Author Barbara Kingsolver and her family abandoned the industrial-food pipeline to live a rural life--vowing that, for one year, they'd only buy food raised in their own neighborhood, grow it themselves, or learn to live without it. Part memoir, part journalistic investigation, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle is an enthralling narrative that will open your eyes in a hundred new ways to an old truth: You are what you eat.
This comprehensive guide to homesteading provides all the information you need to grow and preserve a sustainable harvest of grains and vegetables; raise animals for meat, eggs, and dairy; and keep honey bees for your sweeter days. With easy-to-follow instructions on canning, drying, and pickling, you'll enjoy your backyard bounty all winter long. Also available in this series: The Backyard Homestead Seasonal Planner, The Backyard Homestead Book of Building Projects, The Backyard Homestead Guide to Raising Farm Animals, and The Backyard Homestead Book of Kitchen Know-How. View More...
Gail Damerow shows you how to choose the right breeds for your needs, build efficient chicken coops, provide necessary medical attention for your animals, and much more. Whether you're raising broilers for meat or preparing your chickens to win a blue ribbon at the next county fair, Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens will help you achieve your poultry-raising goals. View More...
With dozens of adaptable plans for sheds, coops, hutches, multipurpose barns, windbreaks, and shade structures, this guide covers everything you need to know to build safe and sturdy housing for your animals. Stressing the importance of evaluating your goals, planning ahead, and budgeting accordingly, Carol Ekarius helps you determine the best structure for your particular situation and offers expert advice on tools and construction techniques. Build a functional and comfortable house for your animals that they'll be proud to call home. View More...
When is the right time to shear a sheep? Is there a market for manure? What time of day is best to collect eggs? What is the correct way to milk a goat? What does a duck eat? Can a cow and a sheep share the same pasture? Which types of rabbits are easiest to raise? The perfect book for anyone who has ever dreamed of having that little place in the country, "Barnyard in Your Backyard" offers tried-and-true, expert advice on raising healthy, happy, productive farm animals: chickens, geese, ducks, rabbits, goats, sheep, and dairy cows. Each chapter focuses on a different animal, discussing the pr... View More...
Dirt-free, low-cost, space-saving, low in pesticides, and environmentally friendly, hydroponic gardening the art of growing plants without any soil is a method already used by millions for growing healthy, vibrant plants by everyday gardeners. In Greek, hydro translates to water and ponos translates as labor, meaning that your garden lets the water do the work of feeding nutrients to your plant no soil necessary. This technology allows your plants to grow with nutrient solutions, with its roots free or supported by means like peat moss, sawdust, or gravel. The result is high yield production w... View More...
Goat Song is the story of a year in the life of a couple who abandoned their one-bedroom apartment in New York City to live on seventy-five acres in Vermont and raise Nubian goats. In poetic, reverent detail, Brad Kessler explores our ancient relationship to the land and our gradual alienation from the animals that feed us. His fascinating account traces his journey of choosing the goats and learning how to breed, milk, and care for them. As Kessler begins to live the life of a herder, he encounters the pastoral roots of so many aspects of Western culture--how our diet, our alphabet, our relig... View More...
This newly revised and updated book shows you everything to effectively pair your crops. You will learn the basics of crop rotation and how the Iroquois first used companion planting to improve harvests. You will learn how to work with natural conditions and which pairings give you the best produce and the most vibrant flowers. You will learn about how to prepare your garden and how to create an easy-to-follow gardening schedule. Learn the best and worst companions for annuals, perennials, fruits, vegetables, shrubs, and vines. View More...
Just like houses, chicken coops come in all shapes and sizes. Judy Pangman presents how-to drawings and conceptual plans for 45 coops -- from the strictly practical to flights of fancy -- guaranteed to meet the needs of every bird owner, however big or small your flock may be. Color photographs and innovative suggestions fill this encouraging guide, while lively anecdotes profile an array of coop builders and their various construction methods. Start building the coop of your chickens' dreams View More...
Twenty years ago Joel Salatin wrote You Can Farm, which has launched thousands of farm entrepreneurs around the world. With another 20 years of experience under his belt, bringing him to the half-century mark as a full-time farmer, he decided to build on that foundation with a sequel, a graduate level curriculum. Everyone who reads and enjoys that previous work will benefit from this additional information. In those 20 years, Polyface Farm progressed from a small family operation to a 20-person, 6,000-customer, 50-restaurant business, all without sales targets, government grants, or an off-far... View More...
Do you desire to glorify God through the way you farm? Are you tired of reading books on farming and food production that ignore God as Creator? Have you ever wondered what agriculture would look like if it was based on the Bible instead of on evolution, Mother Nature, or the latest manipulations of life by science? In Born Again Dirt, Noah Sanders encourages Christian farmers to evaluate their farming methods in light of Scripture. This book looks at various Biblical principles related to agriculture and provides examples of practical application. Topics covered include: -Designing farms as b... View More...
Some of the best fertilizer on the planet can be made with your very own garbage. Starting with something as simple as coffee grounds, old banana peels, bread crusts, and leftover meals, you can start creating a garden with your food waste using the age old secret of composting to build a healthy, happy garden. This book provides a detailed outline of how anyone with a little extra space and a garden can start composting today. You will learn about all of the different ways that composting can be helpful to you, as well as the different reasons why people choose to compost and what you and you... View More...
A companion volume to Backyard Homesteading, 40 Projects for Building Your Backyard Homestead provides details on how to build more than 40 projects to enhance readers' sustainable living. Even if they are only moderately handy, they'll discover the tools and techniques for building their own feeders, fences, and structures. In the process, they'll save money and have the satisfaction of doing it themselves.
Following the simple plans in Lights On will ensure that you are safe and secure during widespread long-term power outages.The US electric grid is at greater risk today than ever before. From aging infrastructure, severe weather, and EPA mandated closure of coal-fired power plants to solar storms, digital sabotage, terrorism, and electromagnetic pulse attacks, future outages are almost certain. And they will likely last far longer and cover much larger areas than anything experienced in the past. When the grid is down and you run out of fuel for your generator, and all the stores are closed, t... View More...
