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5 Healthy-Sounding Food Additives to Avoid

We all know how many unpronounceable additives there are on ingredient labels these days, and it can be overwhelming trying to decipher even seemingly natural food brand’s ingredients. Because we don’t all have time to Google every ingredient in the supermarket isle, here are five healthy-sounding ingredients that should be avoided. Enriched Wheat Enriched wheat has long been recommended by doctors as a nutritious way to consume wheat, but it’s actually far from healthy. As real nutrients are stripped from the wheat in modern refining, enriched wheat and flour simply has synthetic nutrients added back in. Enriched flours of all […]

5 Great Reasons to Get Goats

Goats are awesome. They’re fun, cute, useful, slightly weird, and low-budget and low-maintenance options for livestock. If you’re not convinced, below are five great reasons to get goats. 1. Milk I don’t know about you but I personally don’t need any more reason than this. Goat milk is delicious, and what’s better than loads of free milk, from an animal who’s food you supply and who you see every day? A constant supply of free range, non-GMO, organic goat’s milk of your own is definitely the very best reason to get a goat. 2. Cheese There is such a thing […]

Crops You Can Plant in August

As summer is winding down, many crops planted in spring and early summer are ready to be harvested and your garden beds are getting bare. But you don’t have to go fallow just yet-here are a few great options for crops you can plant in August for Fall or Winter harvest. Kale The choice vegetable of hipsters is at the top of this list for a reason. Quite possibly the perfect fall and winter crop, they are very cold-hardy, and may only require something as simple as a heavy row cover to protect them from cold and frost. But what most people […]

Should You Be a Beekeeper? 3 Questions to Ask First

All over the world, people are worried about honeybee populations. Declining bee populations mean a decline in pollination, as well as a decrease in food supplies for birds. Basically, if bees disappear, we’ll be in a lot more environmental trouble than you might think. As a result, homesteaders everywhere are helping their local bee populations out by becoming beekeepers, but should you do the same? There are a few questions you should ask before you commit to home beekeeping. Is One of Your Family Members Allergic to Bees? First, if anyone in your family is allergic to bees, then the […]

4 Healthy DIY Alternatives to Soda

Soda is delicious, refreshing and, unfortunately, really, really bad for you. A single can of soda contains roughly ten tablespoons of sugar, not to mention extra high fructose corn syrup, or, if you’re opting for diet soda, harmful aspartame, which has been linked to cancer in rats and is even commonly recommended that pregnant women avoid for its increased risk of birth defects or miscarriage. Soda also contains phosphoric acid, sodium, and is normally made with the lowest-quality tap water available. All these nasty ingredients greatly increase your risk of diabetes, cancer, chronic dehydration and high blood pressure, as well as tooth […]

Skills to Build While You Wish You Could Homestead

Whether you’re stuck in a cramped apartment in the city or living in a suburban starter home while you save up to buy land, there’s no reason you can’t start building your homesteader skills now, as you dream of more self-reliant times ahead. You can check out our guide to how to homestead in a city if you can’t wait to free yourself from the grid, and also start developing the following skills to be ready when the time comes to fully escape the plugged in life: Bake your own bread: We tend to take our packaged, fluffy white supermarket loaves for […]

DIY Apple Cider Vinegar

Apple cider vinegar is one of the most popular and useful natural health food items you can find. It’s incredibly versatile, and can be used internally for a plethora of maladies, as a cosmetic and topical remedy and also to preserve food and sanitize the home. But did you know you can make your own right on your countertop? Homemade apple cider vinegar is not only incredibly economical, it is delicious and requires nothing special to make. Odds are if you’re already an experienced homesteader or canner, you have what you need to make delicious apple cider vinegar right at […]

How to Homestead in a City

Many of us would like to be able to afford a plot of land in the middle of nowhere and set up an amazing homestead, but that’s not always an option for everyone. One of the big appeals of homesteading is becoming self-reliant. So while you may be tethered to an urban lifestyle for now, there’s plenty you can do to become more self-reliant and homestead right where you are. Grow Your Food: This one is definitely obvious, but many people aren’t aware of how much they can really do in a small space. Tower gardens, box gardens, window gardens […]

Highly Effective Natural Bug Repellents

A lot of people think that living the homesteader lifestyle means giving up on modern amenities, like mosquito repellent. While you might not be buying chemical-heavy sprays like others, though, you don’t actually have to just sit back and let mosquitoes and other bugs take over your life. In fact, there are a lot of highly effective natural ways to keep those bugs away from you, your home, and your garden. Make Your Own Bug Spray Grab a spray bottle and fill it halfway with distilled […]

5 Survival Foods That Virtually Last Forever

When stocking up a survival stash, it’s important to maximize your space with items that will last the longest. Below is a list of items that will virtually last forever… 1.Dried Beans Dried beans are probably one of the most common items to stock up on and for good reason. When kept away from moisture and light, they can last for decades. Vacuum sealing is a great option for storing beans, as they keep best in an absence of oxygen. 2. Vinegar Due to its high acidity, vinegar will last essentially forever. Vinegar is a great item to stock up […]

