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  • All About Bees (Infographic)

    All About Bees (Infographic)

    Bees are under serious threat lately, and if the bees die out, it would seriously disrupt life on this earth. I’ve always wanted to keep bees but never have, so I don’t know that much about how they work, but I love learning.

    This infographic from HobbyFarms.com is totally awesome and I learned so much about bees in such a short time! It breaks down their social order, their life span and life stages, their anatomy, fun facts about bees, and even what is threatening them in the environment. This really makes me want to plant as many bee-friendly plants as I can and look into keeping them one day, to do my part to keep these important workers of nature alive and well!

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  • How to Plant a Hidden Survival Garden

    How to Plant a Hidden Survival Garden

    For regular life, it’s great to have a neat little garden, with divided rows and beds, cleared of weeds and with plenty of sunshine. But if  you want to plant a garden for post-disaster survival, you might want to consider hiding some plants on your property or nearby your house, so that looters (or even government officials) cannot easily find your precious food supply.

    There are a few tricks to camouflaging plants that might help:

    1. Grow plant barriers

    Hide a garden behind a row of thick, brambly hedge. A thorny plant would be ideal, as most people will probably not want to bother trecking through it.

    2. Plant in weeds and bushes

    If you’ve got sections on your property or areas around your house with lots of overgrowth, plant within the weeds, junk plants, and inedible brambles. You can clear small patches of dirt and keep them clear for the plants to grow, then once they’re big enough they will be able to compete easier on their own.

    3. Use plain-looking edible plants

    Bear in mind, not all vegetables will camouflage well. Avoid colorful tomatoes, and stick to some of the plants listed below, which will camouflage well and provide essential nutrients in your time of need.

    Best plants to camouflage: 

    Potatoes and sweet potatoes: most people these days wouldn’t recognize a potato plant. It mostly just looks like ground cover and it’s very easy to hide among other plants. Not to mention, it is one of the best sources of calories you could grow.

    Bush beans: also easy to hide among weeds, they’re leaves look like many plants that grow wild and they’ll blend right into many un-weeded areas.

    Kale: most varieties of kale have dark, leafy greens, that wouldn’t immediately catch the eye. While low in calories, they provide an excellent source of nutrients.

    Blueberries: the darker berries don’t catch the eye so much, and blueberries are an excellent source of nutrients and antioxidants. They’re used to growing in hedges and brambles, so they’ll do quite well planted among other plants.

     

    Remember, just be creative, think like a criminal, and spread your plants over several different areas. The object is to obscure your food source for survival, so try to be as innovative as you can. Planning ahead can save your life one day!

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  • Honey Vinegar Cough Medicine

    Honey Vinegar Cough Medicine

    I am always on the lookout for new natural remedies. You’d think I’d have plenty in my arsenal by now, but I always manage to find something new. In a world with a multitude of quick fix, over-the-counter products that do little more than mask our symptoms, it’s great to find remedies that use natural, nutritious, healing properties and are easy to make at home.

    As much as I love herbs, I don’t actually use a whole lot of them in my standard natural remedies, so I was really intrigued by this recipe when I found it. It uses several amazing herbs that I totally love, and I’m sure that’s what makes this natural cough remedy so effective. The base is honey and vinegar, which are both, of course, great for sicknesses of all kinds on their own, but the added herbs create a wonderful flavor and really boost the effectiveness of this remedy.

    Ingredients:

    • Hyssop, fresh or dried
    • Sage, fresh or dried
    • Thyme, fresh or dried
    • Raw organic honey
    • Raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar
    • Jar with a plastic lid

    Directions: 

    1. Collect your ingredients. The jar is probably the most important thing to have ready. The reason for the plastic lid is to prevent the vinegar from eroding the metal, so if you do not have a jar with a plastic lid, you can put a piece of cloth or wax paper over the mouth of the jar before securing with the metal lid.
    2. If you have fresh herbs, wash, thoroughly dry, and chop coarsely. If you are using dry herbs, make sure they’re at least roughly ground.
    3. Toss the herbs together in a small bowl (optional).
    4. Fill your jar 1/3 of the way with the herbs.
    5. In a separate container, mix equal parts honey and vinegar. You will want to fill the rest of the jar with this mixture so estimate how much you will need.
    6. Let sit for 2 days to 1 week (depending on how soon you need it)
    7. When ready to use, strain out the herbs and keep in the same jar. Take 2 tsp every few hours or so as needed until your cough is gone.

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  • Stump Removal (VIDEO)   

    Stump Removal (VIDEO)  

    Getting rid of an unwanted tree doesn’t end with cutting it down (that’s the easy part!) Even after cutting it up and hauling it off or chipping it, you will be left with a stump, and this can be where the real work starts.

    I’ve seen people try to get around this with various methods, including burning the stump, which is so dangerous I can’t believe people do it.  The fire can easily travel underground through the roots, starting other fires.  But in this video, the method of using a farm jack to lift the stump while cutting the roots is clearly demonstrated.  This method might not be as easy as burning the stump, but it is quicker, and much safer.

