Some absolutely hate having a broody hen. Others (me, me, me!) absolutely love it. When a hen goes broody, she’s ready to hunker down, hatch some eggs, and raise the next generation of flock members. For us, that means we don’t have to: Incubate eggs, Purchase chicks, Maintain a brooder, Or take special care of

I’ve been trading and buying my seed-hoarding heart out- and today, I’m presenting a list of “new to me” varieties (and likely new to you, too!) that I’m absolutely over the moon about! This past fall, I was largely focused on trading as many seeds as possible in order to grow my personal collection of

Guys and girls, I’m beyond excited: It’s January, which means it’s about time to get some pepper and tomato seeds started! What better way to celebrate than to whip up a quick informational post for my fellow gardeners and homesteaders in zone 7a? If you’ve got your pepper and tomato seeds in hand, itching to

It’s cold. It’s dark. It’s dreary. Winter was always my least favorite season, but it becomes more of a bother the older I get. I’m just not a fan, and I’ve grown increasingly bitter about it… I mean, winter just barges in the door, kills all of your plants, and leaves your hands a cracked,

Currently, I want a greenhouse. A big, beautiful, greenhouse. I want to be able to keep a salad garden thriving throughout the winter months without stalled growth, and potentially cool weather tomatoes as well (such as Sub-Arctic Plenty.) I imagine several beds on either side, lining the path to floor-ceiling shelving, which will hold my

Hello again, everyone! What better to receive this holiday season than a bunch of seeds for the veggie, herb, and flower gardens as we head into 2020? Well, our family and Joey’s family over at Burning Hearth Homestead are going to make that happen for two wonderful followers! First, we’re going to go over what’s

Most people are accustomed to purchasing chicks in the spring, usually somewhere around February or March. It makes sense; by the time the chicks reach 5 weeks of age, you’re able to put them outside, as it’s starting to warm up with spring’s arrival. Then, you’re faced with another 4 to 6 months before the

Last winter, we had unusually warm weather. It never got below 14°F, which was wonderful. In addition, it only got that low once. Just once! In our 7a zone in TN, that’s rather incredible. This fall? Well, I’m not so sure things are looking so great. Winter? I’m getting rather concerned about. I mean, not

I’m going to be 100% honest here: Homesteading is not easy. It is not all happy, healthy, bouncing babies, or bumper crop after bumper crop. It’s not all joy and laughter. It just simply isn’t. Truthfully, homesteading isn’t for the faint of heart. We wouldn’t trade it for the world, though. This might not be

Pepper seeds are one of the slowest seeds to germinate. A lot of first year gardeners (and even second year, if they’re quick to forget!) seem to miss this memo, and they lose confidence when those tiny little seedlings fail to break the surface. With a bit of patience, they’ll eventually poke their heads above

If you’ve been eyeing the world of food dehydration with curiosity, I hope you’ll take action and try your hand at this incredible method of food preservation! Food dehydration may seem controversial to some because it is not heat-treated when packed into jars or bags, which can scare some people away. They’re missing out on

So, I was recently asked a really good question: “What’s your favorite seed company? Why do you use that company for your homestead?” There’s a ton of places to buy seeds out there, a ton of great places, actually! I’ve bought seeds from: Baker Creek Burpee SeedsNow American Seed Co Ferry Morse Various eBay Sellers

Let me start off by saying this is ALMOST DIY. It uses two commercial organic pesticides, among other ingredients that I add. So while this is a do-it-yourself concoction, it’s not 100% homemade. However, the individual ingredients are not enough to provide effective control of and protection from squash bugs and vine borers. It’s also

Homesteading can be pretty expensive; I’m not going to lie. In order to get many of the things we need or want (without spending a fortune, because it’s easy to do here and there!), I had to find a few loopholes. Some of these methods are obvious, others take a bit of experience…. All of

Spacing tomatoes properly is vital for their success; but, did you know that how you grow, prune, train, and trellis them are going to impact their spacing requirements? For many homesteaders, the goal is to fit as many plants as are needed into as small of a space as possible, while maximizing yields and minimizing

So, you visited the feed store…  And you came home with not only chicks, but ducklings, too. Hey, we’ve all done it! (and some of us will CONTINUE to do it…) Now you’re stuck in a predicament: two species, one brooder. So naturally, here you are. You need to know if the ducklings and chicks

Asparagus is a delicious perennial vegetable that every homestead should grow if given the opportunity. It will provide the family with food for decades, as long as the asparagus is not out-competed. As the plants grow older, the ferns grow bigger; but what DO you do with those massive asparagus ferns? Do you just leave

Nearly every homestead has a strawberry patch, hidden somewhere around the home or main garden. Strawberries are simply delicious when grown at home, nothing like their unripe grocery store counterparts. They are sweeter, more flavorful, and  softer! However, growing strawberries seems to take an eternity when you don’t have much patience. ……… Who am I kidding?