I have a favorite saying on the farm: “Sometimes the best chicken… is a duck.” There are several reasons I came up with this saying, and for why it tickles my funny bone. One of them is something I saw …
During the winter when many of us would like to heat with wood, it can be tricky to know what to use for fire starter. Some of us will buy fire starting bricks from stores. However, there’s a few much …
The mulberry can feed you really well, yet this tree is largely neglected, might I even say, despised by some, because it can be a bit messy. Mulberries are only messy because they are such huge producers of tasty berries. …
By Amy Lambert I am a sucker for unusual plants. I also love most international foods. Kitazawa Seed Company is a fun place to get mostly Asian seeds, although they have some standard varieties of “regular” fare. I’ve been on …
For years I had heard about herbicide contamination in the garden without experiencing it. Our homestead is fairly isolated from field crops, which are often the recipients of broadleaf herbicide treatment. Then some years ago we got hit hard. At …
Many gardeners struggle with deer. “Deer in the garden” is somewhat analogous to “wolf among sheep.” Every gardener wants to keep deer out of the garden. They are exceedingly damaging! While it isn’t hard to name crops which are very …
Hey all, When you work with any variety of prey animal on a homestead such as cattle, goats, sheep or even poultry, you need to learn how to apply the concept of approach and retreat. What is approach and retreat? …
Getting back to basics is a good thing, and learning to work outside your comfort zone almost certainly is part of such a lifestyle. Skills are necessary in order to live well as well as to save time and money. …
Let’s think about seed companies and seed savers. Occasionally I hear comments from new gardeners which indicate that they consider seed saving to be to be in competition with seed companies or that seed companies are somehow against seed saving. …
Ever run into these spiky seed balls in the grass and wondered if there’s a use for them? These are sweet gum seed balls. They aren’t sweet, but I am going to tell you all about some “sweet uses” for …