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  • Coconut Oil Candy Recipe

    Coconut Oil Candy Recipe

    In case you have been living under a rock, coconut oil has soared in popularity in recent years for being an insanely healthy superfood. Regular consumption of coconut oil will provide a multitude of benefits, including:

    • Reducing wrinkles and sagging skin
    • Fighting fungus and bacterial infections
    • Supporting the pancreas, liver and kidneys
    • Preventing Alzheimer’s
    • Easing digestion
    • Improving bone health
    • Maintains healthy blood sugar
    • Reduces cholesterol

    The problem is, most people won’t feel like swallowing a spoonful of coconut oil daily. It is, of course, easy to incorporate into your diet by cooking with it or putting in smoothies, but if you are someone with a regular sweet tooth trying to eat healthier, this delicious recipe is a godsend.

    If you love chocolate, want to eat more coconut oil, and love easy recipes, this is for you!

    These delicious coconut oil candies are insanely easy to make, and totally delicious. And the very best part? They’re totally healthy for you, and you have an excuse to eat them every day. Also, since the main ingredient is good-fat-rich coconut oil, they’re filling so while they’re sweet and delicious, they’re also quite filling and satisfying.

    Ingredients: 

    • 1 cup organic coconut oil
    • honey, maple syrup, agave or stevia (to taste)
    • 1/4 cup cocoa powder
    • Candy molds, ice cube trays, or a small baking pan
    • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
    • Salt (optional)

    Directions: 

    1. First, get your candy molds, ice cube trays, or baking pan ready. You will be pouring the candy mixture into whatever container you are using and refrigerating, so make sure you’ve got space in the fridge for it. If you’re using candy molds, it can be helpful to lay them all out on a candy sheet and clear one shelf of the fridge, for example.
    2. Melt the coconut oil in a small saucepan over low heat (unless it is warm enough in your home that it’s already in a liquid state, in which case, procced to step 3)
    3. Once the coconut oil is fully liquid (don’t let it get too hot, just warm enough to be melted), stir in your sweetener, vanilla extract, the salt if you’re using it, and the cocoa powder. 2 tbs of maple syrup is what I usually use, so just taste it to see its sweet enough for you.
    4. Mix everything thoroughly, then pour into your candy molds, ice cube trays, or pan.
    5. Refrigerate for about an hour, until the candy is fully hardened. Then transfer to an airtight container and keep in the refrigerator.

    Hope you enjoy these delicious healthy treats as much as I do!

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  • Homemade Dish Soap Recipe

    Homemade Dish Soap Recipe

    I love to DIY everything, but dish soap is something I’ve had trouble with in the past. It always streaks on dishes, doesn’t lather, or leaves a horrible film that’s difficult to remove. However, I really hate buying dish soap from the store, because if it’s not super expensive, it usually contains harmful chemicals. Even the supposedly natural and eco-friendly brands like Seventh Generation still contain sodium lauryl sulfate, which is something I try to avoid, if I can.

    However, I found this recipe recently and really liked it!

    The key ingredient is Sal’s Suds, which is a Dr. Bronner’s product. You can usually find it at Ace Hardware stores or on Amazon. It’s a great DIY cleaning product ingredient to have around the house.

    So, without further ado, let’s get started:

    INGREDIENTS

    • 1/2 cup Sal Suds
    • 1/2 cup distilled white vinegar (you could use herb or citrus infused vinegar as well)
    • 1/2 cup warm filtered water (minerals in tap water might prevent the soap from forming properly)
    • 1 tsp. citric acid or lemon juice
    • 2 tsp. kosher sea salt
    • 20 drops essential oil of choice (lavender and lemon are great options)

    DIRECTIONS

    1. In a mixing bowl, combine the warm water and salt, and stir until the salt is completely dissolved
    2. In a separate bowl, combine the vinegar, Sal Suds, and citric acid
    3. Stir the vinegar, Sal Suds, and citric acid mixture into the warm water and salt mixture
    4. As you stir, the mixture will thicken. Just keep stirring until fully combined and thickened.
    5. That’s it! You can pour this into an old dish soap container, or even one of those fancy oil bottles with the metal spout if you want to get fancy. Use as you would your regular dish soap, and enjoy the savings!

    If you try this recipe, please let us know how it turns out in the comments below. Enjoy!

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  • Natural Oven Cleaner (Video)

    Natural Oven Cleaner (Video)

    Oven cleaners are some of the most disgusting and toxic kinds of cleaning products out there, but cleaning an oven can be a real drag. The high heat of the oven bakes in all kinds of grime and grease, and since it’s not a surface in the kitchen that we regularly use, it tends to get neglected for months, possibly even years.

    There are a few different options for natural oven cleaning, but this is one of my favorites, and the video will be quite motivating. If you browse Pinterest or housekeeping blogs, everyone seems to have their own version of natural oven cleaners, but what I love about this video is you can see her method in action. It is cheap, easy, and super effective. Check it out!

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  • DIY Salt Cured Fish (Video)

    DIY Salt Cured Fish (Video)

    I recently posted a video about curing bacon, because I love cured meats of all time (and who doesn’t love bacon?). Curing meat seems to be a great homestead skill to have, wherever you live!

    However, curing fish is new to me, and this video explains how. It seems like a really cool process, using pickling salt, the sun, and a wood oven to cure and dry the fish. Seeing projects like this always motivates me to learn new ways to preserve food and add to  my stockpile. Check it out:

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