Our Journey to a Self-Sufficient Lifestyle
The Fall season is rapidly passing by so it is time to start thinking about preparations for the Winter months. I noticed our chickens are starting to molt and egg production is on the decline, so it’s time to start preserving eggs for the long Winter season. Unwashed farm fresh eggs can last a few …
Most backyard chicken keepers have run into this problem at least once. You purchase a dozen (supposed) sexed pullets from your local grain store and a few months down the line you start to realize that Henrietta is actually a Henry. Now what do you do? Keep him? Rehome him? Keeping a rooster is not …
We just returned from a short 3-day vacation to celebrate our 1 year wedding anniversary! While it was nice to sit back and relax on vacation, the amount of planning before we left was a bit stressful. As far as I know there are no boarding facilities for chickens so there is always a feeling …
Many homesteaders keep chickens for one obvious benefit – fresh eggs! But have you thought about other ways you can benefit from your backyard chickens? There is one commonly overlooked benefit to keeping chickens – Manure! One chicken will produce approximately 130 lbs of manure in one year. Chicken manure is rich in nitrogen which …
We take preparedness very serious on our homestead. When injury or illness strikes, we don’t want to be running back and forth to the feed store or trying to desperately order supplies online. Chickens are usually pretty hardy and easy keepers but there will be accidents and illnesses occasionally. I hope this first aid kit …
Today’s post is a rather short one, but I wanted to share my idea with all of you! We recently purchased a new washer and dryer and I thought it was time to give our laundry room a face lift. Our laundry room is located in the basement and was rather dark and dreary. A …
In my opinion, composting is absolutely necessary to maintain a self sufficient homestead. Not only does composting provide free fertilizer, it also reduces food waste. By reducing your food waste you are significantly reducing methane emissions from landfills. It is also a smart move financially – No more buying chemical fertilizer every year. There are …
Hot pepper jelly is one of the greatest appetizers you can bring to your next pot luck dinner or Holiday gathering. Paired with goat cheese (or cream cheese) and some crackers, this recipe will have your friends and family begging for more. It is a rather simplified version of some of the other recipes I …
We decided to grow sweet corn in our garden this year for the first time and were pleasantly surprised by how successful it was. Then the thought occurred to me – We can’t possibly eat all this corn at once. In comes the pressure canner. We shall learn how to preserve corn by pressure canning! …
Powdery mildew is an extremely common plant disease and can affect any vegetable garden, whether you have a small backyard operation or acres of crops. But don’t fret! It is also one of the most recognizable plant diseases so you can catch it at an early stage. What is Powdery Mildew? Powdery Mildew can be …