page 16 of 36 - Homesteader DepotHomesteader Depot

Awesome Compostables You Probably Already Have at Home

Composting is awesome. You can create your own amazing humus right in your backyard, and there’s just nothing quite as nutritious for your soil as well-composed, beautiful homemade compost. Once you start composting, you might find you view your kitchen and home as a veritable goldmine! You might not be familiar with how many everyday items that you just toss in the trash or recycling bin every day can help you build a healthy, well-fed compost pile. We’ve put together a list of great compostables you probably already have in your kitchen, home, or on your property, that you can collect, […]

A Simple Guide to Raising Meat Rabbits

Most people think of rabbits as being adorable, quiet pets, but they’re actually great to raise for meat as well. They don’t require a lot of space, aren’t too expensive to feed, and well, breed like bunnies. If you’re interested in raising rabbits for meat, here are a few considerations: Laws First of all, check your local laws on slaughtering rabbits, and to see if you can legally raise them in your area for meat. There are some states and counties in which you could be reported for animal cruelty since they are considered pets, so just make sure before […]

The Easiest Way to Skim Raw Milk

A cold glass of fresh milk is a delicious, wholesome treat. If it’s non-homogenized, the higher-fat cream will naturally separate from the milk to be skimmed for butter, whipped cream, or to splash into a hot cup of coffee. The traditional skimming process, however, is a tedious repetition of scooping out the cream ladle after ladle (and sometimes spoonful after spoonful). If this setback has kept you from enjoying the bliss of fresh cream, here is an incredibly easy method to try using a siphon. Supplies: A clothespin (the kind with the metal spring) 1 Vinyl Tube, ¼” or more […]

DIY Home Energy Independence

One of the biggest draws towards homesteading is trying to achieve energy independence. It sure is rough out there today. Electricity costs are soaring and you probably know the feeling of dread that comes over you each time you open up an energy bill. Well, it actually is possible to be completely energy-independent, and never pay an electric bill again. I’m not even kidding. This incredible video explains how, and really blew my mind! If you’re sick of being beholden to big energy corporations that fleece you monthly, and tired of shivering through winter and sweating through summer just to […]

Mushroom Foraging for Beginners

Have you ever been tempted to try a wild mushroom but were too afraid? Everyone has an urban legend to share about a well-meaning hiker who ate a benign-looking wild mushroom and paid dearly for it. Undoubtedly, mushroom foraging is something of a science and deserves as much research before trying as gardening or raising livestock. Thankfully, there are a few foolproof (and tasty) species for beginners to sharpen their identification skills. There are thousands of species of mushrooms in North America alone, ranging from delicious or medicinal to nontoxic to poisonous. Here are a few starter tips to consider […]

A Simple Guide to Starting a Beehive (Video)

Last week, we shared the very cool idea to make a beehive using mason jars, so since it did not come with instructions as to how to actually start a hive, I thought I’d go ahead and follow up with that one. Bees are a wonderful thing to do on the homestead, or even in your backyard, if you’re able to. Raw honey is one of the most valuable and nutritious substances on the planet, so raising bees is a space and time efficient way to produce food on a small scale, and a wonderful addition to any homestead or self-sufficiency […]

How to Bake Bread in a Toaster Oven

It’s great having fresh baked bread every day, and while one of the wonderful things about homemade bread is that it contains no chemicals or preservatives, it also doesn’t stay fresh very long. Also, if you live in a warm place or somewhere with high energy costs, you might not want to heat your whole house up every day just to have fresh bread. The solution? Baking bread in your toaster oven. It’s totally possible, and works great! Here’s how: On the weekend, make yourself a large batch of dough. You will probably want to double or triple your regular […]

Hunt for Your Meat

If you are a homesteader, you have probably spent quite a bit of time trying to determine just how much food you can grow on your property. While growing your veggies and fruit, and canning them, is great, most people will also want to have meat on the table. You may have some livestock that you can use, such as chickens. However, the best way to get more meat is to start hunting. Take the time to see what animals are in your area and the times of the hunting seasons. Common animals to hunt include deer, boar, ducks, quail, […]

Growing Cauliflower in a Container

Cauliflower is a great vegetable. It’s nutritious, delicious, and has grown in popularity in recent years since it makes a great base for many grain-free dishes. If you’d like to grow your own, you don’t need a garden to do it; cauliflower can be grown in a container, if you follow the right steps. First of all, cauliflower needs really high-condition soil. Use premium potting soil and loamy, well-amended soil to plant it in. You can direct sow in the container or start in 2″ pots and transplant after it’s sprouted. To choose a container, you’ll need something that is […]

Companion Planting: A Simple Guide (Infographic)

Companion planting can be kind of confusing. If something goes well together, does that mean it might not go well next to another plant? Companion planting is really important to understand and utilize, because you can really maximize space, productivity, and also repel pests, with the right combination. It is also true, however, that planting “bad neighbors” together might result in increased pests or unhappy plants. There are a ton of potential good combinations out there, but it’s good to know the bad ones too, so you can prevent unhappy neighbors! This great little infographic for visual learners like myself, […]

