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
Tag: Beginner Homesteader Projects
So, you want to expand your seed collection, but you don’t know how. Or, you have thousands of one type of seed that you’ve saved (shout out the the Marigolds!), and you don’t want to see them go to waste. You only have so much gardening space and time, meaning your seed just keeps getting
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
Alright, alright. I get it; for many of us, antiperspirant plays a major role in our daily lives. We may be human, but the stench we can produce can beĀ unbearableĀ for others. It’s embarrassing… the thought of skipping on a potent antiperspirant is terrifying at best. For some of us, these antiperspirants have become impossible to
Indoor gardening strikes excitement within the hearts of homesteaders, because it allows us to deny winter (as much as we can, anyways…). Overall, being able to produce your own greens, fully grown vegetables, and even flowers indoors without sunlight is extremely exhilarating.
Making money on the homestead doesn’t have to be hard, or boring. In addition, you don’t have to do the same things that surrounding homesteads are doing in order to earn an income, either. Why compete, when you can dominate your own market, that’s just as easy to maintain? Now, I present this list to
During this long, cold winter, I decided I’d take on a few different projects in an attempt to fight off the mid-winter blues. We’re all dreaming of sunny, warm spring days, with flowers in bloom and tender salad greens as far as the eye can see…. That’s definitely not our reality right now, though; at
New baby? Just bought your homestead? Still grinding through college? Whether your finances are tight or you’re simply adopting a frugal lifestyle, you can garden without spending money! Standard gardens do require a good bit of preparation and investment: building beds and buying pots, amending soil, purchasing seeds, buying pest control, adding garden tools…. it
Tomatoes are one of our most important crops that we grow! I’m sure you can agree, as they are used for so many different foods including: Tomato Pasta Sauce (paste tomatoes) Marinara and Pizza Sauce (paste tomatoes) Salsa (slicing tomatoes) Ketchup (slicing or cherry/grape tomatoes) Salads (cherry tomatoes) Sandwiches & Burgers (slicing tomatoes) …. We’ll
Who doesn’t love an incredible hunk of freshly baked apple crisp, with a little bit of homemade, vanilla bean ice cream; Am I right, or am I right? Apple crisp is much easier to whip up at home than a pie is, and zucchinis are much easier to core and cut than apples are. They
ļ»æ Asparagus is one of my top veggies; it also happens to be one of the most expensive vegetables! Even the cheapest bunches at the local grocery stores ring in at $3 a pound; now, let’s not forget that you still have to cut the hardened, tough, browned, and woody ends off of your asparagus
IfĀ youĀ findĀ yourselfĀ withĀ aĀ lotĀ ofĀ woodĀ chipsĀ toĀ getĀ ridĀ of,Ā youĀ canĀ alwaysĀ compostĀ them. CompostingĀ woodĀ chipsĀ allowsĀ youĀ toĀ turnĀ excessĀ woodĀ fromĀ yourĀ propertyĀ intoĀ aĀ rich,Ā nutritious, organicĀ growingĀ mediumĀ forĀ yourĀ gardens.
If you have several pine trees on your property, it can be really hard to figure out what to do with all of those pine needles as they are shed. Pine needles are known to be very acidic, as they compost into the soil around the trees. Therefore, it may not be ideal to use
Strawberry seeds can require a bit of work in order to get started. They aren’t as simple to grow as other seeds, such as tomatoes or squash. As a matter of fact, growing strawberries from seed is one of the more difficult tasks that a home gardener might tackle. Want to know what you’ve done
Beans are a must-have on the homesteader’s menu. They’re easy to grow, they produce a lot of food, and they are multipurpose. You can grow them for green beans, or for shelling/dry beans! There are dozens and dozens of bean varieties, both bushes and vines. For containers, I recommend vining varieties (also known as pole
Are you addicted to root veggie harvest videos? I cannot get enough of them! Seriously. I think I may have to seek help for this little problem of mine… Harvesting sweet potatoes is a rush, especially when you can binge watch reveal videos on YouTube. I mean, how else are you supposed to get through
Seed Starting: It’s exciting. It’s liberating. It’s the best late winter tradition. When all else is cold, dead, or dormant, while the sun hangs behind the gloomy winter clouds, starting our seeds indoors or in the greenhouse gets us homesteaders pumped for the incoming growing season. But… What if I told you that sowing a
Rosemary. Rosmarinus officinalis. Affectionately “Dew of the Sea” in Latin, also referred to as “Anthos” in Greek, or “flower.” It makes a delicious, comforting roasted chicken, especially when it’s plucked straight from the homestead garden. Walk through the Rosemary bed on a warm summer day, and you’ll be greeted with an aromatic burst of the
It’s the middle of April, and spring is surging ahead here in our small southern piece of the pie. Strawberry pie, that is! Well, I wish anyways… I’m a bit impatient.
Personally, I find the paper towel method to be the best way to encourage a high germination rate among strawberry seeds. If you only have a few seeds to work with, I highly advise using this method; it’s important to know that berry seeds need light to germinate, as I found out through trial and
Having a single dairy cow on a homestead can prove to be quite the challenge: how are you going to use up all of that spare milk?! Even a die-hard milk fan will have a hard time working through a gallon of milk on a daily basis. I cannot fathom drinking glasses and glasses of