Category Archives: Homesteading/Prepping

Butchering Equipment for the Self-Reliant Homesteader

Posted on November 27, 2023 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

With the onset of cooler weather, late fall/early winter is traditionally the time larger animals such as pigs and cows are slaughtered on the homestead for the freezer. Now that fall is upon us, let’s talk about the butchering equipment … Continue reading →

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Six Uses for Utility muslin on the Homestead

Posted on November 4, 2023 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

Utility muslin, a cheaper grade of muslin than that used in crafts and sewing, has been in use on our homestead for decades and as such has been a valuable addition to my fabric stash. So much so that many … Continue reading →

Posted in Homesteading/Prepping | Tagged homesteading, Off Grid Cooking, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance | Leave a comment

12 Steps to Becoming More Self-Reliant

Posted on March 11, 2023 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

If you’ve been wanting to become self-reliant but are unsure how to proceed, consider these 12 steps to becoming more self-reliant to get you started. If you’re already on your path to self-reliance, there may be some items in this … Continue reading →

Posted in Homesteading/Prepping | Tagged homesteading, off grid, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance | 2 Comments

The Aging Homesteader

Posted on December 19, 2022 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

Aging is a fact of life. Even though we’ve been homesteading for over 43 years and we’re in our 60’s, we haven’t slowed down much. But we know the day is coming when we’ll slow down to the point it … Continue reading →

Posted in Homesteading/Prepping | Tagged Gardening, Homestead Building, homesteading, self sufficiency, self-reliance | 5 Comments

Woodlot Thinning

Posted on May 14, 2022 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

For 42 years, I’ve actively managed and worked in the woods. The forest has been a source of firewood, income, recreation and exercise. Johanna and I cannot imagine living anywhere else other than surrounded by forest. I cannot look at … Continue reading →

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Thoughts Regarding The Coronavirus

Posted on July 10, 2020 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

This will be one of those non-negotiable, we won’t budge on our philosophy type posts. Johanna and I are a bit frustrated! We felt it might be of value to some of you to discuss our thoughts regarding the coronavirus … Continue reading →

Posted in Homesteading/Prepping | Tagged Coronavirus, homesteading, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance | 10 Comments

Our New Book – The Self-Sufficient Backyard: For the Independent Homesteader

Posted on April 29, 2020 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

Johanna and I are thrilled to announce that our new book The Self-Sufficient Backyard: For the Independent Homesteader is available for purchase in both ebook format and/or printed copy. Here is the link to the webpage: https://self-sufficient-backyard.com/my-book/ We are not … Continue reading →

Posted in Homesteading/Prepping, Uncategorized | Tagged Gardening, Homestead Building, homesteading, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance | 30 Comments

Spring 2018 Update On Our Off Grid Homestead

Posted on June 15, 2018 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

It’s been quite some time since we gave everybody an update on our progress or lack thereof. Let me give you the spring 2018 update on our off grid homestead. We made it through the winter in the tent just … Continue reading →

Posted in Homesteading/Prepping | Tagged homesteading, off grid, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance | 8 Comments

Forest Fires and How We Survived Them – Part 2

Posted on June 2, 2018 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

Imagine if you will, being outdoors and hearing a chugging sound in the distance and realizing that chugging is not a choo choo train coming. When you run down to the lake’s shoreline, four miles in the distance, you fix … Continue reading →

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Forest Fires and How We Survived Them – Part 1

Posted on April 30, 2018 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

You never want to look out your window or step outdoors and see a column of black/gray smoke rising from the nearby forest. That happened several times to us when we lived out in the Saskatchewan wilderness. Those experiences give … Continue reading →

Posted in Homesteading/Prepping, Uncategorized | Tagged homesteading, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance | 6 Comments

Mid-Summer Homestead Update.

Posted on August 7, 2017 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

We wanted to take a little time to show you what we have accomplished since our last update. We’ve made some real progress. I especially, am results driven and things don’t always look like they’re progressing fast enough. But when … Continue reading →

Posted in Homesteading/Prepping | Tagged homesteading, off grid, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance | 8 Comments

Squeeze a House into a Tent

Posted on August 2, 2017 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

Most of us live in some form of traditional home complete with the typical layout. We probably have a living room, dining room, bathroom, kitchen and utility area. Unless a person is a tiny home enthusiast, most homes are of … Continue reading →

Posted in Homesteading/Prepping | Tagged homesteading, off grid, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance | 6 Comments

Wall Tent, Our Temporary Home

Posted on July 16, 2017 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

Have you ever heard of a wall tent? You may be familiar with backpacking and family camping tents put out by various companies but there is another breed of tent used by hunters as well as the mineral and oil … Continue reading →

Posted in Homesteading/Prepping | Tagged homesteading, off grid, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance | 6 Comments

Road Building and Preliminary Orchard and Garden Preparation

Posted on June 4, 2017 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

We’ve come a long ways in a relatively short period of time. In my last update post, we had selected our property and were clearing a homestead site by manual chainsaw work. Johanna was piling all the brush into large … Continue reading →

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Our New Off-Grid Homestead is Underway!

Posted on May 8, 2017 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

If you’ve been following along via facebook, you know we arrived safe and sound in Nova Scotia. We haven’t stopped since arriving. We own two properties along the coast and we had the hard decision of which one would be … Continue reading →

Posted in Homesteading/Prepping | Tagged homesteading, off grid, self sufficiency, self-reliance | 8 Comments

Homestead Road Building

Posted on March 3, 2017 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

Busting a road through the woods is an expensive proposition. You may have to pay a logger to drop trees. You will have to hire a bulldozer to clear the roadway. Then you will need to pay for load after … Continue reading →

Posted in Homesteading/Prepping | Tagged homesteading, off grid, self sufficiency, self-reliance | 1 Comment

The Homestead Plan – Part 2

Posted on February 8, 2017 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

Welcome back! Continuing on from yesterday’s discussion, I asked numerous questions and suggested ascertaining all the different attributes of your property and mapping them out. Now let’s start to lay out your homestead plan using that information. Laying Out the … Continue reading →

Posted in Homesteading/Prepping | Tagged homesteading, off grid, prepping, self sufficiency, self-reliance | 2 Comments

The Homestead Plan – Part 1

Posted on February 7, 2017 by Ron & Johanna Melchiore

I’ve written numerous articles regarding the basics; what to look for in a homestead site as well as options for the homestead water supply. At this point, I’d like to tie things together a bit. Let’s call it the homestead … Continue reading →