How to Test Your Soil Using Only a Mason Jar

When starting a garden, it’s crucial to know what kind of soil you’re working with. It will help you determine what to plant and how to amend your soil. All soil is comprised of three basic components: sand, silt, and clay, and varying combinations of these three components determine what type of soil you have. Loamy soil is ideal, and it is typically more or less an even mix of sand, silt, and clay. It is slightly spongy and moist, but still light enough that it doesn’t get packed down too easily. In essence, it’s just right. To achieve this […]

How to Make Hard Candy (Video)

This is a homemade recipe I’ve always wanted to try, and this fun and informative video on how to make your own hard candy at home is really great! Using simple tools and ingredients that you probably already have at home, (with the exception of a candy thermometer, not everyone might have that), they walk you through the simple process with clarity and humor. Candy making is simple, but it’s also a very precise chemical reaction that’s taking place, as you bring the ingredients to extremely high temperatures to achieve the desired consistency, so I think it’s really useful to […]

Homesteading on a Budget

Many people spend a substantial amount of money on homesteading. They end up spending far more than they should on all the latest and greatest gear and equipment. While it might be nice to have all those things, you need to realize that it is certainly not necessary. Just because you do not have a lot of money, it does not mean that you can’t homestead. Think about it for a minute. The pioneers, the original homesteaders here, did not have a lot of money. They were self-sufficient, and that’s what you need to be as well. You can get […]

Mother of Four Builds House From YouTube Video Instructions

These days, we all rely on the internet for literally everything. I personally believe that YouTube instruction videos are one of the greatest inventions of all time (seriously!). It is such an incredible thing to be able to search for a video to help you out with a confusing or intimidating project, and homesteaders know this better than anyone! Whether you want to learn how to build cold frames, shear a sheep, or birth a baby cow, YouTube has videos for pretty much everything. Still, it might surprise you to learn what this incredibly ambitious mother of four did, using […]

Ways to Recycle Sawdust

Woodworking projects and home repairs top the to-do lists of many homesteaders, but they generate a copious amount of a largely unwanted byproduct: sawdust. Before dumping your next shovelful of sawdust into the trash, take a look at this list of creative ways to make good use of it: Use for traction when you’re stuck in the snow. Sawdust is traditionally used by logging truck drivers to prevent slipping and getting stuck in harsh winter road conditions. Keep a sealed bag or two of it in your trunk to spread around your tires for extra traction if you get […]

Five Must-Have Cast Iron Pieces

When first making the switch from toxic nonstick cookware to cast iron, you may have a few reservations about the care or cost, especially if you run your homestead on a tight budget. The good news is that cast iron cookware outlasts its nonstick and other counterparts by decades, even centuries; you won’t be replacing cheap pots and pans every few years. This coupled with a good grasp of the simple process of caring for your cookware, leaves no reason not to take the plunge! If you’re ready to start your cast iron collection, check out these essentials first! […]

DIY Udder Balm for Goats or Cows

When you have a milk-producing goat or cow, their udders might get a lot of work. They can get sore or irritated, so it’s handy to be able to have a balm to soothe them on hand in case this happens. However, unfortunately, most storebought balms are petroleum-based and expensive, and, if you live in the country, might be far away! Today, we’ve got a very simple DIY udder balm recipe that can be used making the same ingredients we recommend for a lot of our homemade remedies. What you need: 1/2 ounce beeswax 1 ounce shea butter 1 ounce […]

5 Ways for Your Chickens to Earn Their Keep

Chickens are more than just egg producers, if you utilize them correctly, they can be a vital part of a smoothly running homestead! They are excellent additions to any gardening effort, and can even be useful with raising larger poultry as well! Here are some ideas for how to get the most out of your chickens, and as all these ideas utilize what chickens are born to do, your hens are guaranteed to be more happy as well! And happy hens means more eggs. It’s a win-win for everyone! 1. Prep garden beds You will probably want to keep your chickens […]

DIY Mason Jar Beehive

Just when you think you’ve seen it all! I am slightly freaking out right now because this is just about the coolest thing I have seen in a VERY long time. You can, in fact, make a beehive using mason jars as the hives, and the bees will produce honey right in your jars! How cool is that? Here’s what the finished product looks like, to give you an idea: Want to give it a try yourself? Here’s what you need: Supplies: 2 pieces of 2″ x 12″ x 6′ wood 2 pieces of 1″ x 1″ x 6′ wood […]

Back to Nature Garden (Video)

This is a super cool concept that I’ve often wanted to try myself. The folks at Deep South Homestead, one of my favorite YouTube channels, have tried the “Back to Eden” gardening method, without much success. Back to Eden is the gardening method that was shown in the film by the same name, that involves layering wood chips and manure that sit for a season. The idea is to mimic the natural formation of soil in the forest. Danny from Deep South Homestead explains in this video that because of termites infesting their wood chips, that Back to Eden did […]