As the seed catalogs flood our mailboxes, glorious thoughts of beautifully colored fruits and vegetables surround our minds. We picture ourselves strolling through weedless gardens, as the birds sing, plucking the fruit of our labor, with just a glow of perspiration on our face! Psht. The reality of the garden is much different that the…
Growing Food
Weed-Free Gardening
Is weed-free gardening possible? Without using pesticides and herbicides? Sure it is! While no method can guarantee absolutely no weeds, you can definitely avoid most of the weeds that want to grow in your garden this year! It takes a little forethought before the growing season. You will have to spend some time out in…
How to Grow Garlic Indoors
Who doesn’t LOVE garlic?? Ever wondered how to grow garlic indoors? The beautiful thing about nature is that much of our food can be easily reproduced to create more food! Such is the case with garlic! First things first, let’s understand that while you can grow garlic indoors, the entire head of garlic will not…
How to Start Boxed Plants Inside
You’ve just begun to see them…those boxed plants are showing up everywhere they sell gardening supplies! But, what exactly are you supposed to do with these boxed plants when it’s far too cold to plant outside? By learning “How to Start Boxed Plants Inside”, you get a jump on the gardening season and be ready…
9 Things to Consider Before Getting Livestock
One of the most exciting parts of being sustainable is raising livestock! Raising animals is wonderful and rewarding. However, far too many people bring home livestock before truly counting the cost. So, let’s take a look at “9 Things You Should Consider BEFORE Getting Livestock”. This is an important subject, especially now as Spring…
Foraging Tips for Beginners
As a beginner, foraging doesn’t have to be a scary or intimidating thing. With a few field guides, tools and a bit of advice, you’ll start recognizing what’s safe to forage, how to collect and how to eat! Here’s some “Foraging Tips for Beginners” to get you started! So much delicious, diverse, organic (and did…
How to Get Started with Aquaponics
Aquaponics is one of the fastest growing, home food production methods in the world today! Globally, the aquaponics (and hydroponics) industry is expected to reach $1.98 billion by 2022! It stands to reason, if only because growing food with aquaponics uses just a fraction of the water that standard agriculture does! Want to know more? …
How Should You Buy Bees? Nucleus Colony VS. Packaged Bees
It’s that time of year again! Many beekeepers, new and experienced, will start to look ways to purchase their bees this year. But should you purchase a nuc or packaged bees? I’ll try to answer that question in “How Should You Buy Bees? Nucleus Colony VS. Packaged Bees”. You can find bees for sale all…
How to Overwinter Any Tomato Plant
You might be asking yourself what to do with your tomato plants in the winter! Can you bring your tomato plant inside for the winter? Do tomatoes regrow every year? Well, I’ve got the answers for you! Let me show you “How to Overwinter Any Tomato Plant”! You can also do this in the Springtime…
How to Make Homemade Pumpkin Puree
I know that fall is right around the corner when I start to see those sweet little sugar pumpkins at the store and the farmer’s market! Once I’m finished using them as fall decor, I like to bake them and make pumpkin puree, to use in pumpkin recipes! Homemade pumpkin puree tastes so much better…
5 Mistakes Newbie Homesteaders Make
Your homestead dream finally comes true! Dreams of livestock and gardens fill your head – the sky’s the limit! I’ve been there, and it’s wonderful. But, in my “homesteading bliss”, we made some critical errors that cost us a lot of time and money. It’s never flattering to expose our mistakes in life, but…
How to Grow and Harvest Asparagus
I LOVE fresh asparagus! But what I don’t love is the price. That’s why today, I’m going to show you how to grow and harvest asparagus! Growing your own asparagus takes time and patience, but man, it’s worth it! A well-tended asparagus patch can produce this nutrient-packed vegetable, year after year, for up to 30…