4 Underrated Medicinal Herbs

Herbs like mint, Echinacea, aloe and chamomile are common fixtures in medicinal gardens. But here are some lesser-known medicinal plants that make great additions to any natural healing arsenal. Some could even be already growing in your backyard! Marigold Commonly grown for its beautiful bloom, marigold has some wonderful healing properties as well. The calendula variety, otherwise known as “pot marigolds” are the most beneficial. You have probably already heard of calendula ointment, which is used to reduce swelling and inflammation in sore muscles, sprained ankles and bruising. When taken internally, marigold can improve circulation, boost the immune system, […]

Age-Appropriate Farm Chores for Kids

If you’re getting started with a family homestead, one of the things you’ll have to learn very quickly is how to delegate. Even a small farm takes a ton of work, and one person can’t do it all. Whether you pay an allowance, or simply make chores a part of learning life skills, your kids should be a part of caring for your family homestead. If you have younger children, there are still plenty of ways that they can help out around the farm. Pre-School Aged Children While you may have to help 2- or 3-year-olds with some of the […]

Get Lost In This Weapon Build…

The Mesmerizing Build Of A Long Bow… I love watching people build things. I get lost watching people use techniques that have been refined over generations. Watch this master of his craft create a weapon that has been used to conquer and defend millions of people for centuries… If you are looking for something a little more practical and DIY, I would suggest checking out the PVC builds of long bows. For a relatively small cost you can build your own accurate and effective long bow (but it won’t be as beautiful as the one this film)… If you liked […]

Understanding Gardening Zones

When planning a survival garden, it’s tempting to just start with a list of vegetables that you like to eat, or the ones that will offer the most nutrients and highest yields in the least amount of space. But it’s probably best to begin by learning about your gardening zone, so that you don’t waste your time with plants that aren’t a good fit for your area. Garden zones, also called hardiness zones, are the areas that have been defined by the USDA, that show which plants grow best in which areas. These zones are defined by the temperate range […]

Turn Your Garden Into A DIY Spa

Besides creating a surplus of food, and being used for medicinal and cleaning purposes, your garden has many other uses. One of those is allowing you to pamper yourself once in a while! After you’ve put in all that hard work, you can harvest a few ingredients out of your garden and use them to create your very own DIY spa day. Citrus fruits are perfect for giving oily skin a detoxifying facial. Mix the juice of a lemon, orange, or other citrus fruit, with honey and yogurt for a creamy cleanser that can also help lighten sun spots and […]

10 Ways to Reuse Citrus Peels

Reusing things is more than just a habit for self-sufficient homesteaders; it’s an essential part of living. Food scraps are often tossed to animals, or composted for great gardening material. But there are many ways that you can reuse citrus peels,including lemons, oranges, grapefruits, and limes. 1. Create an eco-friendly cleaning solution by tossing lemon peels into a re-sealable container, and adding just enough vinegar to cover the peels. After two weeks, the mixture will have taken on the smell of the lemons. Related Article: Easy and Effective All Natural Homemade Citrus Cleaner 2. Small pieces of lemon peel scattered […]

DIY Emergency Lighting

You never know when you might find yourself in a pinch and need some kind of emergency lighting. Perhaps the power is out and the battery in your flashlight died, or you are camping and damaged your flashlight during a hike. Whatever the reason, here are two ways that you can create an emergency candle with just a few basic supplies that you probably have around the house or campsite. 1. Oil + Wick = Light There are many types of oil that burn, some better than others, but if you keep the basic components in mind, it’s very likely […]

How To Use Extra Cucumbers

Many gardeners find themselves trying to give away zucchini squash year after year, but did you know that a once mildly performing cucumber plant can produce a bumper crop out of nowhere? Like many other homesteaders or serious gardeners, you can easily find yourself with cucumbers coming out of your ears. Pickles and salads get old very quickly, so here are some other ways you can use up those surplus cucumbers. 5 Ways to Use Surplus Cucumbers Sandwich spread and other dips are the perfect way to use cucumber. Add cucumber and dill to a Tzatziki sauce for Greek recipes, […]

[Video] Avoid these 10 veggie garden pitfalls…

This video does a great job addressing many common vegetable and home gardening problems and how to fix them. Some of these issues have popped up for me in the past and they are easily misdiagnosed. Watch this video to help identify your potential garden problems. If you liked that, you might also like: Learn How To SUPER-CHARGE your garden or farm… Click Here To Get The Best Survival Medical Course… Check Out These Mind Blowing Survival Skills…

Simple Green Laundry Hacks

When you begin learning how to eat and live more organically and self-sufficiently, it doesn’t take long for you to start noticing how other choices in your life could be greener. Did you know that more than 70% of natural streams in America have been found to contain traces of laundry detergent? Or that drying a load of laundry can create more than two kilograms of carbon released into the atmosphere? There are many ways to make your laundry eco-friendlier to reduce your carbon footprint and the chemical leftovers that are created while you get your clothes clean. Making your […]